to make the ceremony perfect but the presence of our beloved Queen and her late husband. It was indeed impossible to look upon the two vacant chairs beneath the gorgeous canopy without a feeling of sadness, which, in the expressive words of the Laureate, must have made all present 'weep their thanks' to the Prince who had sown, but was not present to reap. For his prophetic and cheering declaration, gentlemen, you will succeed,' had come to pass: the great work had been accomplished, and it now only remained 803 for the public to set their seal of Uplift a thousand voices full and sweet, O silent father of our Kings to be, For this, for all, we weep our thanks to thee! The world-compelling plan was thine, Of Palace; lo! the giant aisles, Steel and gold, and corn and wine, Sunny tokens of the Line, Polar marvels, and a feast Of wonder, out of West and East, Brought from under every star, And mixt, as life is mixt with pain, The works of peace with works of war. War himself must make alliance With rough Labour and fine Science, And is the goal so far away? O ye, the wise who think, the wise who reign, And mix the seasons and the golden hours, And all men work in noble brotherhood, Breaking their mailed fleets and armed towers, And ruling by obeying nature's powers, And gathering all the fruits of Peace and crown'd with all her flowers. And shapes and hues of art divine, a large P was affixed, signifying Piano. The word, consequently, was printed Part, neither compositor nor reader having sufficient astuteness to detect the error, which was reproduced in all copies. We cannot pass from this musical part of our subject without noticing the great acoustical improvement effected by suspending a velarium over the orchestra. The effect, too, in a scenic point of view, of this great sweep of tented canvas is remarkably fine; so much so, indeed, as to make it more than ever a cause of regret that the money expended on the glass domes has not been saved. Purposing to devote another paper to a critical examination of the contents of the Exhibition, we shall do little more now than pass them briefly under review. The most striking fact connected with the present assemblage of objects, particularly if a comparison be instituted between the Exhibition of 1862 and that of 1851, is the great space occupied by engines of war. Then the flush of a new industrial idea and the lulling security of a long peace, filled many minds with the belief that there would be no more war. Swords were to be turned into sickles, the dawn of a millennium was at hand, and from henceforth the only contention would be that of rivalry in arts, commerce, and science. Alas! the dream faded with the passing away of the brilliant glass house in Hyde-park; and no sooner were the doors of the Exhibition of 1851 closed than the nations of the earth rose up to wage war. The blood of our country has been poured out like water on the soil of Russia. We have burned the palace of the Mongolian, and wrenched from him objects of art which we exhibit with a species of Roman triumph in 1862. Throughout India our hosts have done fierce battle, quelling hordes of mutineers; and, in short, the Exhibition of 1851, so far from inaugurating a reign of universal peace, seems to have lent force to the argument, that Ultima ratio regum is ever likely to predominate over international arbitrations. But let us not despair, for in those very inventions to blow the souls out of men's bodies, exhibited at South Kensington, there is matter for hope: for though the time has not yet arrived when we may break our mailed fleets and armed towers,' the alliance of war with science, by making war more destructive and terrible, will assuredly tend to make nations deliberate long and deeply before they rush to arms. Therefore it was a wise measure to group Armstrong and Whitworth guns by the side of scientifically constructed lighthouses, for if we can make war so destructive as to be almost impossible, we shall arrive at last at that blessed period when the 'fair white-winged peacemakers' will fly into every haven unharmed by man, and all men will work in noble brotherhood.' We have no hesitation in declaring that the great encyclopædia of industry at South Kensington is far more comprehensive and interesting than that of 1851. The inventive genius of man has made gigantic strides since that period. All countries, from the ancient kingdoms of Europe to those in other quarters of the globe, which have but recently quickened under the influence of civilization, show by the bewildering range of their industrial products that the command to bring the world under subjection is being obeyed, and that the earth is bringing forth her increase abundantly. There is but one exception. All the space that America filled in 1851 with grain and timber, hardware and provisions, and curious contrivances, many of great utility, is now dwarfed to a narrow corner, in which her eagle cowers with collapsed wings. Nothing could better illustrate the scourge of war than this falling away on the part of the United States; and indeed, if we look at the amount of space accorded to nations in the Exhibition, we find precisely what might be expected, viz., that those countries shaken by war occupy, in proportion to their territorial rank among nations, the smallest space. Austria demanded only 50,000 feet; Russia, with her vast territories, but 15,000; while tiny Belgium occupies not less than 48,000. Turning to England, and comparing the exhibition she made in 1851 with that on the present occasion, it appears to us that her most marked progress is in pottery. Our ceramic manufactures, in all their varied branches of the art, have really made gigantic strides. All our leading firms have surpassed their former efforts, some with majolica and Palissy ware, encaustic tiles, and Lucca della Robbia friezes; others with Parian and china. The fountain under the east dome is indeed a triumph of ceramic art. Our glass, too, shows that we have nearly wrested all the secrets of glass-making from our Continental friends. The impolitic excise duty on glass, enforced even when made for experimental purposes, kept us long back. When, however, it was removed, the art made great strides; and now Messrs. Chance of Birmingham manufacture optical glass of great purity. There is one secret, however, yet unknown to us, the possession of which has enabled M. Daguet of Soleure to make a glass of hitherto unrivalled excellence. Unfortunately, the secret bids fair to remain undivulged. M. Daguet had works near Soleure which he carried on beneficially, until a railway which passes close to them so affected His glass pots by the tremor occasioned by the locomotives and carriages, that he was obliged to suspend operations. He brought an action against the railway company for damages, but when the case came on for trial the Court held that it would be impossible to assess the damages unless it were made cognizant of the secret, and its pecuniary advantage. This M. Daguet declined imparting, and the Court refused to proceed further. 805 Of course, our hardware still remains unsurpassed, though the Zollverein is pressing us hard in this race. Bessemer's magnificent steel trophy, heaped with masses of metal that seem to have been worked by Titans, compels us to alter our ideas of the brittle nature of steel. But whoever wishes to see a type of England's might must visit the western annex, which from end to end is literally crammed with machinery of all descriptions. The exquisite mechanical contrivances of Mr. Whitworth for making tools will be found here, and it will be at once apparent by an examination of them that he is entitled to the high rank he holds as one of the first mechanicians of the age. Not less interesting, though not so imposing, is the class of philosophical instruments, which is extremely rich. Indeed, on no former occasion has there been such an assemblage of excellent, ingenious, and valuable instruments as are here to be seen, many of the highest utility, and all singularly illustrative of the inventive power of man. Mr. Babbage's calculating engine, and Mr. Peter's machine for microscopic writing, by means of which the Lord's prayer can be legibly written in a circle the three hundred and fifty-six thousandth part of an inch, are marvellous examples of ingenious construction. Nearly all our colonies make a very instructive display, and how much better they are represented now than they were in 1851, is evident by the fact that then, out of 23,575 square feet of space allotted to them, but 6180 were occupied ; while now the whole of the northeast transept, affording an available exhibiting space of 16,000 feet, is occupied by articles from our colonies, many of these, which were infants in 1851, and have not yet attained their majority, being large contributors. For the ladies a rich treat has been prepared. Handsome cases literally blaze with jewels, before which crowds of admiring and, we fear, covetous-minded women flutter all day. Among the gems is the Koh-i-Noor, no longer the mysterious talisman of the destinies of Hindostan flashing more brightly, it is true, than it did in 1851, but reduced by being re-cut of onethird of its weight, and unhappily deprived of its historical value. Among foreign nations France, or rather Paris, stands pre-eminent, for the provinces of France have sent little or nothing to the Exhibition. The distinguishing features of the two countries are strongly marked, the products of England being remarkable for their breadth and force, while those of France are equally remarkable for their fancy, elegance, and harmonious colouring. The large court allotted to France, containing containing nearly 113,000 feet, is filled with a bewildering variety of objects, for the mere names of which a catalogue of 500 pages is required. Next to the French Court, that devoted to Rome is decidedly the most attractive. The Cleopatra and Sybil of Storey exhibited here are wonderfully fine specimens of this young American's chisel. But indeed so full is this court of objects of interest, that a terrible blunder has been made in placing them within such narrow limits. The passages are blocked daily at a very early hour by the crowds pressing to see the art-treasures; women being compressed into dimensions which must be very damaging to those curious steel muscles-or, as the Japanese Ambassadors have aptly named them, under-gown umbrellas, prescribed by fashion. Happily the picture galleries are sufficiently spacious to allow free circulation. The walls of these fine and well-lighted galleries are covered with six thousand works of art, many of great beauty and genius. The English school of painting is represented with a force and completeness which enables it to bear advantageous comparison with all the foreign schools. We miss examples of a few artists, who we think should have been represented, such as Tresham, R.A.; but on the whole, our English masters shine well on these walls. France is stronger in sculpture than in painting, though she exhibits many pictures of great merit. The statuary groups of Barbazet are admirable. The pictures of other nations are more remarkable for their originality than for intrinsic excellence. But it is right to state that no foreign country, except Russia and Austria, appears to have taken the same latitude as ourselves with respect to time, which enables us to exhibit the works of artists who have lived within the century ending in 1862. Belgium, as usual in international exhibitions, maintains her ancient fame; and the works from Sweden, Denmark, and Norway are full of healthy promise. It is worthy of notice that Brazil, that empire of rapidly increasing commercial prosperity, has established a school of art, and contributes some highly creditable pictures. These picture galleries will assuredly contribute most materially to the financial success of the Exhibition. They are already daily filled by visitors, and when the shilling days set in they will be crowded. Statistical returns of the last Paris Exposition abundantly confirm our prediction. For while 4,000,000 of separate visits were made to the industrial part of that Exhibition, upwards of one million of persons paid to enter the separate exhibition of the fine arts, and the Art Exhibition of Manchester drew 1,335,000 admissions. We have now. taken a rapid survey of the industrial and art treasures of this most successful Exhibition. Many days must be devoted to their examination before they can be rightly understood. For under one roof a world in miniature exists, which, 'properly studied, cannot fail to instruct and at the same time quicken and expand our hopes for the future. For we feel sure that no rightminded man can contemplate this vast accumulation of industrial products without joining in the aspiration of the late Prince Consort, that it may strengthen the bonds of peace and friendship among all nations of the earth. 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