The American Crystal Palace, which was opened in New York in 1853, was in point of size much inferior to its prototype in London, and altogether insignificant10 when contrasted with the stupendous exhibitions of later years. For its time, however, it was proportionately equal to any that has ever been held. At that time New York City contained only a little more than half a million inhabitants, or about one-third of its present population. The development of the United States was still less advanced. What was now central Western States were then sparsely11 settled frontier territories. The Pacific railroads were a dream of the dim future. The Atlantic Cable was a vision. The telegraph itself was a mere12 rudiment13 of its present development. The railroad and the steamboat were primitive14 affairs. Even horse cars had not come into general use. Photography was in its infancy15. As for the telephone, the electric light, and a score of other great inventions that are now of universal use, they were not even dreamed of. As the New York Crystal Palace of 1853 was to the Chicago Exhibition of 1893, so was America and its civilization of that time to our country of to-day.
This first universal exhibition held on American soil was situated16 in what is now known as{148} Bryant Park, in New York City. It is now in the very heart of the city, at Sixth Avenue and Fortieth and Forty-second Streets. In 1853 it was well out of town in the suburbs, and was known as Reservoir Square. At that time it was surrounded by open fields and gardens, with here and there rows of pleasant rural cottages. A few of the streets were paved in that part of the city, but there was only a faint indication of what another generation would see. The little park was four hundred and fifty-five feet square, and almost the entire area was occupied by the Crystal Palace. The central idea embodied17 in the plan of the structure was that of a Greek cross, whose arms pointed18 north, south, east, and west. The extreme dimensions of the building, from north to south and from east to west, were 365 feet 5 inches, and the arms were each 149 feet 5 inches wide. The external angles formed by the arms of the cross were filled up with triangular19 structures, one story in height, thus making the outline of the ground plan an octagon. At each of the angles of the building was an octagonal tower, 76 feet high, and over the central intersection20 of the cross rose a magnificent dome21, 100 feet in diameter and 123 feet high. The external walls of the building were composed almost exclusively of cast-iron and glass. The floors were of wood, and the roof was of wood, covered with tin and{149} supported on wrought22-iron framework. The roof was supported by 190 cast-iron columns on the ground floor, each 8 inches in diameter and 21 feet high. They divided the interior into two avenues or naves23, each 41 feet 5 inches wide, with aisles26, 54 feet wide, on each side. These naves, at their intersection, left an octagonal space 100 feet in diameter. The aisles were covered with galleries, while the naves were open to the roof and were spanned by semicircular arches of cast-iron. The dome was supported by twenty-four columns, each 62 feet high, connected at the top by wrought-iron trusses. On the top of these was a cast-iron bed-plate, with cast-iron shoes for the ribs28 of the dome, which were thirty-two in number. These ribs were bolted at the top to a horizontal ring of wrought and cast iron, 20 feet in diameter, surmounted29 by a lantern with thirty-two ornamental30 windows, decorated with the Arms of the union and the several States. The whole quantity of iron employed in the construction amounted to 1,800 tons, of which 300 tons were wrought and 1,500 tons cast. The quantity of glass was 15,000 panes31, or 55,000 square feet. The quantity of wood used amounted to 750,000 feet board measure. The principal dimensions of the building were as follows: From main floor to gallery floor, 24 feet; from main floor to ridge32 of nave24, 67 feet 4{150} inches; from main floor to summit of dome, 123 feet 6 inches; area of main floor, 157,195 square feet; area of gallery floor, 92,496 square feet; total area of floor space, 249,691 square feet, or about 5? acres.
The total amount of space on the floor occupied by different countries for exhibition, exclusive of the naves, was about 152,000 square feet, divided as follows: The United States 54,530; Great Britain, 17,651; Switzerland, 4,428; the German Zollverein, 12,249 Holland and Belgium, 3,645; Austria, 2,187; Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, 4,231; Russia, 729; the West Indies, 1,093; British Colonies, 5,798. The total number of exhibitors was 4,383. Of these 1,778 were from the United States; 677 from England; 116 from Switzerland; 813 from the German Zollverein; 155 from Holland and Belgium; and 100 from Austria. The exhibits were divided in 31 general classes as follows: Class I, Minerals, Mining, and Metallurgy, Geological and Mining Sections and Plans. Class II, Chemical and Pharmaceutical33 Products and Processes. Class III, Substances Employed as Food. Class IV, Vegetable and Animal Substance Employed in Manufactures. Class V, Machines for Direct Use. Class VI, Machinery34 and Tools for Manufacturing. Class VII, Civil Engineering, Architectural, and Building Contrivances. Class VIII, Naval35{151} Architecture, Military Engineering, Armor and Accoutrements. Class IX, Agricultural, Horticultural, and Dairy Implements36. Class X, Philosophical37 Implements and Products Resulting from their Use. Class XI, Manufactures of Cotton. Class XII, Manufactures of Wool. Class XIII, Manufactures of Silk and Velvet38. Class XIV, Manufactures of Flax and Hemp39. Class XV, Mixed Fabrics40. Class XVI, Leather, Furs, Hair, and their Manufactures. Class XVII, Paper, Stationery42, Types, Printing, and Book-binding. Class XVIII, Dyed and Printed Fabrics. Class XIX, Tapestry43, Carpets, Floor-cloths, Lace, Embroideries44, Trimmings, and Fancy Needlework. Class XX, Wearing Apparel. Class XXI, Cutlery and Edge Tools. Class XXII, Iron, Brass45, Pewter, and General Hardware. Class XXIII, Works in Precious Metals and their Imitations. Class XXIV, Glass Manufactures. Class XXV, Porcelain46 and other Ceramic47 Manufactures. Class XXVI, Decorated Furniture and Upholstery. Class XXVII, Manufactures in Slate48 and other Ornamental Stones. Class XXVIII, Manufactures from Animal and Vegetable Substances not Woven or Felted. Class XXIX, Miscellaneous Manufactures, Perfumery, and Toys. Class XXX, Musical Instruments. Class XXXI, Fine Arts.
The plan of the building was designed by{152} Messrs. Carstensen & Gildemeister, and was selected in preference to other plans submitted by Sir Joseph Paxton, the builder of the London Crystal Palace. C. E. Detmold was the superintending architect and engineer, Horatio Allen the consulting engineer, and Edward Hurry the consulting architect. The municipal authorities of New York on January 3d, 1852, granted a lease of Reservoir Square for five years, thus furnishing the site for the building. The New York Legislature on March 11th, 1852, granted a charter to the Association for the Industry of All Nations, and on March 17th the Board of Directors met and organized with Theodore Sedgwick as President, and William Whetten as Secretary. The United States Government gave countenance49 and aid to the institution by permitting the introduction of foreign goods for exhibition free of duty. Daniel Webster, then Secretary of State, secured the aid of the Representatives of the United States at the chief Courts of Europe, and the Ministers of Foreign Powers residing in the United States sympathized warmly with the Association, and commended it favorably to their respective governments. Under such auspices50, and with such encouragement the work went forward. The first column was put in place with appropriate ceremonies on October 30th, 1852; the building was open to the public{153} on July 15th, 1853, though still incomplete; and on Friday evening, August 20th, 1853, the full opening was effected.
Perhaps no more interesting view of this notable institution and the chief events connected with it can be given than that which was presented by the principal metropolitan51 newspapers of the day. Let us first quote from an account of the raising of the first column:
“The erection of the first column of the Crystal Palace took place on Reservoir Square at noon on Saturday. The interest in and importance of the occasion attracted a large concourse of citizens. There must have been at least two thousand persons present.”
Volumes could not tell more. Two thousand persons present on such an occasion, and they called it a “large concourse!” Nevertheless, continued the scribe, “There was a large number of distinguished52 citizens upon the platform beside the pillar. Among those present we noticed his Excellency Gov. Hunt, his Honor the Mayor, Archbishop Hughes, Felix Forreste, General Tallmadge, Henry Meigs, C. Crolius, ex-Senator J. A. Bunting, Rev54. Dr. Peet, Lambert Suydam, Hon. Judge Betts, Senators McMurray and Beekman, and several other invited guests. General Tallmadge and others were present as a deputation from the American{154} Institute. Dodworth’s band was present during the proceedings55 and played delightfully56. When the pillar was raised, by means of a derrick, the Governor directed it to its place, amid the enthusiastic cheering of those present and the firing of cannon58, the band, the while, playing a national air.”
The chief address was made by Theodore Sedgwick, the President of the Association, and his remarks are worth repeating here, as expressive59 of the sentiments that inspired him and his associates in the enterprise:
“Governor Hunt: In the name of the Directors of the Association, I thank you cordially and respectfully for the trouble which you have taken to honor this occasion with your presence. Our thanks are also eminently60 due to the city government, not only for their attendance here to-day, but more for the sagacious foresight61 with which they have extended their liberal aid to the enterprise in its infancy. We are also proud to see among our friends the officers of two societies—one from our own, and one from a sister State—which have done so much to raise the aims and promote the interests of American industry, to open the path in which we are now treading. The general objects to which this building will be destined62 are so familiar to us all that I need not dwell upon{155} them. Our arrangements are so far advanced that we can speak with confidence as to our ultimate success. It is sure to strike the mind of the European producer, that he has substantial objects to attain63 by sending specimens64 of his skill here, which no European country can afford. On the other hand, the American manufacturer, who has comparatively little but honor to gain by sending the produce of his skill to Europe, has a clear and distinct inducement to exhibit his goods here. If no unforseen event occurs, we shall have it in our power to make such an exhibition of the costly65, artistic66, and luxurious67 products of the Old World as has never yet been seen among us. These considerations will produce their results; and we are equally confident that the industry of our country, with that fearless energy which, perhaps, more than any other one thing is a distinguishing trait in our national character, will eagerly enter into a contest from which, in every respect, nothing but good can flow. I shall say on this head no more. Those whose eyes, like mine, were delighted by the surpassing glories of the London Exhibition—who know the power, opulence68, and varied69 resources of the Old World—who know what those creatures of genius, the French, are trying to effect, may well pause before they make vaunts for the future. Suffice it, we shall do everything that{156} industry and fidelity70 can accomplish. Nor shall I enlarge on the benefits of an exhibition of this kind. There is no doubt whatever that there yet exists no similar means for extending the circle of knowledge and taste—above all, for enlarging and increasing that mutual71 good-will and confidence which is the surest bulwark72 of national independence, and the only guaranty of international peace.
“Sir, at this moment, everything from the pen of that great statesman, whose loss we lament74, will be received with interest. I shall, therefore, trespass75 on you by reading the following letter which I received from him:
“ ‘Department of State, }
“ ‘Washington, Oct. 12th, 1852. }
“ ‘Sir: I have received your favor of Oct. 7th, and I have examined with care the papers accompanying it, as well as the sketch76 of the building which you have been good enough to send; the latter appears to me very beautiful. Your name and that of the gentlemen associated with you, are sufficient guarantees that the enterprise will be conducted with energy, fidelity, and capacity; and there can be no doubt that an exhibition of the kind you contemplate77, if properly carried out, will be of very general interest and utility. You do not overrate my desire to promote your views. Of course I{157} cannot, as a member of the Government of the United States, give you any other aid than you have already received from the Customs Department, by making your building a bonded78 warehouse79; but I will write to the representatives of the United States at the principal Courts of Europe, stating to them strongly my sense of the importance of your enterprise, and the numerous reasons in my mind why they should give your agent, Mr. Buscheck, all the aid and support that they properly can. I am, sir, with great respect, your ob’t serv’t,
“ ‘Daniel Webster.
“ ‘Theodore Sedgwick, Esq., New York.’
“Permit me, sir, to say a word respecting the building itself. We intend—and I believe it is not too much to claim—that the Palace itself shall make an epoch80 in the architecture of our city. We believe that it will give an impulse to construction in the material of iron that will be of the greatest service to that interest. Iron constructions have already been carried far forward by a most intelligent and accomplished81 mechanic—Mr. James Bogardus—and I believe that the experience of this building will give it a great additional impulse. Its superior lightness, durability82, cheapness, and facility of construction give it immense advantages over any other material. We are erecting83 an edifice84 that{158} will cover, on the ground floor, two and a half acres, and it will be done in the winter, in about six months, for a sum not much varying from $200,000. If any one compares this time and the time with what would be required for a building of any other material, except wood, the immense superiority of iron is most perceptible. But there are, sir, ulterior considerations which I wish clearly to state. The large cities of the elder world, especially on the Continent, possess great galleries for popular instruction and entertainment. It is, at first sight, remarkable85, though, in fact, easily intelligible86, that in a country reposing87 entirely88 on popular power, comparatively nothing is done on a great public scale for the pleasure and instruction of our adult people. We have no galleries, no parks. This is not the place to say anything in favor of a park, though an object which should be dear to the heart of every New Yorker. But I desire in regard to the other objects, to point out how easy it will be hereafter to convert this building into a great People’s Gallery of Art. Its structure is eminently adapted for the purpose. We stand here on the city’s ground, and it will be completely in the power of the city hereafter to accomplish this result. Long after our Association shall have disappeared, I hope this building may stand—as long as yonder massive and majestic89 creation; and like that, in the hands{159} of the public authorities, be one of those monuments which makes the Government dear to the people. [Cheers.] Allow me to say a few words of our purposes. The undertaking90 is a private one—fostered by no governmental aid; but the interests are so numerous and divided that not the slightest color is afforded for the charge of speculation91. There are, I venture to say, very few undertakings92 of equal magnitude which are represented by so large a number of parties, and it thus becomes practicable to impress upon the direction and management of the enterprise that broad, liberal, impartial93, and, as it were, national character which is essential to its proper development. If our success is what we expect and intend it shall be, we shall claim the honor of it for our institutions—those institutions which enable private individuals to accomplish what in other countries vast governmental efforts are required to effect. We shall claim the honor for the country and for the people; for that mixture of individual energy and practical accommodation which gives such wonderful efficiency to the American character; for that public spirit and private good feeling of which we have such striking evidence here to-day—bringing together at this moment, men of all parties, to work together for a common object of general interest. [Cheers.] Other considerations, sir, yet remain, which, at some{160} other time, I shall ask higher and holier personages to develop, but which I cannot now altogether overlook. When this structure shall be raised—when its lofty dome shall have rushed upward to the point where that flag now floats—when its crystal surface shall reflect in streams of radiance our warm American sun—when its graceful94 and majestic interior shall be filled with the choicest products of both worlds—our minds will soar upward beyond and above all the material considerations to which I have alluded95, and will recognize our own nothingness, and the infinite superiority of the Power by whose favor we are permitted to do what little we effect. And we shall then unite to pour forth96 our thanks for His mercies, and our supplications for His forgiveness and protection.” [Loud cheers.]
The Governor immediately replied as follows:
“Mr. President: Availing myself of the invitation so kindly98 extended to me by the Association over which you preside, I have come to participate in the appropriate ceremonies of this occasion, and to manifest the sincere interest and approval with which I regard your noble undertaking.
“You have now reared the first column of an edifice intended to attract the productions of genius, industry, and art from all the civilized99{161}
Image not available: CHICAGO IN 1856.
CHICAGO IN 1856.
nations of the world. This liberal design is in harmony with the prevailing100 spirit and tendency of the age in which we live, and its successful completion will form a conspicuous101 landmark102 in the history of American progress. It is a generous conception, alike honorable to the public spirit and patriotism103 of the citizens forming the Association, and important in its influence upon the advancement104 and happiness of society.
“The conquests already made, and the increasing interest evinced by our countrymen in the culture of those useful arts which promote the physical prosperity and moral elevation105 of a people are a source of just pride and encouragement to the American statesman.
“By the blessing106 of Providence107 we are permitted to work out our destiny in a period of profound peace. For more than a third of a century the civilized world has been exempt108 from those destructive wars and convulsions which had so long wasted the best energies of the human race. Nobler purposes engage the thoughts of men and the councils of nations.
“Instead of meeting in battle array, and spreading havoc109 and desolation over the face of the earth, a kindlier rivalry110 prevails, and governments cope with each other in a more generous spirit of emulation111; in works of beneficence and improvement; in the expansion of commerce,{162} the encouragement of industry, and the triumphs of peaceful invention.
“People, widely separated from each other by intervening seas and diversities of language and institutions are now drawn112 nearer together by rapid and constant commercial intercourse113. Remote countries are enabled to confer inestimable benefits upon each other by a free interchange of useful discoveries and improvements, thus stimulating114 industry and skill throughout the world, each imparting to all the fruits of its own civilization, and (above all) diffusing115 over the globe the spirit of universal brotherhood116, which, in God’s good time, shall unite the human family by the cordial ties of sympathy and concord117.
“When considered in a mere political aspect, the wonderful display of the industry of all nations, exhibited in England last year, must be regarded as one of the most important events in modern history.
“I rejoice to witness the enlightened efforts of my own countrymen to emulate118 so noble an example.
“The prosecution119 and success of the enterprise, now so auspiciously121 begun, cannot fail to exert a salutary influence, and to produce the most valuable results.
“It will elevate the national character abroad, and advance our best interests at home.
“It will stimulate7 our people to new and{163} higher efforts, until we shall finally attain to an equality with the older nations in every useful and ornamental art. It will promote the development and improvement of those natural advantages, so varied and remarkable, with which our country is favored; and furnish another proof of the elevating influence of free institutions.
“In conclusion, Mr. President and gentlemen of the Association, permit me to congratulate you upon this auspicious120 commencement. The whole country will rejoice in the consummation of your great purpose. Accept my sincere wishes that your labors123 in the work of civilization and beneficent progress may be crowned with the success which is due to so bright an example of disinterested124 public spirit.”
Mayor Kingsland followed, in a few brief remarks, expressive of his sense of the importance of the undertaking, and his sincere desire to see it carried out to a most successful completion.
General Talmadge, on the part of the American Institute, offered the managers of the Crystal Palace his warmest congratulations upon the raising of the first pillar of their edifice, and that, too, under such auspicious circumstances. The American Institute (he said) was glad to find such worthy125 comrades co-operating with them to advance the general prosperity of the country.
Appropriate airs were then played by the{164} band, and the “large assemblage” shortly afterward126 went their way rejoicing in the event of the day, with hearty127 wishes for the successful completion of the New York Crystal Palace. Such was the first formal celebration of what seemed to its projectors128 a most stupendous enterprise. But the next year saw a much more imposing129 demonstration130, when, on July 14th, 1853, the nearly completed building was formally inaugurated. The President of the United States traveled from Washington to New York to take part in the august ceremonial, his deliberate progress of several days, by coach, boat, and train, being the theme of many columns of patriotic131 chronicles in the daily press. Here is a leading journal’s account of the opening exercises:
“The 14th of July, 1853, will henceforward rank in our history as a great day. Then was consecrated132 unto Art and Industry a building novel and splendid, as regards architecture, and containing productions from all parts of the earth. The Crystal Palace is far more beautiful than its original in London, though much inferior in size. It covers, however, five acres. Its sides are composed of glass, supported by iron. Its dome is truly magnificent, and is a triumph of art. The prevailing colors of the ceiling are blue, red, and cream color. The single fault we find with the colors of the other portions of the{165} building is that the supporting pillars are of the same color with the other solid works, while, if they were bronzed, a certain sameness would be avoided.
“Notwithstanding the immense confusion of the Palace on the day preceding the inauguration134, we were surprised, on entering it yesterday morning, to find the dome completed and glorious in its artistic beauty; the stairways arrayed with their crimson135 and gold, and many of the divisions elaborate in their ornamentation, completely arranged, and containing their various contributions.
“The vastness of the City of New York was strikingly illustrated136 by the weather of yesterday. The President and his suite137 were caught in a heavy rain in the lower part of the city, lasting138 an hour, while the early visitors at the Palace were ignorant of the circumstance, the atmosphere being dry and the sun bright in that quarter.
“The approaches to the Palace were very much crowded as we proceeded there about eleven o’clock. The thickly-studded drinking-shops were flaunting139 in their intemperate140 seductions. The various shows of monsters, mountebanks, and animals, numerous as the jubilee-days of the Champs élysées, opened wide their attractions to simple folk. Little speculators in meats, fruits, and drinks had their{166} tables and stalls al fresco141. A rush and whirl of omnibuses, coaches, and pedestrians142 encircled the place. But amid all this was plainly discernable the excellent provisions of the police to maintain order. The entrances to the Palace were kept clear, and no disturbance143 manifested itself through the day. Different colored tickets admitted the visitors at three different sides of the Palace, the fourth closing up against the giant Croton Water Reservoir.
“There were two platforms partially144 under the dome, the centre point under which being occupied by Baron145 Marochetti’s exceedingly absurd statue of Washington, with Carew’s indescribably absurd statue of Webster—the worst calumny146 on that great man ever yet perpetrated, or that can be perpetrated—standing133 behind it. One of these platforms was toward Forty-second Street, or the north nave; the other toward the Croton Water Reservoir, on the east nave. According to the programme, they were filled by the following classes of persons:
ON NORTH NAVE PLATFORM.
General Franklin Pierce, President of the United States.
MEMBERS OF THE CABINET.
Jefferson Davis, Secretary of War.
James Guthrie, Secretary of the Treasury147.
Caleb Cushing, Attorney-General.
{167}
SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES.
Salmon148 P. Chase, U. S. Senator from Ohio.
Richard Brodhead, Jr., U. S. Senator from Pennsylvania.
OFFICERS OF THE ARMY.
Major-General Winfield Scott, Commander-in-Chief.
Major-General John E. Wool, and a few others.
OFFICERS OF THE NAVY.
Commodore James Stewart.
Commodore Boorman, of the Navy Yard.
There were several other naval and military officers present, but their names are not recollected149.
GOVERNORS OF VARIOUS STATES.
Horatio Seymour, Governor of the State of New York.
George F. Fort, Governor of the State of New Jersey150.
Howell Cobb, Governor of the State of Georgia.
THE CLERGY151.
Rt. Rev. Jonathan M. Wainright, D. D., Provisional Bishop53 of New York.
Most Rev. John Hughes, D. D., Archbishop of New York.
Rt. Rev. Henry J. Whitehouse, D. D., Bishop of Illinois.{168}
Gardiner Spring, D.D., William Adams, D.D., and others.
THE JUDICIARY.
Judge Betts, Judge Edmonds, Judge Oakley, Judge Roosevelt, Judge
Sandford, Judge Emmett, etc.
MILITARY, ETC.
Major-General Sandford, Brigadier-General Hall, Brigadier-General
Morris, with the Staff of the Major-General.
FOREIGN COMMISSIONERS153.
Messrs. Whitworth and Wallace of the English Commission, were present. Lord Ellesmere we did not see; he had not arrived in town at ten o’clock. Lady Ellesmere and daughters were present.
FOREIGN MINISTERS, ETC.
General Almonte, Minister Plenipotentiary from Mexico.
M. De Sartiges, Minister Plenipotentiary from France.
M. De Osma, Minister Plenipotentiary from Peru.
ON THE EAST PLATFORM.
Officers of the Army and Navy, a considerable number.
Officers of the “Leander.” (We are not sure that any were present—the ship is not here.){169}
Foreign Consuls154 resident in the City—a number present.
Judiciary of the Southern District of New York.
Jacob A. Westervelt, Mayor of New York.
Francis R. Tillon, Recorder of the City of New York.
Richard T. Compton, President of the Board of Aldermen.
Jonathan Trotter, President of the Board of Assistants.
The Common Council were rather thinly represented in numbers.
Isaac V. Fowler, Postmaster at New York.
Rev. Dr. Ferris, Chancellor155 of the University.
Charles King, LL. D., President of Columbia College.
Members of the Press, the Clergy, Officers of the American Institute, etc., etc.
“We believe there was no Foreign Commissioner152, who came from Europe to be present at the Exhibition, but the Earl of Ellesmere. The absence of this Commissioner yesterday was much to be regretted, the more so as he was prevented from coming by indisposition. Lady Ellesmere and her two daughters were present, however.
“There were two military bands—Dodsworth, stationed in the west gallery; Bloomfield’s U. S.{170} Band, in the south gallery, and an orchestra, with Noll’s Military Band, and a grand chorus, accompanied also by an organ, in the east gallery.
“The President, being detained by the storm, did not arrive at the appointed time of one o’clock, being delayed till about an hour later. When he did arrive, however, with his suite, civil and military, he was warmly greeted by the people within the building, who amounted to some 20,000, as far as we could judge. The United States Band struck up ‘Hail Columbia,’ and finished with ‘Yankee Doodle.’ This part of the day’s proceedings was extremely interesting. When the shouts had died away, and thousands of fair hands, waving their handkerchiefs, had exhausted156 their first burst of enthusiasm, Bishop Wainright delivered, in a full, round voice, his appropriate prayer.
“Then came stealing through the vast aisles the hymn157 of Old Hundred set to semi-secular words. The effect where we stood under the dome was mystically grand. It might be imagined to typify the voices of distant nations rolling in harmonious158 vastness through the aisles, and bearing the accents of gentleness and beneficence. Their artistic interpretation159 was intrusted to the ladies and gentlemen of the Sacred Harmonic Society, and admirably did they execute their task. Mr. George Bristow{171} was the conductor of the body. Mr. Timm, however, was the chief director of all the musical arrangements. The hymn ran thus:
“Here, where all climes their offerings send,
Here, where all arts their tribute lay,
Before Thy presence, Lord, we bend,
And for Thy smile and blessing pray.
“For Thou dost sway the tides of thought,
And hold the issues in Thy hand,
Of all that human toil160 has wrought,
And all that human skill has plann’d.
“Thou lead’st the restless Power of Mind
O’er destiny’s untrodden field,
And guid’st, wandering bold but blind,
To mighty161 ends not yet revealed.
“Next Mr. Theodore Sedgwick, the President of the Crystal Palace Association, rose and addressed President Pierce. The President replied evidently impromptu162, and his words were well chosen. He appeared fatigued163 in the previous efforts he had made in public speaking during his journey, and was very brief. Mr. Pierce, however, most favorably impressed his auditory. He was fluent, earnest, and unabashed before so vast an auditory. Mr. Sedgwick, when the President had finished, proposed three cheers{172} for the President, which were responded to by the multitude.
“In the mere proprieties164 of the day the scene passed off well. The speeches had the excellence165 of brevity; the music was fine and varied, great rivalry evidently existing between the different bands and orchestras; the audience was unexceptionable in its deportment; the appearance of the feminine portion was brilliant, and it must be added that the directors liberally provided a ladies’ refreshment166 room; the attention of those in authority, the new uniformed police included, was unremitting; the progress made in decorating, finishing, and arraying the details of the building and its contents in the few last days, when all seemed to promise disorder167 and defeat on the promised day of opening, was a veritable wonder of industry; the arrangements of tickets, places, entrance, exits, were admirable; the accommodations for the corps168 of reporters were liberal and thoughtful; the positions of the sculptural attractions were well chosen as to locality, light, and combined effect; and in a word, the whole was arranged as to outward show with a skill that was unsurpassable.
“It was a thing to be seen once in a lifetime. As we grow in wealth and strength we may build a much greater Crystal Palace, and accumulate more imperial-like treasures than we could now afford to purchase, but it cannot have the effect{173} of this one. This has been the first love of its kind. The second cannot bring the exhilaration and glory of the first, though exhausting the wealth of genius in its production. In this we behold169 the first decided170 stand of America among the industrial and artistic nations of the earth. In this we see a recognition of her progress, power, and possibilities. In this we find a yearning171 after Peace—Peace which shall dimple the face of the earth with the smiles of plenty, which shall join the hearts of nations, which shall abolish poverty and servitude. God’s earth loves Man to her innermost depths; treat her well with Peace, and she will reward him as a generous mother: abuse her with War and she will drive him from her presence. Such history has proved; but we may fairly believe that the historical vicissitudes172 of the past may be avoided in traveling the peaceful and generous path pointed out by the Crystal Palace.”
The comments and eulogiums of orators173 and press upon this first American World’s Fair were, of course, largely pitched in a tone that to-day is interesting only in contrast. It is archaic174, primitive, embryonic175, though not devoid176 of what has aptly been termed spread-eagleism. One writer, however, discussed the theme with memorable177 eloquence178, and in a spirit of broad-minded philosophy that makes his almost every word as appropriate to the great fair of 1893 as{174} to that of forty years before. “The exhibition,” he said, “must be particularly instructive to Americans, because it will furnish them with evidences of a skill in many branches of creation beyond their own, and of models of workmanship which are superior precisely179 in those points in which their own are most deficient180. No one, we presume, will push his national predilections181 so far as to deny that, in the finer characteristics of manufacture and art, we have yet a vast deal to learn. Stupendous as our advances have been in railroads, steamboats, canals, printing presses, hotels, and agricultural implements—rapidly as we are growing in excellence in a thousand departments of design and handicraft—astonishing as may be our achievements, under all the difficulties of an adverse182 national policy—adroit, ingenious, and energetic as we have shown ourselves in those labors which have been demanded by the existing conditions of our society, we have yet few fabrics equal to those of Manchester, few wares183 equal to those of Birmingham and Sheffield, no silks like those of Lyons, no jewelry184 like that of Geneva, no shawls like those of the East, no mosaics185 like those of Italy. But, in our rapid physical improvements—growing, as we are, in prosperity, in population, in wealth, in luxuries of all kinds—these are the articles that we ought to have, and must have to give diversity to our industry, to relieve us from dependence73{175} upon other nations, to refine our taste, and to enable the ornamental and elegant appliances of our life to keep pace with our external development. Mere wealth, without the refinements186 of wealth—barbaric ostentation187, prodigal188 display, extravagant189 self-indulgence—can only corrupt190 morals and degrade character. But the cultivation191 of the finer arts redeems192 society from its grossness, spreads an unconscious moderation and charm around it, softens194 the asperities195 of human intercourse, elevates our ideals, and imparts a sense of serene196 enjoyment197 to all social relations. Our common people, immeasurably superior to the common people of other nations in easy means of subsistence, in intelligence, as in the sterling198 virtues199, are yet almost as immeasurably behind them in polished and gentle manners, and the love of music, painting, statuary, and all the more refining social pleasures.
“These Exhibitions, then, which make us acquainted with the superlative arts of other nations, cannot but be highly useful to us. But they have also another use—a moral, if not a religious use, in that they teach us so powerfully the dependence of nations upon each other—their mutual relations, and the absolute necessity of each to the comfortable existence of all the rest. There is hardly an article in the Crystal Palace to which the labor122 of all the world{176} has not in some sort contributed—hardly a machine which is not an embodied record of the industrial progress of the world—hardly a fabric41 which, analyzed200, does not carry us to the ends of the earth, or which does not connect us intimately with the people of every clime—with the miners who tortured its raw material from the dark cave, or the diver who brought it from the bottom of the sea—with the solitary201 mariner202 who shielded it from the tempests—with the poor, toil-worn mechanic who gave it form or color, or with the artist who imparted to it its final finish. Thus, no man liveth to himself alone, even in his most ordinary occupations; he is part and parcel of us, as we are of him. A wonderful and touching203 unity204 pervades205 the relations of the race; all men are useful to all men; and we who fancy that, in some important respects, we stand on the summit level of humanity, have a deep interest in the laborers206 of the vales—in the celerity, the excellence and the success of what they do, and in the comfort and happiness of their general condition. As Emerson has wisely sung, in that sweet poem of his:
‘All are needed by each one;
Nothing is fair or good alone.’
“There is also another thought suggested by our topic which contains a world of meaning. We are apt to speak, in our discussions, of the{177}
Image not available: CHICAGO STREET LIFE, WASHINGTON STREET AND WABASH AVENUE.
CHICAGO STREET LIFE, WASHINGTON STREET AND WABASH AVENUE.
progress of industry, but do we always ask ourselves wherein that progress consists? Is it in the greater perfection to which, in modern times, we have carried the works of our hands? Look at the elegant tissues of Persia and India, or at the flexible blades of Toledo and Damascus, and say in how far we have surpassed these works of semi-barbarous ages and people, with all our boasted mechanical improvements! Can we imagine anything more splendid, more rich, and more delicate than the clothes in which the Oriental princes still array themselves, as their forefathers208 used to array themselves centuries ago? Have we yet a dye more brilliant than the Tyrian, a sculpture equal to that of Greece, an architecture better than that of the ‘Dark Ages,’ paintings on glass to compare with those in the old cathedrals, workers in bronze to rival a Cellini? Is it not the highest compliment that we pay to a product of skill or genius to say of it that it is ‘classical,’ that it is worthy of the models that have been preserved for ages in our galleries and museums? What then do we mean when we speak of ourselves as more advanced than former nations; what is that difference between us which authorizes209 us to use the word progress and to look back with a complacent210 half-pitying eye upon the attainments211 of the generations that have passed away?
“It is this: that in our discoveries in science,{178} by our applications of those discoveries to practical art, by the enormous increase of mechanical power consequent upon mechanical invention, we have universalized all the beautiful and glorious results of industry and skill, we have made them a common possession of the people, and given to society at large, to almost the meanest member of it, the enjoyments212, the luxury, the elegance213 which in former times were the exclusive privilege of kings and nobles. Formerly214 the labor of the world fed, and clothed, and ornamented215 the Prince and his Court, or the warrior216 and his chieftains—but now it feeds and clothes and ornaments217 the peasant and his family. Then the ten thousand poor, miserable218 wretches219 worked for the one, or the few, but now the ten thousand work for the ten thousand. Then the wealth of provinces was drained to heap up splendors220 for the lord of the province, but now that wealth is multiplied and diffused223, to give happiness to the commonalty. All the concentrated capital of Lyons, and Leeds, and Lowell, all our complicated machinery, while it creates new demands for human labor, is intended to cheapen manufacturing products, as the effort of that cheapness is to put the fabrics of woolen224 and silk within the reach of the poorest classes. Our books, at this day, may not be individually superior to the books of the days of Elzevir, but millions of men now possess books where hundreds only possessed{179} them formerly. Our vases and cups may not be more exquisitely225 wrought than the vases and cups of Benevento Cellini, but they are wrought, not like his, for Popes and Emperors, but for Smith and Jones, and all the branches, collateral226 and direct, of the immense families of Smith and Jones. Our roads are not built at a vast expense, for some royal progress, or the passage of a conquering army, but are built to roll from house to house the precious treasures of industry, or a happy freight of excursionists, giving their hearts a holiday of merriment and innocent delight.
“Our progress in these modern times, then, consists in this, that we have democratized the means and appliances of a higher life; that we have spread, far and wide, the civilizing227 influences of art; that we have brought, and are bringing more and more the masses of the people up to the aristocratic standard of taste and enjoyment, and so diffuse222 the influence of splendor221 and grace over all minds. Grander powers have been infused into society. A larger variety and a richer flavor have been given to all our individual experiences; and, what is more, the barriers that once separated our race, the intervals228 of time and space that made almost every tribe and every family the enemy of every other tribe and family have been annihilated229 to enable the common interests and common enjoyments to renovate230 and warm us into amity231 of feeling and the friendly{180} rivalry of fellow-workmen pursuing, under different circumstances, the same great ends.
“Legislation, rightly directed, might have done and might yet do much for the civilization and advancement of society; but, unfortunately, in most nations of the earth, the legislation, having been under the exclusive control of a self-styled higher class, has impeded232 rather than hastened the movement. Yet, in the face of this terrible obstacle, under all the evils of the insular233 monopoly of Great Britain, seeking to aggrandize234 her own manufacturing industry at the expense of the industry of the rest of mankind, the genius of practical art has triumphed, and will triumph still more over every difficulty. It is raising the laborer207 to his true position; it is facilitating the association of men; it is harmonizing their interests; and, whether legislation helps it or not, it will ultimately redeem193 our race from dependence and slavery. And herein is the chief reason why we to-day salute235 with satisfaction the opening of the Crystal Palace.”
The Crystal Palace was not a financial success. Nearly a million dollars were lost in the enterprise. Finally, on the evening of Tuesday, October 5th, 1858, the edifice was destroyed by fire, with most of its contents. It was really not a very great conflagration236, measured by others that have occurred. Yet it meant the destruction of an entire World’s Fair establishment,{181} and was, in those times, something more than a nine day’s wonder. “About five o’clock last evening,” said a next morning’s paper, “smoke was seen issuing from a large room in the north nave, and in front of the entrance on Forty-second Street, and in less than half an hour thereafter, the Palace was a total wreck237, and nothing now remains238 of this edifice but a heap of unsightly ruins. The octagonal turrets239 at each corner still remain standing, while here and there on every side may be seen stacks of iron, the remains of staircases, and portions of the framework composing the galleries.
“From the room above mentioned flames soon made their appearance, and spread with incredible rapidity in every direction. There were about 2,000 persons scattered240 about the edifice at the time, all of whom, the moment the alarm of ‘fire’ was raised, made a rush for the Sixth Avenue entrance, the doors of which were thrown open. The entrance on Fortieth Street was closed, there being no other means of ingress or egress241 except on Sixth Avenue. Under the direction of ex-Captain Maynard and several of the Directors of the Institute, the crowd of visitors were conducted safely to the street, and no one that we have heard of was in anywise injured. Some of the exhibitors endeavored to save their property, but were forced to turn toward the door, and were soon compelled to flee{182} to the street. The amount of property saved is comparatively trifling242. Mr. Smith, an employee of the Institute, behaved nobly. He was in charge of the jewelry department, and was engaged repairing a case when the alarm was given. He finished the case and closed the door and then went toward where the fire was. The smoke was so dense243 that he almost suffocated244. He saw the fire at the Forty-second Street entrance and then ran back to the property that had been placed in his charge, which property consisted of a quantity of watches valued at several thousand dollars. Seizing the case, he dragged it from its fastening along the gallery, down a flight of stairs, and thence out into the street, the entrance at this point having at this time been broken open. While on his way out, the dome was all in flames. The smoke was so dense that he could see but a few feet either side of him, and he is under the impression that he was the last man in the Palace before the dome fell. A young man named Wallis, also in the employ of the Institute, heard the alarm, and ran toward Smith, whom he desired to break open the case with an axe245, in order that the jewelry and watches could be more readily got at, but Smith told him he would not do so. Wallis was obliged to run to the street, the smoke nearly suffocating246 him. The view from the street and neighboring buildings{183} was very grand, and thousands of persons thronged247 to the scene of conflagration.”
The Institute mentioned was the well-known American Institute, of New York, which, after the close of the World’s Fair proper, had occupied the Palace with its annual fair. It was reckoned that the total loss by the fire was a million dollars, but the list of the chief exhibitors and their individual losses, published next day, now looks absurdly meagre. And thus passed out of existence the first Universal Exhibition of Art and Industry ever held on the American Continent. When the next was held, this was practically a new nation. The greatest war of modern times had been fought and the National Constitution amended248 in many important respects. Political and social changes of startling character were visible on every hand. Material growth and development had been achieved on a stupendous scale. Great inventions had been made. Every circumstance, indeed, rendered it fitting and necessary that the second World’s Fair should immeasurably exceed in all respects that which we have just described.
When the World’s Fair of 1853 was opened in New York it was evident that the American nation was nearing some great and important changes. When the Crystal Palace was burned in 1858, the nation was on the very verge249 of the “impending conflict” which had been long{184} foreseen. The war came. At its close America was a new nation. Its political, social, and industrial systems were transformed. Its growth and expansion received an enormous impetus250. The influx251 of population and of ideas and arts from other countries was many-fold greater than ever before. And thus it approached the one-hundredth anniversary of its independence, and preparations were made to commemorate252 the time with a second Universal Exhibition.
The Centennial Exhibition, which was held in Philadelphia in 1876, was the greatest fair the world had then seen. None of its predecessors had equalled it in extent, or surpassed it in variety or general interest. Paris, in 1867, had given a more compact and systematic253 display, and at Vienna, in 1873, Oriental nations were more fully57 represented. But the American Exhibition had many points of superiority over those. It showed the natural products, industries, inventions, and arts of the Western Hemisphere as they had never been shown before, and brought them for the first time, in their fullness and perfection, in contrast with those of the Old World. In the department of machinery it was incomparably superior to all its predecessors, and also in that of farm implements and products. In fine arts it did not contain as many really great masterpieces as had been seen at Paris and Vienna, but it embraced a wider representation{185} of contemporary art from all parts of the world. In general manufactures the display was much greater in quantity than had ever before been attempted. And it greatly exceeded all other fairs as a really international exhibition, for every civilized state on the globe, excepting Greece and a few minor254 republics in Central and South America, was represented.
About 236 acres of Fairmount Park in Philadelphia were occupied by the Exhibition. The ground was admirably adapted for the purposes of the Fair. It was an elevated plateau, with three spurs jutting255 out toward the Schuylkill River. One of the three spurs was occupied by Memorial Hall, containing the art exhibition, another by Horticultural Hall, and the third by Agricultural Hall, while the broad plain where they joined contained the Main Building, Machinery Hall, United States Government Building, and about a hundred smaller structures. The grounds were traversed by five main avenues, a belt-line railroad, and many miles of minor walks. There was an extensive lake, and a splendid wealth of lawns, flower beds, and groves256.
The Main Building was the largest edifice in the world. It was 1,876 feet long and 464 feet wide, covering 21? acres of ground. In the centre were four square towers, 120 feet high. The facades257 at the end were 90 feet high, and the{186} corner towers 75 feet. The central aisle25 was 1,832 feet long, 120 feet wide, and 70 feet high. The framework was of iron, filled in with wood and glass. Nearly one-third of the space was occupied by American exhibitors. Great Britain and her colonies occupied the next largest area, with a display of enormous proportions and dazzling brilliancy. A single firm of silversmiths sent half a million dollars’ worth of wares. France and her colonies and the German Empire were also splendidly represented. Other conspicuous exhibitors were Holland, Belgium, Austria, Russia, Spain, Japan, Sweden and Norway, Italy, and China. Mexico, Brazil, Switzerland, Portugal, Egypt, Turkey, Denmark, Tunis, Chile, the Argentine Republic, Peru, the Orange Free State, the Sandwich Islands, and Venezuela were also represented. Never before had there been gathered together in one place such a comprehensive display of the arts and industries of so many of the peoples of the world.
Machinery Hall, which was especially devoted258 to machinery in motion, was 1,402 feet long and 360 feet wide, with an annex259 208 by 210 feet for hydraulic260 machinery. There were more than 10,000 feet of shafting261 for conveying to the various machines the motive262 power generated by the huge Corliss engine. This enormous machine had cylinders263 of 44 inches diameter, and ten feet stroke, a fly-wheel 30 feet in diameter,{187} and 56 tons in weight, making 36 revolutions per minute. There were 20 tubular boilers264 of 70 horse-power each, and at 60 pounds pressure the work of the engine was about 1,400 horse-power. This building contained by far the largest and most varied display of working machinery that had at that time ever been seen in the world.
Horticultural Hall was a graceful Moorish265 palace, largely built of glass, and contained a magnificent exhibit of trees, shrubs266, and flowers from all parts of the world. Agricultural Hall consisted of a nave 826 feet long and 100 wide, crossed by three transepts, each 465 feet long, and from 80 to 100 feet wide. The inclosed space was about 12 acres in extent, and it contained a marvellous display of agricultural implements and products from all parts of the world. Memorial Hall was intended as a permanent building, and was constructed in substantial manner of granite267, glass, and iron. It is 365 feet long and 210 feet wide, with a square tower at each corner, and a four-sided dome at the centre. Besides these buildings the United States Government erected a vast structure, 360 by 300 feet, for the display of the operations of its various departments; many foreign governments had buildings of their own; so had more than a score of the States; and there were also buildings for the Judges, and for a great number of special industries.{188}
The technical history of the enterprise may be briefly268 recounted as follows: The Exhibition was really a natural outgrowth of the Universal Exposition held at Paris in 1867. That affair was much the most extensive international exhibition ever held up to that time, and its brilliant success produced a marked impression throughout the civilized world. Austria took immediate97 measures to rival it, and carried out her ambitious plans six years later at Vienna. Among the many Americans who saw the wonderful show on the banks of the Seine there were many who expressed a desire to see an enterprise of the kind attempted in their own country. It is believed that Gen. C. B. Norton, of New York, one of the Commissioners to the Paris Exposition, was the first who suggested the idea of a World’s Fair to commemorate the Centennial Anniversary of American Independence. This he did while viewing the preparations for the exposition in the Champs de Mars in company with Mr. Dudley S. Gregory, of New York, in the summer of 1866. His plan was to hold the exhibition in Central Park. Mr. Gregory returned in the fall and laid the matter before the American Institute, but it does not appear that any action was taken. The next agitation269 of the question was in June, 1868, when at a meeting of the Massachusetts exhibitors at Paris, held in the Music Hall, Boston, for the distribution of the awards forwarded{189} by the French Government to this country, Dr. C. J. Jackson offered a resolution in favor of an international exhibition in Washington, to open July 4th, 1876. After some speech-making the resolution was adopted. In the fall of the same year a meeting to forward the project was held in New York under the chairmanship of Dr. G. B. Loring. A committee of nine was appointed, but there the matter ended. New York had failed to appreciate the grandeur270 and importance of the project. Washington had a livelier comprehension, but was too poor to do anything that involved expenditure271.
It now remained for Philadelphia to come forward. In 1869 Mr. M. Richard Muckle, of The Philadelphia Ledger272, wrote a letter to President Grant, urging the holding of a World’s Fair in the city where the Declaration of Independence was signed, and this letter, widely published and commented upon, fairly set the ball in motion. Soon after it appeared the Franklin Institute and the Academy of Fine Arts memorialized Congress on the subject, and the City Councils appointed a Centennial Committee. In February, 1871, a committee from the New Jersey Legislature visited Philadelphia to confer with the Councils, and in April a delegation273 from Virginia came on the same errand. At the instance of the Pennsylvania members, Congress took up the question in the session of 1870-71, and on the 3d of March{190} passed an act “to provide for celebrating the One Hundredth Anniversary of American Independence by holding an International Exhibition of arts, manufactures, and products of the soil and mine in the City of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, in the year 1876.” Under this act one hundred Commissioners were appointed; but it was found impossible to assemble a quorum274 of this unwieldy body, and the organization was changed by a supplementary275 act, providing for one Commissioner and one alternate from each State and Territory, appointed by the President on the nomination276 of the Governors. No money was appropriated. In June, 1872, Congress passed another act, creating a separate corporation, called the Board of Finance, to raise funds by subscriptions278 throughout the country, and to take entire charge of the finances of the Exhibition, which was made a stock concern, with a capital of $10,000,000, in shares of $10 each. Large subscriptions were at once obtained from the citizens of Philadelphia. The State of Pennsylvania appropriated $1,000,000; the City of Philadelphia, $1,500,000; the State of New Jersey, $100,000; and the States of Delaware, New Hampshire, and Connecticut, $10,000 each. Subscriptions amounting to about $250,000 were subsequently raised in New York City. The business men of the New England States also contributed, but the West gave almost nothing,{191} and the South nothing. The aggregate279 amount spent by foreign countries for the Exhibition was about $2,500,000.
On June 26th, 1873, Governor Hartranft informed the President that provision had been made for erecting the buildings. Upon that information the President, on July 3d of the same year, issued his proclamation declaring that the Exhibition would be held in 1876. Secretary Fish, on the 5th of July, informed the representatives of foreign nations of the Exhibition, and invited them to participate. Formal acceptances were received, before the beginning of 1876, from Great Britain, France, Austria, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Holland, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Norway, Egypt, Denmark, Turkey, Switzerland, Mexico, Venezuela, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Argentine Confederation, Sandwich Islands, China, Japan, Australia, Canada, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Colombia, Liberia, Orange Free State, Equador, Guatemala, Salvador, and Honduras. March 3d, 1875, Congress appropriated $505,000 for the arrangement of an official Government display, of which $150,000 was to be appropriated for the erection of a special building for the Government Exhibition. On the 4th of July, 1873, the Commissioners of Fairmount Park formally conveyed 450 acres of land at Lansdowne, in the Park, for buildings and other purposes of the Exhibition.{192}
In 1873 the Commission sent Professor W. P. Blake, of Connecticut, to the Vienna Exhibition as a Special Commissioner to study and report upon it. The General Director, Mr. A. T. Goshorn, also made a thorough examination of that fair. Ground was broken for the Exhibition buildings July 4th, 1874. Machinery Hall was completed in November, 1875, Horticultural Hall and the Main Building in January, 1876, and Memorial Hall and Agricultural Hall in April. In February, 1876, Congress appropriated $1,500,000 to complete the payments for the buildings, and thus enabled the Commission to open the Exhibition free from debt.
The formal opening of the Centennial Exhibition was effected on May 10th, 1876. At nine o’clock A.M. on that day the gates of the grounds, with the exception of those at the east end of the Main Building, were opened to the public at the established rate of admission of fifty cents each. The Main Building, Memorial Hall, and Machinery Hall were reserved for guests and exhibitors until the conclusion of the ceremonies, at about one P.M., when all restrictions280 were withdrawn281. The inaugural282 ceremonies were conducted in the open air, on an area of about 300 by 700 feet between the Main Building and Memorial Hall. The concourse of spectators within sight of the ceremonies, though largely not within hearing distance, was more{193}
Image not available: ULYSSES S. GRANT.
ULYSSES S. GRANT.
than 110,000. At an early hour a military parade moved from the city to the exhibition grounds. At its head was the First Troop of Philadelphia City Cavalry283, acting284 as the bodyguard285 of the President of the United States. This was followed by the Boston Cadets and the Boston Lancers, escorting Governor Rice, of Massachusetts, and his staff. Governor Hartranft, of Pennsylvania, and his staff came next, and were succeeded by Major-General Bankson and a large body of Pennsylvania State troops. No flags nor other ensigns were displayed on or about the buildings and grounds until an appointed signal was given, and all the organs, bells, and other musical instruments awaited in silence the same notice.
At 10.15 A.M. the huge orchestra of one hundred and fifty pieces, under the direction of Mr. Theodore Thomas, began playing the various national airs of the world. First was played “The Washington March,” after which came the national music of the Argentine Republic, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Turkey, concluding with “Hail Columbia.” On the arrival of the President of the United States—General U. S. Grant—accompanied by the Emperor Dom Pedro, of Brazil, the Director General of the Exhibition, and other notable{194} personages, the “Centennial Inauguration March,” which had been composed by Richard Wagner for the occasion, was performed. The Rev. Dr. Matthew Simpson, Bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, then offered prayer. A hymn, written by John Greenleaf Whittier, was sung by the choir286 of one thousand voices to music composed by John K. Paine, with organ and orchestral accompaniment. John Welsh, President of the Centennial Board of Finance, formally presented the buildings to the Centennial Commission. A cantata287, written by Sidney Lanier, of Georgia, with music by Dudley Buck288, was sung by the chorus, with solos by Myron W. Whitney. General Joseph R. Hawley, President of the United States Centennial Commission, formally presented the Exhibition to the President of the United States, who responded in a brief address, closing with the words, “I declare the International Exhibition now open.” At that moment a thousand flags were unfurled on every hand, innumerable bells and whistles were sounded, a salute of one hundred guns was fired, and Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus” was sung by the great choir, with organ and orchestral accompaniment. Then the President and other distinguished guests formed in a small procession and moved through the principal buildings. In Machinery Hall the President and the Emperor of Brazil set in motion the great engine{195} and all the machinery connected therewith, being assisted by Mr. George H. Corliss, the builder and giver of the engine. Then the President and other guests were escorted to the Judges’ pavilion, where a brief reception was held. This concluded the opening exercises, and thenceforth the grounds and buildings were open to the public, at fifty cents admission, every week-day until November 10th, when the Exhibition was closed.
A number of the State Governments arranged excursions to the Exhibition by the State officers and citizens generally. These “State days,” as they were termed, were as follows: New Jersey, August 24th; Connecticut, September 7th; Massachusetts, September 14th; New York, September 21st; Pennsylvania, September 28th; Rhode Island, October 5th; New Hampshire, October 12th; Delaware and Maryland, October 19th; Ohio, October 26th; and Vermont, October 27th.
The other principal events on the season’s calendar were as follows: May 23d, Session of True Templars; May 24th, Meeting of Judges of Awards; May 30th, Decoration Day and Opening of the Bankers’ Building; June 1st, Parade of Knights289 Templar; June 7th, Convention in Brewers’ Hall; June 12th, Women’s International Temperance Convention; June 15th, Dedication290 of Ice Water Fountain by the{196} Sons of Temperance; June 27th to July 10th, Encampment of the West Point Cadets; July 1st, Excursion of Soldiers’ Orphans291 from Lincoln Home; July 4th, Centennial Celebration of the Declaration of Independence and Dedication of the Catholic Total Abstinence Beneficial Society’s Fountain; July 6th, 7th, 8th, 13th, 18th, 19th, 20th, 21st, Excursions given by the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad to its Employees; July 15th, Encampment of the Columbus, Ohio, Cadets; August 3d to 9th, Encampment of Pennsylvania Troops; August 30th, Excursion of Steinway & Sons’ Employees; August 22d, National and International Rowing Matches began on the Schuylkill River; August 23d, Parade of the Knights of Pythias; August 28th, Parade of Swiss Citizens; August 29th, Reception by the Mayor of Philadelphia; September 1st to October 18th, Live Stock Exhibitions; September 2d, Encampment of Connecticut National Guard; September 4th, International Medical Congress; September 20th, Odd Fellows’ Day; September 23d, International Rifle Teams—Scotch, Irish, Australian, and American—visited the Exhibition; September 28th, Grand Display of Fireworks; October 7th, Encampment of Cadets of Virginia Military Institute; October 12th, Dedication of Statue of Columbus; October 14th, Dedication of Statue of Dr. Witherspoon; October 19th, Tournament;{197} October 26th, Merchants’ Day; November 2d, Dedication of Statue to Bishop Allen by Colored Citizens; November 7th, Reception by Women’s Centennial Executive Committee; November 9th, International Pyrotechnic Contest; November 10th, Closing Ceremonies.
The United States Centennial Commission held an imposing commemoration of the Centennial Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in Independence Square on July 4th. The following was the programme of exercises:
1. Grand Overture292, “The Great Republic,” founded on the National Air, “Hail Columbia,” and arranged for the occasion by the composer, George F. Bristow, of New York; rendered by the orchestra under the direction of Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore.
2. The President of the Commission, General Joseph R. Hawley, called the assembly to order and announced the acting Vice-President of the United States, Senator Thomas W. Ferry, as the presiding officer of the day in the absence of the President of the United States.
3. Prayer by the Rev. Dr. William B. Stevens, Protestant Episcopal Bishop of Pennsylvania.
4. Hymn, “Welcome to all Nations,” by Oliver Wendell Holmes, to the music of Keller’s “National Hymn.”
5. Reading of the Declaration of Independence{198} from the original manuscript by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia.
6. Greeting from Brazil; a Hymn for the First Centennial of American Independence, composed by A. C. Gomes, of Brazil, at the request of the Emperor Dom Pedro; rendered by the orchestra.
7. Reading of “National Ode,” by Bayard Taylor.
8. Grand Triumphal March, with chorus, “Our National Banner;” words by Dexter Smith, of Massachusetts, music by Sir Julius Benedict, of England.
9. Oration277, by William M. Evarts, of New York.
10. Hallelujah Chorus, from Handel’s “Messiah.”
11. Doxology, “The Old Hundredth Psalm293.”
Space will not permit the printing here of the oration or other features of the programme, with the exception of the hymn, “Welcome to All Nations,” by Oliver Wendell Holmes, which was as follows:
I.
Bright on the banners of lily and rose,
Lo, the last sun of the century sets!
Wreathe the black cannon that scowled294 on our foes295,
All but her friendships the nation forgets!{199}
All but her friends and their welcome forgets!
These are around her, but where are her foes?
Lo, while the sun of the century sets,
Peace with her garlands of lily and rose!
II.
Welcome! a shout like the war-trumpets swell296,
Wakes the wild echoes that slumber297 around!
Welcome! it quivers from Liberty’s bell;
Welcome! the walls of her temple resound298!
Hark! the gray walls of her temple resound!
Fade the far voices o’er river and dell;
Welcome! still whisper the echoes around;
Welcome! still trembles on Liberty’s bell!
III.
Thrones of the continents! Isles27 of the sea!
Yours are the garlands of peace we entwine!
Welcome once more to the land of the free,
Shadowed alike by the palm and the pine,
Softly they murmur299, the palm and the pine,
“Hushed is our strife300 in the land of the free.”
Over your children their branches entwine,
Thrones of the continents! Isles of the sea!
The distribution of awards to exhibitors occurred in the Judges’ Hall on Wednesday, September 27th, with an interesting programme of music and addresses.
On November 9th a farewell banquet was{200} given to the Foreign Commissioners and Judges of Awards by the Centennial Commission and Board of Finance in St. George’s Hall. The guests on this occasion included the Commissioners and Diplomatic Representatives of the nations which had participated in the Exhibition, the Chief Justice and Judges of the Supreme301 Court of the United States, a number of Senators and members of the United States Congress, the Secretary of State and other members of the Cabinet of the United States, the Governors of Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Delaware, and New Jersey; the Mayor of Philadelphia, the Presidents of the Philadelphia City Councils, and the officers and members of the Fairmount Park Commission, the Centennial Commission, and the Centennial Board of Finance. The President of the United States was the presiding officer of the evening. During the course of the banquet addresses were made by representatives of the several bodies participating, and by Commissioners of each of the foreign countries represented, each being introduced in turn by the President of the Centennial Commission amid the applause of the guests.
The closing ceremonies of the Exhibition occurred on Friday, November 10th. They were to have been held like the opening exercises, out-of-doors, but stormy weather made it necessary{201} to hold them within the Judges’ Hall. At sunrise a Federal salute of thirteen guns was fired. The programme proper was opened with the Inauguration March, composed by Richard Wagner, and performed by the orchestra under Theodore Thomas. Prayer was offered by the Rev. Dr. Joseph A. Seiss. Addresses followed by D. J. Morrell, United States Centennial Commissioner from Pennsylvania, and Chairman of the Executive Committee; John Welsh, President of the Centennial Board of Finance; A. T. Goshorn, Director General, and Joseph R. Hawley, President of the United States Centennial Commission; alternating with musical selections rendered by the chorus and orchestra. After General Hawley’s address, the national hymn, “My Country, ’tis of Thee,” was rendered by the orchestra, choir, and general audience. During the singing, the American flag which was carried by John Paul Jones on his frigate302, the “Bon Homme Richard,” in 1779, was unfurled above the platform, and a salute of forty-seven guns was fired. Then the President of the United States rose and said: “I now declare the International Exhibition of 1876 closed.” General Hawley said: “The President of the United States will now give the signal to stop the great engine.” The President then waved his hand to a telegraph operator, who instantly sent an electric message to the{202} engineer in Machinery Hall, and at exactly 3.40 o’clock P.M. the great engine ceased to work. The singing of the Doxology by the choir and audience concluded the ceremony.
It will be of interest to add, for purposes of record and reference, some statistics regarding the Exhibition. Nearly all supplies of goods, and nearly all visitors were brought to Philadelphia over the lines of two railroad companies, the Pennsylvania, and the Philadelphia & Reading. During 1874 these roads delivered at the Exhibition grounds 3,341 loaded freight cars; in 1875, 10,479; and in 1876, 6,340; a total of 20,160 loaded cars bearing about 200,000 tons of freight. During the continuance of the Exhibition there arrived at the Centennial station of the Pennsylvania Railroad 23,972 passenger trains, and at the station of the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad, 42,495. The average number of trains daily was more than 410, and the average number of cars to each train more than 6, giving accommodations in the whole number of trains for over 20,000,000 passengers. The greatest service in one day at the Pennsylvania depot303 comprised 250 trains of 2,004 cars, bearing 58,347 passengers; and at the Philadelphia & Reading station on the same day 370 trains of 2,867 cars, bearing 185,800 passengers; a total of 620 trains, 4,871 cars, and 244,147 passengers. During the entire Exhibition{203} there arrived at the Pennsylvania depot 1,392,697 passengers, and at the Philadelphia & Reading 1,726,010.
There were received at the Exhibition from all the countries of the world 154,273 packages of goods, weighing 57,116,658 pounds; and there were removed from the grounds at the close of the fair 58,700 packages, weighing 27,041,271 pounds.
From May 10th to November 10th, 1876, there were admitted to the grounds a grand total of 9,910,966 persons, from whom were received admission fees amounting to $3,813,724.49. The largest number admitted on any day was 274,919, on Pennsylvania Day, September 28th. The smallest number, 12,720, was admitted on Friday, May 12th. The largest number of persons passing through a single gate in a single hour was 1,870. The day of the week most popular among visitors was Thursday, with an average of 76,905 attendants, and the least popular was Monday, with an average of 50,051.
The total number of persons transported to and from the Exhibition was 19,821,932, of whom 3,574,528 came on local trains, 2,334,804 on railroad trains from out of the city, 10,557,100 by tramways, 556,500 by steamboat, 803,000 by carriages, and 1,996,000 on foot.
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1 recording | |
n.录音,记录 | |
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2 predecessors | |
n.前任( predecessor的名词复数 );前辈;(被取代的)原有事物;前身 | |
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3 epitome | |
n.典型,梗概 | |
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4 ERECTED | |
adj. 直立的,竖立的,笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立,建立 | |
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5 originality | |
n.创造力,独创性;新颖 | |
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6 marvels | |
n.奇迹( marvel的名词复数 );令人惊奇的事物(或事例);不平凡的成果;成就v.惊奇,对…感到惊奇( marvel的第三人称单数 ) | |
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7 stimulate | |
vt.刺激,使兴奋;激励,使…振奋 | |
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8 stimulated | |
a.刺激的 | |
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9 simultaneously | |
adv.同时发生地,同时进行地 | |
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10 insignificant | |
adj.无关紧要的,可忽略的,无意义的 | |
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11 sparsely | |
adv.稀疏地;稀少地;不足地;贫乏地 | |
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12 mere | |
adj.纯粹的;仅仅,只不过 | |
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13 rudiment | |
n.初步;初级;基本原理 | |
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14 primitive | |
adj.原始的;简单的;n.原(始)人,原始事物 | |
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15 infancy | |
n.婴儿期;幼年期;初期 | |
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16 situated | |
adj.坐落在...的,处于某种境地的 | |
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17 embodied | |
v.表现( embody的过去式和过去分词 );象征;包括;包含 | |
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18 pointed | |
adj.尖的,直截了当的 | |
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19 triangular | |
adj.三角(形)的,三者间的 | |
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20 intersection | |
n.交集,十字路口,交叉点;[计算机] 交集 | |
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21 dome | |
n.圆屋顶,拱顶 | |
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22 wrought | |
v.引起;以…原料制作;运转;adj.制造的 | |
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23 naves | |
n.教堂正厅( nave的名词复数 );本堂;中央部;车轮的中心部 | |
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24 nave | |
n.教堂的中部;本堂 | |
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25 aisle | |
n.(教堂、教室、戏院等里的)过道,通道 | |
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26 aisles | |
n. (席位间的)通道, 侧廊 | |
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27 isles | |
岛( isle的名词复数 ) | |
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28 ribs | |
n.肋骨( rib的名词复数 );(船或屋顶等的)肋拱;肋骨状的东西;(织物的)凸条花纹 | |
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29 surmounted | |
战胜( surmount的过去式和过去分词 ); 克服(困难); 居于…之上; 在…顶上 | |
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30 ornamental | |
adj.装饰的;作装饰用的;n.装饰品;观赏植物 | |
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31 panes | |
窗玻璃( pane的名词复数 ) | |
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32 ridge | |
n.山脊;鼻梁;分水岭 | |
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33 pharmaceutical | |
adj.药学的,药物的;药用的,药剂师的 | |
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34 machinery | |
n.(总称)机械,机器;机构 | |
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35 naval | |
adj.海军的,军舰的,船的 | |
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36 implements | |
n.工具( implement的名词复数 );家具;手段;[法律]履行(契约等)v.实现( implement的第三人称单数 );执行;贯彻;使生效 | |
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37 philosophical | |
adj.哲学家的,哲学上的,达观的 | |
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38 velvet | |
n.丝绒,天鹅绒;adj.丝绒制的,柔软的 | |
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39 hemp | |
n.大麻;纤维 | |
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40 fabrics | |
织物( fabric的名词复数 ); 布; 构造; (建筑物的)结构(如墙、地面、屋顶):质地 | |
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41 fabric | |
n.织物,织品,布;构造,结构,组织 | |
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42 stationery | |
n.文具;(配套的)信笺信封 | |
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43 tapestry | |
n.挂毯,丰富多采的画面 | |
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44 embroideries | |
刺绣( embroidery的名词复数 ); 刺绣品; 刺绣法 | |
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45 brass | |
n.黄铜;黄铜器,铜管乐器 | |
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46 porcelain | |
n.瓷;adj.瓷的,瓷制的 | |
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47 ceramic | |
n.制陶业,陶器,陶瓷工艺 | |
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48 slate | |
n.板岩,石板,石片,石板色,候选人名单;adj.暗蓝灰色的,含板岩的;vt.用石板覆盖,痛打,提名,预订 | |
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49 countenance | |
n.脸色,面容;面部表情;vt.支持,赞同 | |
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50 auspices | |
n.资助,赞助 | |
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51 metropolitan | |
adj.大城市的,大都会的 | |
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52 distinguished | |
adj.卓越的,杰出的,著名的 | |
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53 bishop | |
n.主教,(国际象棋)象 | |
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54 rev | |
v.发动机旋转,加快速度 | |
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55 proceedings | |
n.进程,过程,议程;诉讼(程序);公报 | |
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56 delightfully | |
大喜,欣然 | |
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57 fully | |
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地 | |
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58 cannon | |
n.大炮,火炮;飞机上的机关炮 | |
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59 expressive | |
adj.表现的,表达…的,富于表情的 | |
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60 eminently | |
adv.突出地;显著地;不寻常地 | |
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61 foresight | |
n.先见之明,深谋远虑 | |
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62 destined | |
adj.命中注定的;(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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63 attain | |
vt.达到,获得,完成 | |
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64 specimens | |
n.样品( specimen的名词复数 );范例;(化验的)抽样;某种类型的人 | |
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65 costly | |
adj.昂贵的,价值高的,豪华的 | |
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66 artistic | |
adj.艺术(家)的,美术(家)的;善于艺术创作的 | |
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67 luxurious | |
adj.精美而昂贵的;豪华的 | |
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68 opulence | |
n.财富,富裕 | |
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69 varied | |
adj.多样的,多变化的 | |
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70 fidelity | |
n.忠诚,忠实;精确 | |
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71 mutual | |
adj.相互的,彼此的;共同的,共有的 | |
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72 bulwark | |
n.堡垒,保障,防御 | |
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73 dependence | |
n.依靠,依赖;信任,信赖;隶属 | |
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74 lament | |
n.悲叹,悔恨,恸哭;v.哀悼,悔恨,悲叹 | |
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75 trespass | |
n./v.侵犯,闯入私人领地 | |
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76 sketch | |
n.草图;梗概;素描;v.素描;概述 | |
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77 contemplate | |
vt.盘算,计议;周密考虑;注视,凝视 | |
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78 bonded | |
n.有担保的,保税的,粘合的 | |
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79 warehouse | |
n.仓库;vt.存入仓库 | |
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80 epoch | |
n.(新)时代;历元 | |
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81 accomplished | |
adj.有才艺的;有造诣的;达到了的 | |
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82 durability | |
n.经久性,耐用性 | |
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83 erecting | |
v.使直立,竖起( erect的现在分词 );建立 | |
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84 edifice | |
n.宏伟的建筑物(如宫殿,教室) | |
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85 remarkable | |
adj.显著的,异常的,非凡的,值得注意的 | |
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86 intelligible | |
adj.可理解的,明白易懂的,清楚的 | |
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87 reposing | |
v.将(手臂等)靠在某人(某物)上( repose的现在分词 ) | |
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88 entirely | |
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地 | |
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89 majestic | |
adj.雄伟的,壮丽的,庄严的,威严的,崇高的 | |
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90 undertaking | |
n.保证,许诺,事业 | |
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91 speculation | |
n.思索,沉思;猜测;投机 | |
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92 undertakings | |
企业( undertaking的名词复数 ); 保证; 殡仪业; 任务 | |
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93 impartial | |
adj.(in,to)公正的,无偏见的 | |
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94 graceful | |
adj.优美的,优雅的;得体的 | |
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95 alluded | |
提及,暗指( allude的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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96 forth | |
adv.向前;向外,往外 | |
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97 immediate | |
adj.立即的;直接的,最接近的;紧靠的 | |
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98 kindly | |
adj.和蔼的,温和的,爽快的;adv.温和地,亲切地 | |
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99 civilized | |
a.有教养的,文雅的 | |
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100 prevailing | |
adj.盛行的;占优势的;主要的 | |
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101 conspicuous | |
adj.明眼的,惹人注目的;炫耀的,摆阔气的 | |
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102 landmark | |
n.陆标,划时代的事,地界标 | |
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103 patriotism | |
n.爱国精神,爱国心,爱国主义 | |
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104 advancement | |
n.前进,促进,提升 | |
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105 elevation | |
n.高度;海拔;高地;上升;提高 | |
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106 blessing | |
n.祈神赐福;祷告;祝福,祝愿 | |
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107 providence | |
n.深谋远虑,天道,天意;远见;节约;上帝 | |
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108 exempt | |
adj.免除的;v.使免除;n.免税者,被免除义务者 | |
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109 havoc | |
n.大破坏,浩劫,大混乱,大杂乱 | |
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110 rivalry | |
n.竞争,竞赛,对抗 | |
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111 emulation | |
n.竞争;仿效 | |
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112 drawn | |
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的 | |
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113 intercourse | |
n.性交;交流,交往,交际 | |
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114 stimulating | |
adj.有启发性的,能激发人思考的 | |
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115 diffusing | |
(使光)模糊,漫射,漫散( diffuse的现在分词 ); (使)扩散; (使)弥漫; (使)传播 | |
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116 brotherhood | |
n.兄弟般的关系,手中情谊 | |
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117 concord | |
n.和谐;协调 | |
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118 emulate | |
v.努力赶上或超越,与…竞争;效仿 | |
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119 prosecution | |
n.起诉,告发,检举,执行,经营 | |
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120 auspicious | |
adj.吉利的;幸运的,吉兆的 | |
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121 auspiciously | |
adv.吉利; 繁荣昌盛; 前途顺利; 吉祥 | |
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122 labor | |
n.劳动,努力,工作,劳工;分娩;vi.劳动,努力,苦干;vt.详细分析;麻烦 | |
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123 labors | |
v.努力争取(for)( labor的第三人称单数 );苦干;详细分析;(指引擎)缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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124 disinterested | |
adj.不关心的,不感兴趣的 | |
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125 worthy | |
adj.(of)值得的,配得上的;有价值的 | |
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126 afterward | |
adv.后来;以后 | |
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127 hearty | |
adj.热情友好的;衷心的;尽情的,纵情的 | |
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128 projectors | |
电影放映机,幻灯机( projector的名词复数 ) | |
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129 imposing | |
adj.使人难忘的,壮丽的,堂皇的,雄伟的 | |
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130 demonstration | |
n.表明,示范,论证,示威 | |
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131 patriotic | |
adj.爱国的,有爱国心的 | |
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132 consecrated | |
adj.神圣的,被视为神圣的v.把…奉为神圣,给…祝圣( consecrate的过去式和过去分词 );奉献 | |
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133 standing | |
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的 | |
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134 inauguration | |
n.开幕、就职典礼 | |
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135 crimson | |
n./adj.深(绯)红色(的);vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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136 illustrated | |
adj. 有插图的,列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词 | |
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137 suite | |
n.一套(家具);套房;随从人员 | |
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138 lasting | |
adj.永久的,永恒的;vbl.持续,维持 | |
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139 flaunting | |
adj.招摇的,扬扬得意的,夸耀的v.炫耀,夸耀( flaunt的现在分词 );有什么能耐就施展出来 | |
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140 intemperate | |
adj.无节制的,放纵的 | |
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141 fresco | |
n.壁画;vt.作壁画于 | |
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142 pedestrians | |
n.步行者( pedestrian的名词复数 ) | |
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143 disturbance | |
n.动乱,骚动;打扰,干扰;(身心)失调 | |
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144 partially | |
adv.部分地,从某些方面讲 | |
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145 baron | |
n.男爵;(商业界等)巨头,大王 | |
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146 calumny | |
n.诽谤,污蔑,中伤 | |
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147 treasury | |
n.宝库;国库,金库;文库 | |
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148 salmon | |
n.鲑,大马哈鱼,橙红色的 | |
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149 recollected | |
adj.冷静的;镇定的;被回忆起的;沉思默想的v.记起,想起( recollect的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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150 jersey | |
n.运动衫 | |
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151 clergy | |
n.[总称]牧师,神职人员 | |
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152 commissioner | |
n.(政府厅、局、处等部门)专员,长官,委员 | |
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153 commissioners | |
n.专员( commissioner的名词复数 );长官;委员;政府部门的长官 | |
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154 consuls | |
领事( consul的名词复数 ); (古罗马共和国时期)执政官 (古罗马共和国及其军队的最高首长,同时共有两位,每年选举一次) | |
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155 chancellor | |
n.(英)大臣;法官;(德、奥)总理;大学校长 | |
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156 exhausted | |
adj.极其疲惫的,精疲力尽的 | |
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157 hymn | |
n.赞美诗,圣歌,颂歌 | |
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158 harmonious | |
adj.和睦的,调和的,和谐的,协调的 | |
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159 interpretation | |
n.解释,说明,描述;艺术处理 | |
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160 toil | |
vi.辛劳工作,艰难地行动;n.苦工,难事 | |
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161 mighty | |
adj.强有力的;巨大的 | |
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162 impromptu | |
adj.即席的,即兴的;adv.即兴的(地),无准备的(地) | |
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163 fatigued | |
adj. 疲乏的 | |
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164 proprieties | |
n.礼仪,礼节;礼貌( propriety的名词复数 );规矩;正当;合适 | |
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165 excellence | |
n.优秀,杰出,(pl.)优点,美德 | |
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166 refreshment | |
n.恢复,精神爽快,提神之事物;(复数)refreshments:点心,茶点 | |
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167 disorder | |
n.紊乱,混乱;骚动,骚乱;疾病,失调 | |
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168 corps | |
n.(通信等兵种的)部队;(同类作的)一组 | |
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169 behold | |
v.看,注视,看到 | |
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170 decided | |
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的 | |
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171 yearning | |
a.渴望的;向往的;怀念的 | |
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172 vicissitudes | |
n.变迁,世事变化;变迁兴衰( vicissitude的名词复数 );盛衰兴废 | |
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173 orators | |
n.演说者,演讲家( orator的名词复数 ) | |
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174 archaic | |
adj.(语言、词汇等)古代的,已不通用的 | |
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175 embryonic | |
adj.胚胎的 | |
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176 devoid | |
adj.全无的,缺乏的 | |
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177 memorable | |
adj.值得回忆的,难忘的,特别的,显著的 | |
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178 eloquence | |
n.雄辩;口才,修辞 | |
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179 precisely | |
adv.恰好,正好,精确地,细致地 | |
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180 deficient | |
adj.不足的,不充份的,有缺陷的 | |
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181 predilections | |
n.偏爱,偏好,嗜好( predilection的名词复数 ) | |
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182 adverse | |
adj.不利的;有害的;敌对的,不友好的 | |
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183 wares | |
n. 货物, 商品 | |
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184 jewelry | |
n.(jewllery)(总称)珠宝 | |
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185 mosaics | |
n.马赛克( mosaic的名词复数 );镶嵌;镶嵌工艺;镶嵌图案 | |
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186 refinements | |
n.(生活)风雅;精炼( refinement的名词复数 );改良品;细微的改良;优雅或高贵的动作 | |
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187 ostentation | |
n.夸耀,卖弄 | |
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188 prodigal | |
adj.浪费的,挥霍的,放荡的 | |
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189 extravagant | |
adj.奢侈的;过分的;(言行等)放肆的 | |
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190 corrupt | |
v.贿赂,收买;adj.腐败的,贪污的 | |
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191 cultivation | |
n.耕作,培养,栽培(法),养成 | |
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192 redeems | |
补偿( redeem的第三人称单数 ); 实践; 解救; 使…免受责难 | |
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193 redeem | |
v.买回,赎回,挽回,恢复,履行(诺言等) | |
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194 softens | |
(使)变软( soften的第三人称单数 ); 缓解打击; 缓和; 安慰 | |
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195 asperities | |
n.粗暴( asperity的名词复数 );(表面的)粗糙;(环境的)艰苦;严寒的天气 | |
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196 serene | |
adj. 安详的,宁静的,平静的 | |
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197 enjoyment | |
n.乐趣;享有;享用 | |
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198 sterling | |
adj.英币的(纯粹的,货真价实的);n.英国货币(英镑) | |
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199 virtues | |
美德( virtue的名词复数 ); 德行; 优点; 长处 | |
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200 analyzed | |
v.分析( analyze的过去式和过去分词 );分解;解释;对…进行心理分析 | |
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201 solitary | |
adj.孤独的,独立的,荒凉的;n.隐士 | |
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202 mariner | |
n.水手号不载人航天探测器,海员,航海者 | |
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203 touching | |
adj.动人的,使人感伤的 | |
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204 unity | |
n.团结,联合,统一;和睦,协调 | |
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205 pervades | |
v.遍及,弥漫( pervade的第三人称单数 ) | |
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206 laborers | |
n.体力劳动者,工人( laborer的名词复数 );(熟练工人的)辅助工 | |
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207 laborer | |
n.劳动者,劳工 | |
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208 forefathers | |
n.祖先,先人;祖先,祖宗( forefather的名词复数 );列祖列宗;前人 | |
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209 authorizes | |
授权,批准,委托( authorize的名词复数 ) | |
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210 complacent | |
adj.自满的;自鸣得意的 | |
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211 attainments | |
成就,造诣; 获得( attainment的名词复数 ); 达到; 造诣; 成就 | |
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212 enjoyments | |
愉快( enjoyment的名词复数 ); 令人愉快的事物; 享有; 享受 | |
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213 elegance | |
n.优雅;优美,雅致;精致,巧妙 | |
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214 formerly | |
adv.从前,以前 | |
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215 ornamented | |
adj.花式字体的v.装饰,点缀,美化( ornament的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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216 warrior | |
n.勇士,武士,斗士 | |
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217 ornaments | |
n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 );点缀;装饰品;首饰v.装饰,点缀,美化( ornament的第三人称单数 ) | |
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218 miserable | |
adj.悲惨的,痛苦的;可怜的,糟糕的 | |
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219 wretches | |
n.不幸的人( wretch的名词复数 );可怜的人;恶棍;坏蛋 | |
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220 splendors | |
n.华丽( splendor的名词复数 );壮丽;光辉;显赫 | |
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221 splendor | |
n.光彩;壮丽,华丽;显赫,辉煌 | |
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222 diffuse | |
v.扩散;传播;adj.冗长的;四散的,弥漫的 | |
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223 diffused | |
散布的,普及的,扩散的 | |
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224 woolen | |
adj.羊毛(制)的;毛纺的 | |
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225 exquisitely | |
adv.精致地;强烈地;剧烈地;异常地 | |
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226 collateral | |
adj.平行的;旁系的;n.担保品 | |
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227 civilizing | |
v.使文明,使开化( civilize的现在分词 ) | |
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228 intervals | |
n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 );间隔时间;[数学]区间;(戏剧、电影或音乐会的)幕间休息 | |
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229 annihilated | |
v.(彻底)消灭( annihilate的过去式和过去分词 );使无效;废止;彻底击溃 | |
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230 renovate | |
vt.更新,革新,刷新 | |
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231 amity | |
n.友好关系 | |
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232 impeded | |
阻碍,妨碍,阻止( impede的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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233 insular | |
adj.岛屿的,心胸狭窄的 | |
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234 aggrandize | |
v.增大,扩张,吹捧 | |
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235 salute | |
vi.行礼,致意,问候,放礼炮;vt.向…致意,迎接,赞扬;n.招呼,敬礼,礼炮 | |
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236 conflagration | |
n.建筑物或森林大火 | |
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237 wreck | |
n.失事,遇难;沉船;vt.(船等)失事,遇难 | |
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238 remains | |
n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹 | |
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239 turrets | |
(六角)转台( turret的名词复数 ); (战舰和坦克等上的)转动炮塔; (摄影机等上的)镜头转台; (旧时攻城用的)塔车 | |
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240 scattered | |
adj.分散的,稀疏的;散步的;疏疏落落的 | |
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241 egress | |
n.出去;出口 | |
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242 trifling | |
adj.微不足道的;没什么价值的 | |
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243 dense | |
a.密集的,稠密的,浓密的;密度大的 | |
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244 suffocated | |
(使某人)窒息而死( suffocate的过去式和过去分词 ); (将某人)闷死; 让人感觉闷热; 憋气 | |
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245 axe | |
n.斧子;v.用斧头砍,削减 | |
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246 suffocating | |
a.使人窒息的 | |
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247 thronged | |
v.成群,挤满( throng的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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248 Amended | |
adj. 修正的 动词amend的过去式和过去分词 | |
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249 verge | |
n.边,边缘;v.接近,濒临 | |
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250 impetus | |
n.推动,促进,刺激;推动力 | |
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251 influx | |
n.流入,注入 | |
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252 commemorate | |
vt.纪念,庆祝 | |
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253 systematic | |
adj.有系统的,有计划的,有方法的 | |
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254 minor | |
adj.较小(少)的,较次要的;n.辅修学科;vi.辅修 | |
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255 jutting | |
v.(使)突出( jut的现在分词 );伸出;(从…)突出;高出 | |
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256 groves | |
树丛,小树林( grove的名词复数 ) | |
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257 facades | |
n.(房屋的)正面( facade的名词复数 );假象,外观 | |
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258 devoted | |
adj.忠诚的,忠实的,热心的,献身于...的 | |
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259 annex | |
vt.兼并,吞并;n.附属建筑物 | |
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260 hydraulic | |
adj.水力的;水压的,液压的;水力学的 | |
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261 shafting | |
n.轴系;制轴材料;欺骗;怠慢 | |
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262 motive | |
n.动机,目的;adv.发动的,运动的 | |
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263 cylinders | |
n.圆筒( cylinder的名词复数 );圆柱;汽缸;(尤指用作容器的)圆筒状物 | |
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264 boilers | |
锅炉,烧水器,水壶( boiler的名词复数 ) | |
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265 moorish | |
adj.沼地的,荒野的,生[住]在沼地的 | |
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266 shrubs | |
灌木( shrub的名词复数 ) | |
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267 granite | |
adj.花岗岩,花岗石 | |
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268 briefly | |
adv.简单地,简短地 | |
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269 agitation | |
n.搅动;搅拌;鼓动,煽动 | |
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270 grandeur | |
n.伟大,崇高,宏伟,庄严,豪华 | |
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271 expenditure | |
n.(时间、劳力、金钱等)支出;使用,消耗 | |
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272 ledger | |
n.总帐,分类帐;帐簿 | |
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273 delegation | |
n.代表团;派遣 | |
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274 quorum | |
n.法定人数 | |
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275 supplementary | |
adj.补充的,附加的 | |
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276 nomination | |
n.提名,任命,提名权 | |
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277 oration | |
n.演说,致辞,叙述法 | |
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278 subscriptions | |
n.(报刊等的)订阅费( subscription的名词复数 );捐款;(俱乐部的)会员费;捐助 | |
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279 aggregate | |
adj.总计的,集合的;n.总数;v.合计;集合 | |
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280 restrictions | |
约束( restriction的名词复数 ); 管制; 制约因素; 带限制性的条件(或规则) | |
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281 withdrawn | |
vt.收回;使退出;vi.撤退,退出 | |
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282 inaugural | |
adj.就职的;n.就职典礼 | |
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283 cavalry | |
n.骑兵;轻装甲部队 | |
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284 acting | |
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的 | |
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285 bodyguard | |
n.护卫,保镖 | |
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286 choir | |
n.唱诗班,唱诗班的席位,合唱团,舞蹈团;v.合唱 | |
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287 cantata | |
n.清唱剧,大合唱 | |
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288 buck | |
n.雄鹿,雄兔;v.马离地跳跃 | |
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289 knights | |
骑士; (中古时代的)武士( knight的名词复数 ); 骑士; 爵士; (国际象棋中)马 | |
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290 dedication | |
n.奉献,献身,致力,题献,献辞 | |
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291 orphans | |
孤儿( orphan的名词复数 ) | |
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292 overture | |
n.前奏曲、序曲,提议,提案,初步交涉 | |
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293 psalm | |
n.赞美诗,圣诗 | |
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294 scowled | |
怒视,生气地皱眉( scowl的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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295 foes | |
敌人,仇敌( foe的名词复数 ) | |
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296 swell | |
vi.膨胀,肿胀;增长,增强 | |
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297 slumber | |
n.睡眠,沉睡状态 | |
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298 resound | |
v.回响 | |
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299 murmur | |
n.低语,低声的怨言;v.低语,低声而言 | |
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300 strife | |
n.争吵,冲突,倾轧,竞争 | |
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301 supreme | |
adj.极度的,最重要的;至高的,最高的 | |
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302 frigate | |
n.护航舰,大型驱逐舰 | |
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303 depot | |
n.仓库,储藏处;公共汽车站;火车站 | |
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