Final Report of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition Commission Part 55

Pennsylvania responded enthusiastically to the invitation to partic.i.p.ate in the general educational display in the Art Palace. Fully conscious of the ethical influence of art as a factor in the progress of the Commonwealth, the commissioners set aside funds to a.s.sist the Pennsylvania artists in displaying the best of their works produced since the Columbian Exposition--eleven years ago--and in a manner worthy of the State, which possesses the oldest art inst.i.tute in the country and which gave birth to Benjamin West, Sully, Nagel, Rothemmel, and Abbey.

The State had important representation in all of the six groups in which the department had cla.s.sified its exhibits.

The following table will show the extent of the partic.i.p.ation:

Paintings and drawings ...... 145 Etchings and engravings ..... 7 Sculpture ................... 36 Architecture ................ 104 Loan ........................ 14 Applied arts ................ 107 ---- Total ....................... 313

Pennsylvania sculpture was a striking feature of the impressive collection in the United States sculpture court of the Art Palace. The late Edmund C. Stewartson's work, "The Bather," one of the best productions of American sculpture, was installed here, and, among others, important works were shown of Charles Grafly, to whom was intrusted the designing of the official medal of awards for the exposition; of Alexander Sterling Calder, and of Samuel Murray, who exhibited many portrait busts of well-known Pennsylvanians. Architecture had as its Pennsylvania representation many well-known individuals and firms.

To the splendid collection of foreign masterpieces forming the loan collection of the United States section, borrowed from individual collectors and art inst.i.tutions, Pennsylvania made sumptuous contributions.

The Pennsylvania display in the Department of Art was of the highest importance, and a comparison with the contributions of other States disclosed the fact that Pennsylvania stood second to only one other State in point of numbers.

PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.

The Philippine exposition board was created by Act 514 of the Philippine Commission, pa.s.sed for the purpose of collecting and installing a distinctively Philippine exhibit at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904 at St. Louis, Mo.

The original act carried an appropriation of $125,000, which was made immediately available, and authorized the board to incur additional obligations to the amount of $250,000 apart from such sum as might be set aside by the Louisiana Purchase Exposition Company in aid of the Philippine exhibit. The amount of such aid was $200,000 from the appropriation made by Congress.

Several amendments to Act 514 were made, notably Acts 765, 827, 1055, and other acts carrying additional appropriations.

The exposition board, as originally appointed, consisted of Dr. W.P.

Wilson, director of the Philadelphia Commercial Museum; Dr. Gustavo Niederlein, chief of the scientific department of the Philadelphia museums, and Mr. Pedro A. Paterno, of Manila, as members, and Dr. Leon M. Guerrero, also of Manila, secretary. Mr. Carson Taylor was appointed disbursing officer.

Several changes in the authorized official organization have occurred.

Mr. Pedro A. Paterno, member, whose work had been confined to the Philippine Islands, resigned in August, 1904, and was succeeded by Mr.

A.L. Lawshe, auditor for the Philippine Islands, who was appointed to serve during a leave of absence from the Philippines. Dr. W.P. Wilson resigned the chairmanship in October, 1904, the resignation to take effect November 1 following. Mr. Lawshe was appointed to the chairmanship to succeed Doctor Wilson, and Mr. Herbert S. Stone, previously connected with the board as chief of publicity, was appointed to the vacant membership on the board.

The task of collecting the material for the exhibit devolved on Doctor Niederlein, who, as director of exhibits, was given sole charge of this work. He arrived in the islands for the purpose in October, 1902.

Chairman Wilson made a brief visit to the islands in May, 1903, to arrange plans for the work, and upon his return undertook the construction of the buildings and the beautifying of the grounds.

Forty-seven acres of rolling country, lying for the most part on an elevation of the southwestern section of the World's Fair grounds, were a.s.signed to the Philippine exhibit. The work of construction consisted of building a miniature city, with streets and parks and complete sewerage, water, and electric light, and fire-alarm systems. The ground plan included a central park or plaza, the sides of the quadrangle being occupied, respectively, by the cathedral or educational building, the typical Manila house, the commerce building, and the government or administration building, each of these beautiful structures being filled with appropriate exhibits. In addition there were separate exhibit buildings devoted to forestry, mines, and metallurgy, to agriculture and horticulture, to fish and game, and to ethnology, all artistically placed. A reproduction of the ancient walls of Manila commanded the main approach to the Philippine grounds. After crossing a miniature reproduction of the Bridge of Spain, which spans the Pasig River at Manila, the visitors entered the Philippine reservation through the Real gate. Villages typical of the Philippine life, from the lowest grade to the better cla.s.s, surrounded the main buildings, while on the south side were the quarters, camps, and parade grounds of the Philippine Constabulary and the Philippine Scouts. The Manila Observatory, with a large outdoor relief map on the east and a hospital and office building in a convenient s.p.a.ce on the west part of the grounds, completed the scheme.

Each and every building constructed under Philippine auspices was typical of the islands. Vast quant.i.ties of bamboo and nipa, brought from the archipelago, were used in the construction of the native villages as well as in the Forestry, Mines, Agriculture, and Fish and Game buildings.

While the expenditure for the exhibit far exceeded the amount originally contemplated by the Philippine Commission, due to many causes and conditions, it gave to the people of the United States a more intimate knowledge of the resources and possibilities of the Philippine Islands than they could acquire except by an actual and extended visit.

The exhibit was an honest one. There were the least civilized people in the Negritos and the Igorrotes; the semicivilized in the Bagobos and the Moros, and the civilized and cultured in the Visavans, as well as in the constabulary and scout organizations. In all other respects the exhibit was a faithful portrayal.

The official staff of the board was as follows:

Dr. William P. Wilson, chairman; Dr. Gustavo Niederlein, member and director of exhibits; Mr. Pedro A. Paterno, member; Dr. Leon M.

Guerrero, secretary; Mr. Edmund A. Felder, executive officer; Mr. Carson Taylor, disbursing officer; Mr. H.C. Lewis, cashier; Rev. Jose Algue, S.J., director of the Philippine Weather Bureau and director of the Philippine Exposition Observatory; Capt. M.C. Butler, U.S. Army, director of supplies; Capt. Llewellyn P. Williamson, Medical Department, U.S. Army, medical director; Mr. Charles L. Hall, chief department of agriculture; Mr. Charles P. Fenner, chief department of commerce and manufactures and representative of the American Chamber of Commerce of Manila; Mr. A.R. Hager, chief department of education; Dr. Albert E.

Jenks, chief ethnological survey for the Philippine Islands and chief of the department of ethnology, Philippine exposition; Mr. Roy Hopping, chief department mines and metallurgy; Mr. Herbert S. Stone, chief department of publicity; Mr. Alfred C. Newell, chief department of exploitation; Mr. William N. Swarthout, editor of the Manila Times, on special duty; Mr. George P. Linden, curator of exhibits, in charge of forestry; Capt. F.E. Cofren, P.C., chief of war exhibit; Mr. Antonio G.

Escammilla, a.s.sistant secretary; Capt. George S. Clark, purchasing agent; Mr. A.E. Anderson, architect; Mr. James D. Lalor, chief engineer; Miss Pilar Zamora, superintendent of model school; Mr. Jose Quadras, chief department of fish and game.

The forestry exhibit was installed in a handsome and characteristic bamboo and nipa structure of the bungalow type. The interior of the building was divided into four parts, of which two were utilized to show the woods in the rough, planed, and polished states, a third being used to display forestry by-products, while the last contained the finished products made into furniture.

The total number of exhibitors in this department was 1,294. The superior jury approved the following awards:

Grand prizes, 3; gold medals, 24; silver medals, 39; bronze medals, 32; honorable mentions, 207; total number awards granted, 305.

In the commerce and manufactures was a commercial exhibit showing the articles of importation, their cost, method of packing, etc. Exhibitors of samples of imports in this department were awarded suitable medals and diplomas for their collaboration and the wisdom of the scheme has been fully demonstrated.

The commercial library, consisting of the Philippine tariff and customs administrative act, public laws and resolutions pa.s.sed by the civil commission, and other books of interest, served excellently as works of reference.

The department of liberal arts and fine arts was installed in the two wings on the ground floor of the Government Building, while the fine-art exhibit was placed in the art gallery formed by the rear wing of the building. Taking advantage of the available facilities, they were arranged so as to give unity to the whole, notwithstanding their variety, thus making the general effect pleasing to the eye.

A collection of mollusks of great scientific value and a collection of insects were placed, respectively, in the right and left wings of the building.

A large collection of books, pamphlets, newspapers, photographs, etc., relating to the Philippines, the maps and public and private house models, and the different exhibits of the insular government bureaus were exhibited in the palaces above mentioned. The needlework in silk cloth, pina, and cotton, together with work in leather, silver, and gold, and musical instruments, noteworthy on account of perfect workmanship, were equally well displayed for public inspection.

The prizes awarded to this department were as follows:

Grand prizes, 14; gold medals, 55; silver medals, 64; bronze medals, 45; honorable mentions, 123.

The main installation of fine arts was made in the reception hall of the Government Building, both for paintings and sculpture. Of the first mentioned there were 61, selected for special merit, and of the second, 28, notable for their artistic conception and execution. The remainder were divided between the educational building and the Manila House, there being 85 oil paintings aside from water colors and some drawings in crayon; 35 pieces of sculpture, and 8 wood carvings. Among the pieces of sculpture were included certain ancient pieces which, in some respects, ill.u.s.trate the history of this branch of fine arts cultivated by the Filipinos, with special application to religious iconography.

In July the paintings and sculptures were examined, and the following awards were unanimously made:

Grand prizes, 4; gold medals, 15; silver medals, 31; bronze medals, 38; honorable mentions, 42.

The Manila observatory took a special interest in the St. Louis Exposition and exhibited a model of a first-cla.s.s meteorological seismic station equipped with the very latest instruments. This model, unlike others that were on exhibition at the World's Fair, was in working order, and all the recording instruments were continually kept in motion by the head mechanic of the Manila central observatory.

The work in the meteorological station consisted princ.i.p.ally in taking two daily observations of Green's mercurial barometer, of the maximum and minimum temperature of the psychrometer, of the direction of the winds and of the clouds and also the amount of rainfall.

The educational exhibit was installed in a large, well-lighted building which was a diminished model of the Manila Cathedral. Central walls and alcoves, covered with green burlap, were erected to give wall s.p.a.ce, and 220 square meters of s.p.a.ce were thus provided. In preparing the exhibit, the first step was to enlist the cooperation of the American and Filipino teachers in the Government schools, about 2,000 in number, and as many as possible of the teachers of private schools. To this end, circulars were sent to every American teacher, and visits were made to the school divisions near Manila. Supplies of school materials, uniform paper for written work, etc., were sent by the bureau of education, which gave every a.s.sistance possible to schools that requested such material. Letters were written to a number of educators in America requesting personal expressions as to what they would find most interesting in a Philippine educational exhibit. In response many helpful suggestions were received.

The educational exhibit known as "Department A," of the Philippine exposition board, contained collections sent by 438 exhibitors and consisted of 8,542 exhibits.

Labels of various sizes were freely used to give visitors information regarding collections and conditions of school work in the Philippines, particularly where these conditions differed from those of the United States.

Written work was displayed in flat-top wall cases arranged according to school divisions, some of the typical work being shown open under gla.s.s.

These cases were arranged so that they might have been opened without disturbing the displayed work to give access to other written work of the division.

The industrial exhibits and photographs filled 30 glazed show cases and the wall s.p.a.ce around these cases and were arranged by school divisions.

These show cases varied in size from one-half to 7 cubic meters. The list of awards contained eight grand prizes, as follows:

The secretary of public instruction and the general superintendent of education, on the exhibit as a whole; the Philippine Model School; Laguna High School; Liceo de Manila Secondary School; the Philippine Nautical School; the Philippine Normal School, and the University of Santo Tomas.

Thirty gold medals, 71 silver medals, 110 bronze medals, and 323 honorable mentions were also awarded.

The Model School was in a typical nipa and bamboo schoolhouse especially arranged for exhibition purposes. It was in charge of Miss Pilar Zamora, a Tagalog, who is a teacher, in the Philippine Normal School. Two sessions were held daily, to which visitors were admitted.

The exhibits in the agricultural building represented agriculture, horticulture, and land transportation. The material on exhibition consisted of all raw and manufactured products of the soil, together with crude native instruments and implements employed in the cultivation of the land, as well as native machinery for the preparation of such products for the market, ill.u.s.trating in as complete a manner as possible the old process of raising the various crops of the island.

Among the cereals were large and interesting collections of rice, both hulled and in the hull, representing hundreds of varieties and subvarieties grown in the different islands of the archipelago. These varieties were divided into two groups, namely, "palay de secano" or mountain rice, which is cultivated without irrigation, and "palay de regadio" or valley rice, which is cultivated in rice paddies and by irrigation. There were also samples of wheat grown at some of the experimental stations established by the insular bureau of agriculture.

Samples of corn or maize, millet, sorghum, pease, beans, and lentils were also exhibited.