THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. OCTOBER, 1909 THE HUDSON-FULTON CELEBRATION OF 1909 BY DR. GEORGE FREDERICK KUNZ NEW YORK CITY INCE the London Exhibition of 1851, and the first Paris Exposition of 1855, there have been probably one hundred expositions in various parts of the world. Generally they have been held in commemoration of some historic event or anniversary, and each one, large or small, has usually had some special distinctive feature. The great exposition at Chicago had its White City and its illuminations; the Buffalo Exposition had its architecture, its illuminations and the added advantage of its striking environment, and the various French expositions have each possessed peculiar points to mark their individuality. All of them have been held for six months or more, but in a great many cases from one third to one half of that time elapsed before all the departments were completed and opened to the public. In this way public interest was checked at the beginning, and when the exposition was finally completed, a good part of the allotted time had passed, and the enthusiasm always excited by these affairs had begun to flag. New York in itself is not only the greatest exposition, perhaps, in the world, because of its geographic features and its wonderful resources, but its various lines of transit-surface cars, elevated railways and subways-facilitate the handling of great crowds. In addition to this New York lies between two rivers, and is as easily reached by boat as by rail, to say nothing of the attractive physical advantages this location gives it. The writer, in an article published in the North American Review for September, 1902, and entitled "The Management and Uses of Expositions," strongly urged the holding of an exposition to mark the tercentenary of Henry Hudson's arrival at the mouth of the river which bears his name. The forecast of the present advantages of our city VOL. LXXV.-21. given in this article has been almost literally fulfilled, and the writer realizes more than ever that he was correct in saying that the museums and institutions of our city would "furnish a greater display to the visitor than any exposition yet held on the continent." New York, with its great variety of public buildings, its miles of waterways, its dozens of museums, its many civic buildings, its great system of parks, stands alone as a prominent and fitting exposition ground. Why erect a city of staff, wood and other inflammable material to hold costly objects? Whoever contributed his much-prized works of art to such shelter, awaited, with fear and trembling, their safe return, and few of the finest things were ever loaned except in Paris, where they were shown in permanent structures such as the artistic Nouveau Salon, and its dainty neighbor, the Petit Salon, to the right of which is the magnificent Pont Alexandre II. Although not so named, this Hudson-Fulton Celebration really presents the features of a great exposition, for when all the resources ROBERT FULTON, by Benjamin West. Fulton as a youth went to Europe to study art. West was his teacher. This portrait of Fulton is said to represent West's best style. Hudson-Fulton Celebration Commission. of New York are presented as they will be on this occasion, and given a brilliant and attractive setting, it will be found that no exposition ever organized on this continent has offered a greater variety of interest. To apply the standard of monetary value may seem a trifle vulgar when we are treating of the triumphs of art in all its forms, and yet this standard merely expresses the worth of antiquities and artistic creations in a more exact way than by using superlatives of speech. A reasonable estimate of the value of the attractions that our city offers to its visitors would be rather in excess of $2,000,000,000 than below that figure, and LAST DAYS OF HENRY HUDSON, by Sir John Collier. Original in Tate Gallery, London. yet, where the great expositions of the past have cost from $10,000,000 to $20,000,000 or more for their organization, all the treasures and beauties of New York can be displayed at an expense of only $1,000,000. A single building, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, with the objects it will hold, would not be over-valued at from $30,000,000 to $40,000,000. At an exposition the public is called upon to pay fifty cents admission each time to enter the gates and an additional fee for each special exhibition. The great New York celebration will be free for all, even for those who have no car fare to enable them to ride. The demonstrations are in the heart of the city itself. some suburb, or barren, out-of-the-way spot. They do not take place in within a temporary city built like that at Coney Island, or held away out in the Bronx, on the Palisades or at Staten Island; neither is the celebration instituted or furthered to boom any special piece of real estate, or to sustain the selling of a quantity of traction stock or railroad stock that might be affected by an unusual traffic for the time being. The celebration is designed to cover a very wide field, and the aim of the commission has not been confined to honoring the explorer of the Hudson River and the man who made steam navigation a permanent success; in addition to this the occasion has been utilized to illustrate and emphasize the development and greatness of New York City, the metropolis of the western hemisphere. Those who can understand the true significance of this celebration, and who are able to forecast the future, will see the vision of a still greater and more magnificent city, worthy of being called a world metropolis. Although the naval parade owes its greatness to the presence of the American and international war fleet, and to the immense aggregation of vessels of all kinds and denominations assembled for the occasion, the place of honor is fittingly assigned to the replicas of the two small vessels which helped to make the names of Hudson and Fulton famous. The reproduction of the Half Moon, generously offered by the government of the Netherlands, is a craft of but 80 tons burden and is only 74 feet long and 17 feet wide. The Half Moon will be under the command of Commander Lam, who will be costumed to impersonate Henry Hudson; the crew will also wear the dress of sailors of Hudson's time. A comparison with the Celtic shows in a striking manner the wonderful progress in naval construction, the giant liner being 700 feet long and 75 feet wide, while its tonnage is 20,904. The historic Clermont, which, in 1807, made its memorable trip up the Hudson, thus inaugurating steam navigation on the river, has been carefully reproduced. This craft, while larger than the Half Moon, is still small and insignificant in comparison with the magnificent steamers of to-day. It is only 150 feet long and 18 feet wide. The reproductions of the Half Moon and the Clermont constitute the central point, the very focus, of the celebration, and this has been fully recognized by the commission. Hence the opening day, Saturday, September 25, will be devoted to a grand naval parade, perhaps the greatest naval pageant ever seen. The eighty warships, American and foreign, form the most imposing array of naval forces assembled at any time in the new world, and we may safely say that, with one or two possible exceptions, no fleet of equal might and numbers was ever brought together. The United States will be represented by 16 battleships, 12 torpedoboats, 4 submarines, 2 supply ships, 1 repair ship, 1 torpedo vessel, 1 tug and 7 colliers: 53 vessels in all, the battleships constituting the |