H— 6a,

1881. NEW ZEALAND.

WELLINGTON INDUSTRIAL EXHIBITION (REPORT ON THE).

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly by Command of His Excellency.

No. 1. The Hon. the Colonial Secretary to Mr. Woodward. Sir, — Colonial Secretary's Office, Wellington, 31st May, 1881. Understanding from you that the Committee of the Wellington Athenaeum are desirous that a report upon the Industrial Exhibition now being held in the Athenaeum Hall should be made by a Commissioner appointed by the Governor, I have the honor to request that you will inform me whether you would yourself undertake the task. Haying been intimately associated with the Exhibition from its inception, and being of necessity thoroughly acquainted with all the exhibits and their history, no one is in a better position to give an accurate description of the colonial productions there collected than yourself if you will undertake to do it. I have, &c, Jonas Woodward, Esq., Thomas Dick. President of Industrial Exhibition, Wellington.

No. 2. Mr. Woodward to the Hon. the Colonial Secretary. Sir,— Wellington, Bth June, 1881. I have the honor to acknowledge your letter of the 31st ultimo, and, in compliance with the request contained therein, I now beg leave to wait upon you with a report of the Wellington Industrial Exhibition. Permit me to add that, as I never even read a similar report, I have had to trust entirely to what I supposed was required, and hope that this may be accepted as an excuse for all shortcomings. I have, &c, The Hon. the Colonial Secretary J Woodward.

Enclosure in No. 2. REPORT. The Wellington Industrial Exhibition must be regarded rather as showing what some manufacturers and producers are doing than what is actually being done in the district. Several important manufactures that are known as being carried on are not represented at all; while of wool, which, above all other things, has been for many years the principal export, there is not a single sample. The absence •of wool may be due to the time of year at which the Exhibition has been held, and manufacturers may have been unwilling to incur trouble and expense for a thing which was an untried experiment. For the purpose of this report, the Exhibition may be broadly divided into two classes, the first consisting of articles made or produced in the Wellington District, and the second of articles made or produced elsewhere. The first class is again divisible into articles the materials of which, as well as the manufacture, are local, and those the materials of which have been imported in a more or less finished state. The second class is also to be divided into articles produced in other parts of this colony, and those imported from Great Britain or other places. Class I. Section 1. Local Manufactures the Materials for which icere produced in the Wellington District. This rection included exhibits of soap, candles, leather, boots and shoes, biscuits, confectionery, basketwork, glue, cordage, drain-pipes, flower-pots and vases ; with alimentary products, such as flour, meal, bacon, butter, cheese, lard, jams, pickles, sauces, and preserved meats. H. 6a.