Record 188 from 1855

This record provides the activities of the Madras Central Committee in gathering a representative collection of South Indian textiles for the 1855 Paris Universal Exhibition including Madras handkerchiefs.

MADRAS CENTRAL COMMITTEE FOR THE UNIVERSAL EXHIBITION TO BE HELD AT PARIS IN 1855 COLLEGE OF FORT ST. GEORGE, MADRAS, 8th February 1855 No. 382. From The Honorable the President and Members of the Madras Central Committee for the Paris Exldbition. To SIR H. C. MONTGOMERY, BARONET. Chief Secretary to Gorermrumt. Sir, Raw Materials 1.-Agreeably to the orders of Government, we have been engaged in the selection of a series of articles for the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1855, and we hope that we have attained our object so far as the very limited period allowed. 2.-At the close of the proceedings of the Central Committee for the London exhibition they communicated their opinion that, in any future exhibition, there should be a period of at least one year, clear, for ordering, packing, and despatching the products of this Presidency, and the necessity for that free time has been fully borne out by the experience of this Committee. 3.-Indeed the Committee while hurried in almost all their transactions to express regret that the time has been altogether too short to obtain samples of the best of the Manufactures in Wood, and the specimens sent from Madras, though of considerable merit, do not fully represent the capabilities of the place. 4.-Our object throughout has been to make such a collection as would nfford an a fair illustration of the varied manufactures of the Madras Presidency and of the manufactnring skill and taste of its people. There has, therefore, in accordance with our instructions, been no effort made to collect any of the raw products of this Presidency, nor samples of the implements used by the people, nor models of their engineering or architectural structure, and only such specimens of Raw materials have been sent as were considered of superior quality or deserving of being better known in commerce. [...] Manufactures 15.-It having been the wish of the Honorable Court (Letter, p. 2.) that the contribution from this country should consist principally of the manufactured articles for which India has so long been famous, it was our particular instruction that the Local Committees in their operations should obtain the best article of its kind both as regards pattern and workmanship, and we think that the manufacturing industry of Southern India will, on the whole, be well represented. 16.-We would particularly mention as deserving of attention in Classes XI, XII, and XIII amongst the Cotton, Woollen, and Silk Manufactures, the Cloths from: Bangalore, Madura, Coimbatore, Tanjore, and Salem, used as dresses by the women of the country, and largely sold hroughout Southern India. These are all woven of silk, or are mixed cotton fabrics with silk or gold thread borders, and were much admired for their chaste colors. 17.-The Sousee is a cloth woven in Triplicane, a suburb of Madras, from English thread. It is very durable and is made into trowsers by the Mahomedans, who, in this part of the country, always wear these garments of colored cloths. Several samples of this manufacture have been sent home to exhibit the fabrics which the people make for themselves. 18.-With this view also, we have sent samples of the check called Charkhana, the muslins called Chandeyrie and Dhoria from Amee, and of the colored handkerchiefs of Madras called also "'Pulicat," as well as those of Ventapolllum and Nellore, which we hope may attract attention.

Source: Madras Central Committee for the Universal Exhibition to be held at Paris in 1855 (Madras: College of Fort St. George 8th February 1855), pp. 1-2