The Exhibition

The Exhibition was a landmark event in Anne Shirley's young life, a journey into the wider world that both dazzled her and, paradoxically, cemented her love for the simple, imaginative life of Green Gables. It was a time of firsts—first horse race, first fortune-telling, first taste of city life—that tested her values and left her with a profound, if unexpected, sense of homecoming.

The Invitation and the Journey

The adventure began with a letter from Miss Josephine Barry, inviting Anne and Diana to stay with her in Charlottetown for the Exhibition. The prospect filled Anne with a mixture of ecstasy and dread, as she feared Marilla might forbid the trip. After Diana's mother intervened, Marilla consented, and the two girls set off on a long, thirty-mile drive with Mr. Barry. The journey itself was a delight, with the early red sunlight creeping across shorn harvest fields, woods where maples were beginning to hang out scarlet banners, and rivers crossed by bridges that made Anne's flesh cringe with a half-delightful fear. They passed weather-gray fishing huts and climbed hills offering sweeping views of curving uplands and misty-blue sky, arriving at Beechwood, Miss Barry's fine old mansion set back from the street in a seclusion of green elms and branching beeches.

The Sights and Sensations of the City

Miss Barry took the girls to the Exhibition grounds and kept them there all day. Anne found the experience splendid and interesting, confessing she could not decide which department was most fascinating, though she thought she liked the horses, the flowers, and the fancywork best. She was genuinely glad when Josie Pye took first prize for knitted lace, taking it as a sign of her own improving character. The day was crowded with wonders: thousands of people made Anne feel dreadfully insignificant; she saw a man go up in a balloon, which she thought would be simply thrilling to try herself; and she had her fortune told by a little bird for ten cents, learning she would marry a dark-complected, wealthy man and go across water to live. Miss Barry also took them to the grandstand to see the horse races, which Anne found awfully fascinating, though she refused Diana's offer to bet, feeling it would not do to tell Mrs. Allan about such a thing. The evening brought a concert at the Academy of Music, where a prima donna in white satin and diamonds sang. Anne sat in enraptured silence, feeling that it could never be hard to be good anymore, and that tears came into her eyes were happy tears. The experience was capped by an ice cream at a restaurant at eleven o'clock at night, which Anne found delicious and delightfully dissipated.

The Return to Green Gables and a New Understanding

After three days, Mr. Barry drove the girls home. The drive back was as pleasant as the journey in, with the sunset casting the Avonlea hills darkly against a saffron sky and the moon rising out of a sea that grew all radiant and transfigured in her light. Anne breathed, "Oh, but it's good to be alive and to be going home." When she crossed the log bridge over the brook, the kitchen light of Green Gables winked her a friendly welcome, and the hearth fire sent out its warm red glow. Marilla had prepared a broiled chicken for her, and Anne declared she could kiss everything, even the clock. Reflecting on her visit, Anne told Marilla she had concluded she was not born for city life. She admitted it was nice to eat ice cream at brilliant restaurants at eleven o'clock at night once in a while, but as a regular thing, she would rather be in the east gable at eleven, sound asleep, but kind of knowing even in her sleep that the stars were shining outside and the wind was blowing in the firs across the brook. The Exhibition, for all its splendor, had ultimately taught her that the best of it all was the coming home.