The New York herald., 1864-04-05
The Great Fair.

1
States Sanitary Commission was inaugurated
yesterday with appropriate ceremonies For
graphic and detailed accounts OF all the pro.
ceedings incidents and occurrences Of the day,
and for q description OF the Fair tself, we re-
fer our readers 10 the very full and elaborate
reports published in our news columns yester-
day and this morning. So perfect picture Of
so splendid celebrasion--so complete a re-
| cord Of such great event-has seldom been
seen in any other newspaper in the world
The celebration was grand success Ma.
| ture gave us fair weather in double sense.
The recent rains, kindly acting for the City
Inspector. bad cleaned. the streets capi.
tally. The bright sunshine and fresh, cool
air made the parade equally enjoyable
| to those who marched and those who
looked on. In accordance with Mayor Gun
ther's request, many Of our citizens declared
general holiday, Those stores and offices
which were not regularly closed we're at least
deserted by both clerks and customers after the
hour Of noon, Even the habitues of the Stock
Exchange abandoned the service Of Mammon
after the first board, and devoted the rest of
the day to the Fair. From almost every house
The flag of freedom flashed brightly in the sun
Vast crowds of people lined Broadway on
either side The windows, from first floor to
roof, framed fair faces or futtered with waving
handkerchiefs The musical thunders of half a
hundred bands crashed melodously, Thou
sands OF regular and citizen soldiers, horse and
foot fully armed and equipped, joinehin the
largest and finest military procession ever seen
in this city, and proved that the republic has
not yet exhausted her armies. In the evening
the Fair building was densely crowded, The
display OF articles was extremely fine. The
speeches were eloquent and appropriate. The
music was admirable. The whole inaugura-
tion was triumph.
But behind the crowds in uniform, the crowds
in the street, the crowds at the Fair building
and the crowds outside there were other
crowds deeply interested in this most magni6-
cent Of modern charities. The entire civilized
world takes part in this mammoth Fair. Our
armies, composed of million Of the best men
in the land, feel this celebration as a personal
compliment to them. The relatives and friends
Of the soldiers, scattered over this broad con-
tinent, from cold Maine to the sunny South,
from the sorm-beaten shores OF the Allan
tic to the golden sands of the Pacific coast,
cannot but be gratifed by this signal mani
festation of the love which the people bear
their brave champions and defenders In
Europe, wherever Liberty has a friend
there the Metropolitan Sanitary Fair has a con-
tribntor or a well wisher The artists Of Paris
and Germany send pictures and albums and
quaint carvings. The humble woodcutters Of
Switzerland send specimens of their work.
Poor women, dwelling among the Alps, send
flowers and prayers. A few Englshmen, not
yet infected with the prevalent Americana
phobia, send gifts of various values, but all
most valuable because of the sympathy Of
which they are the exponents. Even from Cen
trail America costly donation has arrived, and
thus the Sanitary Fairis the result of the worlds
contributions.
No words can do justice, however, to the
generosity, the benevolsnce, the munifcence OF
the citizens of our own metropolis and of the
country around. Their charities during this
war have been unexampled in liberality.
In the first year Of tie conflict we
kept list Of the contributions to various bene-
the country. and the amount of money realized
was over fifty millions Of dollars. Almost as
many millisns more must have escaped our
record. Since then two years have passed
Our people have been heavily taxed. Enor-
nous bounties have been paid for recruits.
Call after call upon the hearts and purses of
our citizens has been promptly ard willingly
met Yet, when this series Of Sanitary Fairs
began, the masses gave their goods and money
as cheerfully and open-handedy as if they had
never given anything bcFore--ss If that were
a. once the first and the last demand. Nav this
Metropolitan Fair crowns the glorious work,
and will be the most splendid and rcmunera-
tive Of them all. Such succession OF free will
offerings is unexamped in history. During the
Crimcan war England produced single Flo
renee Nightingale, and the fame Of her good
deeds spread to the ends OF the earth Here
all our women are Florence Nghtiogaes.
Every hamlet produces at least one---eyery
large city hundred. They may be found in
our hospitals ministering like angels to the
victims Of war, succoring the sick and comfort.
ing the wounded, relieving the distressed aud
bringing peace to the dying. In the Roman
Catholic church there is religious sect called
the Sisters of Charity. whose glorious lives
justify their claim to the high title they adopt
But almost all our women, irrespective Of sects
or creeds or religions, are sisters of charity to
our soldiers. There s no village SO small that
1t has not an association OF them, doing
modest but sublime work, and securing the
blessing OF God and Of man. Indeed. we cam
not conceive bow any American, native or
naturalized, at home or abroad, can refrain
from some sort Of participation, however hum.
BILE, In the object to be accomplished by our
Sanitary Fair. But where all have done 40
well all deserve praise. Here and hereafter