Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-07-05
ST. LOUIS.
The Great Bridge JambOree.
Hundreds of Thousands of Wis
itOrs.
Twelve Miles of Procession.
The Bridge Baptized i'm the
Waters of Two Oceans, the
Lakes and the Gulf.
A Pyrotechnic FIzzle.

ST. LOUIS, July 4.-The formal Openingo ol
the Illinois and s.. Louis Bridge was cele-
brated to-day with great pOmp and with a
more shOwy and finer display than ever be-
fore witnessed in this city. BY : O'Clock
A. NJ. all the main thoroughfares Of the
city were crowded with citizens and
strangers vending their way to catch view
of the procession and examine the elabo-
rate decorations all along the line of march
The procession which was divided into SIX
teen divisions and about tweve miles long
started from TweDty-second street and
Washington avenue al 80 O'Clock and
contained in its ranks nearly all the mill
tarv and civil societies and representative
wagons of almost every trade and industry
in the city. This latter part of line was
without precedent in length and elaborate
ness of display. The procession Vas five
solid hours passing the speakers stand at
the western entrance Of the bridge, and all
of il passed over that structure and counter
marched the opposite side OF
the river. Hundreds of thousands
Of people thronged the houses, stores and
crowded balconies along TIE line of march.
The crowds cannot be estimated in num-
bers, and no such throng was ever gathered
in the city before. When the head of the
procession reached the bridge it halted, and
Gen. Baller, President of the Bridge Com
pany, from a beautifully decorated stand,
introduced Ms. Julius S. Walsh, daughter
of Charles X. Dickson, first President of
the Bridge Company who, after briei
speech,
ChriStened the Bridge
by pouring upon it water from the Atlantic
and Pacific Oceans, Lake Michigan and the
Gulf of Mexico, sent from Boston, San
Francisco, Chicago and New Orleans by the
Fostmasters of these cities for the Occa-
sion. Will the procession was in motion
a train of
Fourteen Pullman Coaches,
drawn by three locomotives, laden with
1000 Prominent gentlemen and laLieS,
passed over the bridge through the entire
length of the tunnel, emerging near the site
OF the Grand Union depot, now in process
of construction. About. l o'clock the in
vited guests from abroad and several hun
dred leading citizens, seated on an elevated
platform erected under huge tent, at the
western end of the bridge, was called
to order, and Mayor Brown delivered the
welcoming address, which was followed by
congratulatory speeches by Cows. Beveridge
and WOOdSOn. These were followed by
addresses by ex-senator B. Gratz Brown
and Capt. Jas. B. Eads. These ceremonies
over, impromptu speeches weae made by
Governor Hendricks,
of Indiana and United States Senator
Ferry, of Michigan. All the speeches were
unusually eloquent, and referred in glow
ing terms Of praise 10 Captain Eads,
his able assistants and all the gentlemen
whose energy, perseverance and wealth
have contributed 10 the great enterprise and
crowning triumph. The greatest enthus-
iasm prevailed, and the most hearty cheers
were repeatedly given. Among other dis
tinguished persons present We're Major Gen
erals Hancock and Pope, Gen. GriersOn,
Gen. Carr, and numerous gentlemen from
Missouri and Illinois.
The PyrOtechnic Display
on the bridge tonight came off according
to programme, and some points were very
fine. but as a whole. it did not satisfy the eX-
pectation. aud much unfavoFable comment
has been made. An immense mass OF peo-
pie crowded the levee for a distance Of 4
dozen blocks down the river, and the OppO-
site shores were lined with humanity. There
were also between forty and fifty steam
ers, tugs, ferTybOats, barges, etc, anchored
in the stream upon which thirty thousand
people witnessed the spectacle. Over a
hundred newspaper men are here from
nearly all the Western States, and some
from Pennsylvania and New York and
Massachusetts,.