Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1876-06-07
Our Centennial Letter.

auSolutely clOSeu, no one DelnS ADMIT
ted except those with special Sunday
passes. AS I said in my last letter. as
financial project, the Centennial Ex-
hibition is failure; million of dol.
lars at the very least would be added
to the receipts for Sunday visitors. and
million more by the opening on Sun
day from visitors who, if the grounds
were open on that day, would come to
spend two days. one of them being
Sunday. | know this money argument
is intrinsically the weak est, but it may
have the most effect in forcing the
Commissioners to do right to the poor
er classes, and let the motive be what
it will, this end should be obtained
| like to spend quiet Sunday saunter-
ing through the grounds and looking
at the buildings, but [ am sorry be-
cause Of the detected looking men
whom | see. Men who have paid large
sums for concessions to do business in
the place, and who calculated upon
fifty to one hundred thousands visitors
per day, aud who have been SO gener-
ally disappointed at there not being
an average of one fourth of the great
er number. One of the greatest sights
outside OF the grounds has been the
billiard tournament which has just
closed. Sexton was the victor having
won more games than any of his COM
petltors and executed some of the most
brilliant shots ever made on a billiard
table.
Tne American Silversmiths have
made most brilliant display. Tat
fany, The Gorham Company. Caldwell,
Bailey 4 Iced and Barton, being the
principal firms, and surprising the 9TH
ers iu their exhibits The Chinese
continue to aid to their already magni-
ficent display of porcelalns and enam-
els and the Pennsylvania museum pur-
chases all their most choice articles
Austria exhibits ninety-three varieties
of apples, thus taking the palm off an
of our States The exhibition of
American firearms includes every
thing from revolver SO small that it
can be carried handily in the vest
pocket, to the Gatling gun and the
great cannon, whose ball slung up near
the muzzle, is labelled 1880 pounds
The American Bible Society exhibits
the Bible printed in two hundred Ian
guages, and yet there are people starv-
ing to death in this country. The
Narrow Gauge passenger railway seems
to be doing good business as its cars
are generally full and oftentimes
crowded. The Italian gallery has been
closed as is the Austrian. Some van
dals broke the fingers off a beautiful
marble statue, and eh horror, it is said
to have been woman? Speaking Of
women reminds me that so far there
have been three women visitors to one
man; whether this proves that the
women have more aesthetic taste-more
leisure or more money than the men,
[ am unable to determine. The cata-
logues have not yet been made as good
as they should be, though there.is
visible Improvement. An effort is be-
ing made to have the grounds opened
until ten o'clock at night, and I think
this would be an Improvement, as
many persons in Philadelphia would
spend many evenings on the grounds,
coming in after the days labor were
concluded, and remaining until the
closing hour.
It is hoped that there will be at
least three hundred thousand visitors
on the grounds on the Fourth of july.
for which day special programme is
being made. One feature of it I do
not like, and that is, addresses from
orators, appointed By the Governors of
the different States. These orators
should do as the leading aspirants for
political fame do in the House of Rep
resentatives, "get leave to print" and
not bore the people with their long
winded spouting. The judges of the