Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1882-04-25

TY GOSSIP-PRESENT WEDDINGS
SOAP BUBBLE PARTIEs-THE COACH
ING sEAsON-THE ''TALLY-HO" AM
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. OF TIL
FIRM OF A. T. STEWART & co.
DEATH OF IDA GREELEY SMITH
MEMORIAL SERVICES IN HONOR OF
LoNGFELLow-THE WEATHER.
NEW YORK, April 17th.-6ince I las
wrote you, Jumbo, the biggest and mos
interesting elephant in all the world
has arrived in this city, and is bein,
daily exhibited to thousands Of peopl,
at Barnum's. He was the Easter offer
ing of the Old World to the New, hav
ing arrived here on Easter Sunday. 81,
came across the Atlantic In the steame
Assy7ian Monarch, and on her arriva
here crowds docked to the pier to se'
the monster elephant come from tn,
steamer. Indeed, the curiosity showl
by many was quite amusing. I know
Of q number of people who remained
from church, and took an hours jour.
ney over to Pier l on the North Rive
to see Jumbo. But it took such Ions
time to disembark the creature, thai
many became tired, and finally went
home with the honest sense of having
been disappointed and humbugged. The
elephant and the box in which he stood
weighed twelve and half tons, so that
great care had to be used in lowering
them. Mr.. Rarnum. the venerable
Snowman, appeared on board the vessel
soon after her arrival with his face fair
ly beaming with pride and happiness.
The $4,000 which Jumbo cost him
seemed to him to have been well invest
ed. "Bless my soul ~ he exclaimed
with boyish enthusiasm, II have ridden
on JumbO's back with Tom Thumb
thirty years aga, on q Sunday, too, I
bought the biggest thing New York had
ever seen up the Bay in the shape of
Jenny Lind, and she cleared me 500, 900
in nine months" Then he tenderly
stroked Jumbo's trunk, and requested
that the elephants dimensions should
be given. He measures 13 feet high, IL
feet long, and weighs very nearly seven
tons. He drinks whiskey and beer by
the gallon. Of water, it takes fifteen of
the ordinary pals full to satisfy him.
As Mr.. Barnum is strictly temperate, I
do not suppose that he'will humor even
Jumbo's passion for intoxicating
drinks, and will compel him to drink
only water, pure and unadulterated.
Although it was only half past twelve
O'Clock when the Assyrian Manarch
first appeared at the dock, it was fully
nine O'clock in the evening before the
first start was made to carry the
elephant up to the Madison Square Gar
den, which is about three miles and q
half from Pier 1. Sixteen of Barnum's
horses were harnessed to the truck,
and two heavy ropes were then at
tached to it, one on each side, to be used
for helping the horses, with the assist
ance of willing volunteers, from the i'm
mense crowd which thronged the pier
until Jumbo was at last moved. Each
rope was two hundred feet long and was
seized by nearly seven hundred by
ISLANDERS, but all that two desperate eff
forts to move the immense weight of
thirteen tons could accomplish was to
pull the cage and animal forward three
feet! The truck could not be moved at
all for some time, and finally it was de-
cided to send up to the circus for two of
the trained elephants, with the idea of
releasing Jumbo from his chains, and
parading him up Broadway between his
new companions, but fear that he might
prove unwilling and refractory, led
those In charge to make another su-
preme effort to successfully move his
majesty. And finally, at half-past elev-
en-, the conveyance was seen moving up
Broadway amid the enthusiastic cheers
of thousand people. Immense cloth
placards on the sides of Jumbo's box
bore in golden letters the name of Mr..
Barnum's atestacquisition. The jour-
ney up Broadway was safely performed,
the party arriving at the Madison
Square Garden at one o'clock. But to
the dismay of the great elephants keep
ers, when they got him to the door of
the circus that was to be his future home.
they found, alas, that they could in no
possible way get him through the doors,
and SO his majesty was obliged, poor
delicate thing. to remain out in the
drizzling rain all night! What a recep-
ton to give him on his first night in a
new and strange land! And this great
and glorious America, too! At day
break, however, carpenters were found,
who set to work and removed portion
of the doorway so that he could walk
in. I believe that Mr.. Barnum is going
to have special car made for jumbo
Fortunate individual! I should say.
elephant! 1t, the car, will be made of
oak, and the finest Damascus steel, and
will be forty feet long, eight feet wide,
and fourteen feet high. Before leave
Jumbo, I must tell you that an enthusi.
astic English couple have chris.
ened their first child, little boy, after
him! Imagine it! Jumbo Barker!-
De gustibus non est disputdndam. But
then the English naturally love the an.
imal very dearly, for has not Barnum
advertised that their Gracious Majesty,
Queen Victoria herself was wont, in hel
youth, to ride around on his back?
Easter was never more generally OBJ.
served than this year. In every church
ofevery denomination there were specia
services of some kind, and the most beau
tiful floral decorations. It is estimated
that in New York alone, $4,000 wa!
spent in adOrning the various churches
In the morning, I attended the services
at Old Trinity. Crowds upon crowds o.
people flock to this beautiful edifice on
Easter sunday from all parts of New
York and New Jersey and Brooklyn,
The music is wonderfully fine, the large
chorus singing most harmoni0usly and
with excellent effect. Last Sunday
many people were unable to gain admit.
tance, and when we came out, I noticed
that quite number of them, instead o1
retiring home, had been spending the
morning wandering through the quaint
and lovely old graveyard, which sur
rounds the church, looking at the head.
stones of the numerous distinguished
men who have been buried there.
Speaking of the graveyard reminds nv
of one day last Summer when 1 wat
walking through it, when I was accost:
ed by an old. old man. who reminded
me so forcibly of Sir Walter Scott's de-
scription of "OId Mortality" that for
moment I imagined must be dreaming
A sort of melancholy and antiquity
seemed to surround me as stood talk
ing to the poor old soul, who, unlike
scott's hero, does not 60 around beauti
fying the tomb stones, but employs hi
time trying to sell history of the bury
ing-place, and the many people. cele