The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1884-09-06
LEWISTON'S GALA DAY.
Thousands of Enthusiastic Repub-
licans Flock to that City.
ALL OTHER RALLIES OF THE
CAMPAIGN ECLIPSED.
Eloquent Speeches by Mr.. Blaine
and Other Distinguished Men.
OVER TWO THOUSAND TORCHES IN
LINE LAST NIGHT.
Special to the Press.l

BRUNSWICK, Sept. 5.-The Republican cele-
bration at Lewiston has been a gala day fer the
| spindle city. The list of speakers advertised
to address the people broughta large crowd to
| town. Nearly forty carloads 'of passengers
| came over the railway lines by the noonstrains
and the volume was largely increased by the
influx of people from the neighhoring country
towns by private conveyance. The weather
was splendid, the arrangements for handling
the large numbers present excellent and the
| meeting has been spleHdid success, eclipsing
all other rallies of the campaign
Mr.. Blame arrived on the 1910 D. m. train
from Portland and was met at the station by
the Blaine and Logan Guards of Skowhegan
and the Business Mems Battalion OF Lewiston,
80 strong, wearing tall white hats and linen
dusters, headed by Perkins Band. The pro-
cession marched through Bates and Lisbon
streets to the Dewitt House.
Frequent and hearty applause greeted the
barouche Of Mr.. Blaine as it proceeded
through the streets, and when he rode through
the open ranks of his escort drawn up before
the hotel twice three ringing cheers from their
ranks and from the crowd in waiting greeted
him.
Mr.. Blaine lunched at the Dewitt dining
room. After arriving at the hotel, Perkins
Band in the meantime giving pleasant on
the balcony, the crowd in the common had
constantly increased and from 5000 to 5000
people surrounded the band stand situated in
its centre.
When at $50 Mr.. Blaine and the eminent
speakers assembled the steps leading to it his
appearance was signal for tumult of APP
plause which lasted several minutes. Hon. J.
B. Hows presided and introduced General
Hawley as the first speaker. General Haw-
ley spoke for over an hour and his stirring sem
fences ELECTED hearty applause. Ex-Governor
Long followed him and met with most COM
plimentary reception. Many were present from
OldOxford and they were bound to honor its
distinguished son. His speech was similar to the
one he has been delivering here but never has
it been more generously received than by the
audience which heard him today.
The crowd was evidently waiting for Mr..
Blaine and he was introduced by the chairman
who said that he presented him not as the man
from Maine, but as the purest man of bound
less continent, the Hon. James G.. Blaine Of
the United States of America. Then the
crowd applauded, but applause would not an
swer and they began to shout, and every one
seemed to vie with his neighbor in cheering.
For several moments this tumultuous applause
continued, and finally it subsidized sufficiently
to allow Mr. Blaine to be heard. Mr. Blaine
said that he thanked the audience for their
generous reception. He had the luxury this
year of hearing speeches and not making them
and simply proposed to introduce one with
whom his association, went back to his boy
hood and college days, man who had distin-
guished himself in his professional and judi
cial career-the Hon VIM. H. West of Ohio.
Judge West received a splendid greeting.
His voice rang ont more clearly than that of
any other speaker and every one of his glow
ing sentences was interrupted with hearty and
long continued applause. 1t was speech of
rare eloquence and beauty, full OF earnest
thought expressed in graceful language and
held the audience as did that of no other
speaker. He spoke for about twenty minutes
and was followed by Col. Snowdon of Phila-
delphis and Gen. Gibson of Ohio, to each of
whom the audience accorded most generous
reception.
Bat the evening was the great event. Hun
dreds came on the train with campaign com,
pauies. A collation. was provided for the
companies in City Hall. AS an illustration of
the number expected to partake of it, there
were prepared, five thousand sandwiches,
twenty bushels of doughnuts and coffee by the
barrel. AS the trains arrived the companies
were marched directly to the hall where thew
had supper
The procession was rather late in forming
and it was fully eight O'Clock before the line
was ready to move. The decorations along
the line of march were elaborate. Flags and
bunting. in profusion were displayed and dozens
of handsome residences were illuminated by
Chinese lanterns. A generous display of fire
works was the feature OF the evening. Moth
ing like tbs parade has been seen in the
State this year. Over two thousand torches
were borne in the procession and it was
80 minutes in passing given point. The
companies which won the most applause and
favorable comment were the Bates Students
the company of French Canadians employed
in the Lewiston Mills, so strong, the Bangor
Loyal League who marched in splendid style
with 100 men in line, and the Portland comps-
MES. The bands from Lewiston and Bangor
furnished stirring music and the different drum
corps did excellent work. The torch bearers
were enthusiastic and oheered as they passed
the houses of every we'll known Republican.
Thousands blocked the streets all along the
route of the procession and at certain points
movement through the crowd was impossible
The route of the procession was long and
embraced all the principal streets of both cit
les. 1t was midnight before the parade was
ended and the tired torchbearers allowed to
break ranks. Special trains bore the crowd
home tired but elated over the most successful
rally of the campaign.