Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-11-02
SUNDAY IN NEW ORLEANS.

! Joaquin Miller Relates His Experience.
L arose at my first Sunday and took a
car to the French Market. Returned to
my hotel, breakfasted and went to hear
the celebrated Carolina preacher, DR..
Palmer-a strong man in every sense.
Dinner, and then four hours drive with
an editor, native of the city, about the
vast exposition buildings. More than
fifty acres under roof! More than thirty
acres in single building! "Will you get
her ready ?" / asked. "Get her ready?
We have 1,5G0 hammers driving every
day. Fifteen hundred thousand nails every
few hours will get her done mighty soon,
now"
The buildings are rihe-shot from the
banks Of the Mississippi. The place is
nigh and dry now, of course above
all approach of floods; level as
lawn, green, cOOl, beautiful, with
on earth; but the grounds are going to
be muddy. The ground Is a deep black
Oregon Camas muck; it is the mud of
Illinois, in fact, worked over and washed
down and made tenfOld more sticky by it's
long transportation. But of course
planks--and there are plenty of them
here-wiIl keep your feet from the mud.
1t is going to be simply tremendous
success. L can tell you more of the de-
tails two weeks later. In the three great
eXpOsitiOns of the past ! was sent to re-
port upon the show grounds. l was sent
10 Vienna, to Paris and also to Philadel-
phia, as | am sent here, long in advance
of the opening; and l can only say that
things here compare most faVOrablV with
the best prospects, as | remember them
and Iec0unted them, at these other places.
And that is about all that | am justified
in saying now. / Will say this, however,
to my friends and readers-and | have
about a million, l believe-that any one
who fails to visit this city and these
scenes at this coming fair, health
and all things permitting, is simply
silly. This city hopes to get some good
out of the coming show. The main good,
my friends, will be to the North. You
want to learn something of the size, the
story, the glory and the splendOr of your
land. You want to see these people here,
too. A vanquished, beaten and impoYer-
ished people; but brave, and good, aad
true, and warm at heart as the sun above
them. l am already assured, from what
l see, that it is going to be the greatest
thing of its kind that has ever been on
earth. That is saying very great deal,
certainly. But bear in mind that outside
of the million dollars, these brave sunny
hearted and shOw-lOving people have per-
petuated their carnivals through all their
trials and have long been celebrated for
their matchless skill in getting up such
things. So you can safely calculate that
to miss this Exposition will be life re-
gret.
But TO continue the Sundays excur-
si0ns. | went to see the ''Bandit King''
and Bunch of Keys" at night, alterna-
ting between the two theatres, which
stand close together. The heat was tco
fy,fn laFn 4Io 81,
went out, walked down Canal street,
stripped and plunged into the river from
the wharf, which slopes to the waters
edge. Not a sOIl in sight. not even a DO
liceman. The electric light made the
water sheet of silver, and / did not see
that the swift, strong river had caught
me up in his arms and was rushing on
with all his might to the sea. PerilOus!
But what did it matter? When l got
back and sat catching my breath on the
edge of the wharf saw a lot of jet-bIack
bugs as big Is mice sitting on the edge of
the plank at my side. l never saw such
creatures in my life. Now and then they
would dive off into the water. One of
these bugs finally elbOwed around and
lifting up his hind legs looked me square,
ly in the eyes. He had mOustache like
the King of Italy. | fled precipitately, as
soon as l could dress.
/ sauntered up Canal street three blocks
and turned down street 10 the right. l
heard men calling out games and names
which ! had not heard called for thirty
years. Up wide bright stair of brass,
and gambling was before me in all it's
doubtful glory. A policeman looking on,
good order, no noise except the men call
ing out their games. Twenty-seven tables
going in this room. No woman in sight.
The dealers were generally little pot
bellied and bald-headed Frenchmen. The
language mostly spoken was English. |
went out, down, up again saw four other
places, all so alike that need not men,
tiOn them.
passed on, down a hundred yards or
so toward the French quarter, and 1
heard wild, discordant music and the
cracked and squeaky voices Of matured
women who were dancing and singing by
dozens right and left; pushed open some
of the doors; the dingy floors were packed
with men and women.
1t was time to go home. wish 1 had
not seen it. all. l wish l did not, as a
truthful chrOnicler, have TO set it down
here. 1t mars my picture of discoveries
and Of the mighty scenes that have been
before me. God, how pitiful is man, and
how contemplate he can be, even in the
presence of all this majesty of nature.
JOAQUIN MILLER.