Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1885-03-06

the mules and alarms the hack horses,
drawing now with difficulty, beauty muf-
fled in white shaWis, to the Rex or Menus
Balls ;-Hnd Mounts with hi. knights leads
on the last great street show into our
sight
These floats represented the Legends
Beautiful. Behind Momus who drove
from his lofty hulf-noou II swarm Of
winged creatures, all with glrlsh though
false faces, came Louisiana, made up of
maidens also tasefaced-as they all are
in this show-grinning alligators, reeds
ana palms. No description can convey
any idea of these scenes lit up with torch
IS and electric or calcium lights and EN-
bracing woodland and water nymphs
coral caves where great eyed fishes Heated
among strange monsters unknown in any
sea prairie flowers, fire sprites, flowers all
alive and dancing, and many others. one
of the best was the Frost King, the glis
tening icicles looking very chilly even
here. At many points they had great diff
iiCulty in getting through the crowd and
frequent delays occurred III consequence
These professions all 60 over several
miles OF streets to give people Il chance to
see, but the universal desire seems to be
to see it on Canal street or perish in the
attempt. 1t was all over by ten or soon
after and left in ones mind mass of
gnomes, animated beetles, butterflies and
other winged creatures with here and
there n snake or fish or dragon all mixed
up with apangles, lace, blue gauze, red
fire, waving arms, and dancing legs !;
while cheers, waving handkerchiefs and
clappng hands fill up the chinks.
And now, for home. The car lines in
this city have barely enough equipment
To do their ordinary work. How do they
manage with such crowds as these Well,
all who can, walk and some of them good
distances tOO-and tor the rest, the more
vigorous crowd the cars to the last toe
rest and finger clutch the others walk
up and meet cars coming in empty, fill
them as full, ride in to Canal street and
then back. In this process the late ones
have to walk far out on the lines as the
incoming cars are as full as the outgoing
ones till you get beyond the effect Of this
novel way Of going home. So we drag
toward rest and the carnival becomes
once more Il thing of the past The floats
are consigned to the store sheds to be re
nodded another year. The performers
wash off the powder and paint, recover
their wind after being jerked over miles
of rough pavement on the top of tOttlish
pyramid or dangerous papier mache tow
ers, where they hang for dear life to an
upright post or iron rod. The red covers
are taken alike off the mules and the
cOlOred gentry VINO led them on their
weary march, and the great holiday, u
dozen Fourth of July's i'll one, is relega
. ted to the newspaper men and news boys
who will work 1t for all it is worth.
Staid old Vermont would indeed think
the world switched into some new orbit
and running on very broad gauge cOulC
She see the pranks and capers-to say
nothing of the tons of oysters and the
oceans Of beer that disappear before this
festival a. the lake ice sinks from sight
, in the spring.
one has to see it to realize it. NOTHING
can he told in cold pen and ink of all thi,
southern, almost tropical, wild luXu
rance of fancy. fire tuStian and fun
merry with all its abandon and the evident
great enjoyment it gives to the actors ant
: spectators, People come long Journeys
TO see 1t year after year, probably more
this year ON account of the added attrac
, ton of the Exposition. &.