The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1891-12-21
THE WORLDS FAIR.
Speeches by Col. Davis, Major Handy,
The Governor and Mr.. Wyman.


monthly meeting and dinner in the Nara
gansett hotel parlors, Saturday evening.
About seventy guests were present and
the speakers were Col. George X. Davis,
Director General of the Worlds Column
bian Exposition, Major Moses +. Handy,
chief of the department. OF promotion,
Gov Ladd and John G. Wyman OF the
Worlds Fair commission in Rhode lsiahu.
Otler guests of the club We're: hooert
Knight, Jeffrey Hazard, Hiram Howard,
Richard Thornley, of East Greenwich, Col;
+. G. Harris of Newport, Mayor Pond OF
Woonsocket j. w. Miller, general mana
ger New York, Providence and Boston
Railroad; Alfred NJ. Williams l.. II. VIII
son, A. z. Bartlett, j. b. Marsh, George
| Wilkinson, j. L. p. Lawton. George p.
Tew, d. M. Thompson, Il. B, Steele of
| New York, Darius Goff, George NJ. Thorn
| ton, eX-Congressman Arnold and Benja-
min Ainsworth.
At business meeting of the club at
o'clock. Meesrs. Walter Il. Ballou and
| Henry +. Lippitt were elected members.
Gov Ladd was introduced as the first
| speaker by the president of the club, Mr..
| Arthur II. Watson He spoke as follows /:
| Imay bespeak for all present here this
evening, and in behalf of the people of this
| State, a cordial welcome to the gentlemen
| of the Executive Board of the Worlds
| Columbian Exposition. We propose to
| make an industrial show at Chicago that
| will exceed anything we have ever done,
| and we believe that our manufacturers
| can turn out some things that are un-
equalled and many more that are in the
| front rank of their class of productions.
| Indeed, it is our claim that we are doing
| this sort of thing right along here, and
| we look to the coming fair not alone to
| advertise ourselves-for our work, | am
proud to say, is our constant advertise
ment-but to once again put little Rhody
| up against the rest ef the world and see
| how finely she will stand the test. We
| expect to see the fair of '92 the greatest
! fair in the worlds history, and think on
| behalf Of our Board Of Managers and our
| citizens generally, / may assure our Wis
| itors this evening that Rhode Island pro-
| poses to do her full share to that end"
Col. George r. Davis, the director gen.
| eral of the Worlds Columbian Exposi-
| tion, was the next speaker and he spoke
| as follows:
''The officers of the fair first secured
| location for the fair, and then we organ
lied. We have two organizations, one
with Gen. Palmer as chairman, appointed
by the President, with two members from
| each State; the other a local organization
which pledged 10000, 600 to the success of
the exposition. We have Board of
Control which settles differences between
them. My own position was obtained
States, and am paid by the Congress Of
the United States. We started out first to
secure site. 1t Is handsome site, con-
sisting of 1000 acres, unsurpassed for
beauty by any equal area of land in the
country. We have 200 acres unenclosed
at this time Our first effort was to
organize. We selected chief architect, a
landscape artist and two engineers. We
selected ten of the most distinguished
architects or the country to come to Chi
cago and give us layout of the land we
had chosen for the exposition. These
architects were to 90 back home unless
they could excel anything that had been
erected in Paris. We raised the board of
control above politics. We made one-half
Republicans. We placed it above the
suspicion of politics. The department
organization was begun with search all
over this country for the best men.
"We want money. but I.doubt IL the in
tegrity of the city of Chicago will allow it
to receive money from Congress. IL the
government wants to make contribution,
and receive back the same pro rata return
that we who have contributed i'm Chicago
expect, we may accept it. We may urge
IL on Congress But the corporation will
not l venture to say. take money uncon-
ditionally from the government. know
Chicago asked the government for 81, 5,000,-
GOO at the last Congress- but that, / think,
was ill-timed. Chicago has invited the
world to the exposition. and it will not be
backward in supplying the funds neces-
sary to properly care for them. We hope
every State will assist us by its own ex-
hibits. We cannot ask for appropriations
from the States, but we can ask them to
help us in the way that is open to them.
We started to provide n Sl0,0OO,000 fair,
and the trouble is you and the world have
prepared to make it cost us sls,00O, ,O0O"
Major Handy was the next speaker. He
gave some idea of what the Exposition
was to be like and said in conclusions:
This Exposition will undoubtedly as
much surpass the Paris Exposition of
1889 AZ that surpassed its predecessor. The
work has not ianguished Twenty-Five
nations and seventeen colonies have
pledged TO exhibit. Twenty-eight States
have appropriated money for this Exposi-
tion now. But what we wanted more
than the money has been healthy growth
OF public sentiment Never lose sight of
the fact that this Fair is going to be held
whatever its success"
John G. Wyman, the executive commits
sioner OF this state, next spoke. in part as
follows 1--WE are called small State,
but here is an opportunity TO show that
we do not measure Rhode Island by feet,
but by heads. l want every man here to-
night to feel himself constituted n commits
sioner and an advocate OF exhibits at the
exposition. Chicago Is n marvel at this
time. IL makes Jonah's gourd n failure.
From every point on the globe this city is
10 have treasures poured into il. There is
something in that that is To have more
effect than beautiful buildings. The
world is to be benefited, because the world
is to know our people, and learn that
peace has her victories no less renowned
than war. IL is this significance would
commend to your attention. would ask
You 20 consider that this Is an instrument
Of peace"
At the conclusion of the address the
speakers were rendered vote of thanks
through the president, after which the