The Portland daily press., 1892-12-17
REST FOR THE WEARY.

How the Comfort of the Public VIII Be
Provided for at the Worlds Fair.
CHICAGO, Dec. 15.-There is-or was
once on time-an old hymn very much
In favor with that class of itinerant
evangelists known as Primitive Metho-
dists that dwelt in stanzas many inches
long upon the good time coming, when,
there would be crest for the Weary"
That hymn ought to be very popular at
Jackson park next year, for there will
be many and many weary one among
the daily torrent of Worlds fair sight
seers-weary mothers and fathers and
little ones, weary sweethearts and beaux.
weary youth and old age that have
tramped up and down many miles of
avenues and threaded their way in and
out score or more of buildings of vaster
dimensions than they have ever seen be-
fore or even dreamed of, and explored
the mysteries of numberless side shows,
and skirted the lagoons on crowded
launches until nature has revolted and
soliloquizes with itself, "Where was
at?"
Then place of rest will be in the ma
ture Of friend in need and friend in
deed-a haven of refuge-where the
wornout sightseers, with minds bewil-
dered and confused by explorations
among the wonders that the nations of
the earth have gathered together, may
to quote a popular and learned divine.
'sSit twirling their thumbs and gazing
outwardly into vacancy or inwardly
into vacancy, as the case may be-"
And resting places there will be. The
exposition authorities have sensibly de-
creed that the two Rs, Recreation and
Rest, must needs be dependent one upon
the other. And SO we are to have
Bureau of Public Comfort" What a
world of memories the name will con-
lure up among old Centennial goers!
Who among them is there that has for
gotten the picturesque frame structure
just back of the main building in Fair
mount park over which welcoming
legend was emblazoned in letters foot
high.
How many women came here to battle
their throbbing brows; how many lost
children were restored to anxious par
ents; how many missing articles found
their rightful owners; how many home
prepared lunches were devoured in the
big rotunda; how many telegraph mes
sages telling of good times and good
health winged their way over the con-
tinent from the little pigeonhole in the
corridori
And here it was, too, that the Centen-
NAL news gatherers-how many of them
have now passed into the great beyond
women as well as men (for woman's
share in journalism is not, as good
many people imagine, an incident OF
comparatively recent Development, and
who represented the leading publications
and press associations of three CONT
nents, came together with each recur-
ring sunset to exchange gleanings, com
pare facts and elaborate fiction.
But all this is Renaissance. One bu-
reau of public comfort was sufficient for
the Centennial; half dozen or more
will be required to take care of Chicago's
visitors next year. In 1875 the enter
prise was private one, in the nature OF
a concession, but the coming fair Will
be so vast in scope that the directorate
has made the comfort and convenience
of it's guests part of it's own business
and proposes to conduct it under its own
direction.
The success Of the Centennial bureau
in all It's details was SO phenomenal that