The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-04-04
ATKIySoN'S DAY.
Thousands Visited the Big Store
Down on Middle Street.
SUCCESSFUL OPENING OF THE EN-
LARGED ESTABLISHMENT.

The Band Played Amid Furniture, Cloth
ing and Flowers While People Looked,
Listened and Wondered-The Day
| Closed With Banquet at the Preble
House and Many Congratulations.
Saturday was a gala day at the corner
of Pearl and Middle streets. 1t was the
occasion of the opening of the Atkinson
House Furnishing Company's great de-
| partment store for which pre-
parations had been making for a long
time. The company has occupied one
half of the great four-story building for
a long period, but now it includes the
entire structure, giving it probably the
largest building occupied by single
firm outside of Boston in New England.
The edifice presented a most at
tractive appearance. Large floral en-
blems occupied the immense plate glass
windows on the Middle and Pearl streets
fronts, interspersed with the latest and
most fashionable pesigns in furniture,
gentlemen's furnishing goods, and goods
from other departments.
The Flowers.
Among the beautiful floral gifts, COM
posed of the choicest productions of the
Boston Conservatives were cornucopia
four feet long and Is inches across the
mouth, resting on a base three feet in
diameter; star four feet high; a superb
puff-scarf two feet long; horseshoe
three feet in diameter; shield four feet
in diameter at the base; reclining horse
shoe two feet in diameter; a basket four
feet long; besides beautiful palms. and
tropical plants. An odd gift was a pair
of trousers made of milkweed, Al feet
high, standing on a base of laurel, the
seams, buttons, waist band and buckles
of the trousers made of purple i'm
mortelles. In each of the four great
windows were set superb baskets of
rare roses on pedestals of ferns four
feet high, and the windows and interior
of the store were garlanded with laurel
and roses intertwined and tied with
bows of bright colored ribbon. Some
$4,000 yards of green were required to
festoon the immense lower floor and
stair ways.
The Crowds Present.
ALI through the afternoon and evening
Chandlers full band, stationed in the
front of the second story, furnished the
choicest music from all the favorite COM
posers. The display of goods in every
department was remarkable and called
for the heartiest praise from everybody.
From noon till 8 p. m. thousands of citi-
zens and visitors from out of town
visited the store. The surrounding streets
were filed with people as if it was a
Fourth of July, OF Barnum's circus
day. And just here a comment made by
a well known business man of Portland
comes in very aptly. He said to the
reporter, MANY people think this open
ing is merely a great boom for Mr..
Atkinson's firm. They do not see that
it would be a good thing for Portland if
we could have such an affair every week.
1t keeps every business man in town. 1t
calls people to the city. They enjoy the
opening, admire the great energy and
perseverance Mr.. Atkinson has shown,
and they buy goods Of him and of other
men in business. Ny store did more
business Saturday afternoon and evening
than for several months past
1t is estimated that $4,000 people
visited Mr.. Atkinson's store Saturday.
Between 2 and o'clock 420O people were
in the store All the employees We'd with
each other in showing every attention to
their guests.
The Guests From Boston.
The following gentlemen were on the
special train from Boston: B. A. Atkin-
son, L. J. Bird, C. H. Homestead, W.
Halves, A. A. Conant, F. A. Prince, E. S.
Zeis, Joel FEEDER, A. S. Gushing, S. Cush
ing, Joseph Atkinson, G. W. Spaulding'
Ed. L. Thayer, M. W. Burton, c. P.
Donovan, Boston Pilot; L. Thayer, Bos
ton Post; j. S. Kelley, Boston Herald;
Ed. T. Burns, Boston Globe; J. G.
Chandler, Boston Record.
The Banquet.
In the evening, at shortly after 8 o.
o'clock, when the throngs crowding the
building gave an opportunity for Mr..
Atkinson, his employees, heads of the
branch houses in the state and invited
guests to close the store and attend the
banquet given by Mr.. Atkinson at the
Preble House, the party fell into line and
marched to the hotel to the music of
Chambers band The dining room
looked beautifully. Nearly one hundred
gentlemen were present.
After coffee and cigars, Mr.. Isaac C.
Atkinson arose and was most warmly re-
ceived. He said:
Employees Of the atkinson Company, man
uJactwers and friends from Boston, and
M embers of the Press:
1t affords me great amount of pleas