Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1892-11-10
For the Ellsworth American
The Columbian Celebration in New
York City.

The Columbian Celebration in New
York City.
Dear Editor 1T may not be uninterest-
ing for your readers to hear about the CO.
lumbian celebration from one who was In
the city of New York, the three days OF
this eventful week. The one who at
tempts To overdraw the picture of its splen-
dor and msgnificence, will come far short
of its real greatness. II the great discov-
erer could have looked upon the grand Gel
ebration that was the result of his eventful
voyage four centuries ago, he would
have indeed been proud of the magnificent
display.
Monday, the 10th, was the children's
parade. 10000 children were In line up
Broadway Students from colleges and
public schools were all represented in the
march, not in New York state alone, but
from other localities.
Tuesday was the naval parade and 1t is
estimated that 100 900 people took part in
this grand affair. The fleet was led by the
United States Steamship Philadelphia, Mi
antonomah, Atlanta, Dolphin. Vesuvius
and st. Mays, followed by the French
flagship Arethuse, Italian cruiser Bausan,
Spanish cruiser Infanta Ysabel, United
States Steamship Cushing, naval militia,
State of New York, municipal vessels Of
the city Of New York, steam yachts and
divisions Of merchant steam vessels fol
tug boats and steam launches crowded
with people all eager to see the grand pa
gesnt. The course was from Graves End
Bay to Riverside Park
AT Il 80 noon, Tuesday, Oct. IL, the
signal gun announced the start. Up
through the narrows to the beating tattoo
of great guns belching from either shore
and answered back by the greater crafts
stealing softly northward to the center of
the line, were lordly ships and peasant
crafts, ships of war and ships of pleasure,
hulls devoted to commerce and others TO
passenger traffic, the steel ploughs which
cut the waters of old ocean and face the
cyclone fearlessly, and the delicate crafts
which dare not face gale though they
may possess marvels of speed and beauty
and comfort, queens of the sea and peas
ants of the river. and the far from beauti-
full barges, and even the frail shell, all
were gathered in vast congregation to
make a carnival outdoing Venice, and pay
tribute of the great maritime city of the
western continent, to the memory OF the
man who found it four centuries ago, chill
dren of the nineteenth century kissing
hands across the age Of time to the hf-
teenth century, bearing witness to the
deeds Of their glorious ancestors in the
development Of every art, science, learn
ing and resource which any country can
boast of.
A. the fleet advanced up the bay pur
pie haze lay upon the water and grew
gressed but not dense enough to hide the
great parade from the eyes of the countless
thousands of spectators who lined the
shores and peopled the celebrating crafts
themselves. 1t was a day which poets sing
of, an Indian summer sort of day. Over
coats were discarded.
thought when | saw the people en-
barking that all New York was getting on
the water, but when | saw peoped miles
of shore, the vast aggregation of humani-
ty which lined Long Island, Staten Island
Governors Island, Liberty Island, Brook
lyn, Jersey City and Hoboken and the
Heights beyond, was inclined to change
my opinion.
1t is safe to say that so many eyes never
before looked upon single spectacle.
The population of three great cities and
unnumbered suburbs Of outlying counties
was nearly all present to witness this
grand pageant of the water. Slowly the
great pageant advanced up the bay. As
they neared Bedlow's Island the squadron
was greeted with a salute of twenty one
guns. and Immediately thereafter from the
guns from Castle Williams and Battery
Park belched forth a similar salute which
was answered by the vessels of war and
the blast of numerous steam whistles all
moving up the river. When near Grants
tomb, at p. NJ, the fleet came to anchor
and thus ended the great parade of the
Columbian celebration of New York har-
Dor.
Wa6n hn hn 1tna
ton of the statue Of Columbus at Central
Park, and the great army and militia and
naval parade up Broadway to the Park.
This was we'll conducted and was credit
alike to the citizen soldier as well as to the
regular army. The militia presented an
| unusually fine appearance. The immense
| crowd that viewed this parade filled every
available place. Even trees and lamp posts
were filed with courageous boys. Every
window was decorated with bunting; new.
er before have l seen so many American
| flags as were hung from floor to house
top on every street, and nearly every win.
dow was decorated with flags. Portraits
of the great voyager Of the fifteenth cen
tury were hung from the most conspic.
uous places. The two greatest men iden-
titled with the history of the western
hemisphere, Washington and Columbus,
are to be seen on every street.
The fireworks on the Brooklyn bridge
Monday night were unusually fine. The
Niagara Falls as represented from tower
to tower, a sheet Of fire falling into the
water the entire length Of the bridge, was
grand beyond anything that l have ever
seen.
| When Thursday morning daxned the