The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1893-09-28
THE WORLDS FAIR.
Some Views in and About the
"White City,
CHICAGO, ILL.,. Sept. 10. 1898.

pen OF man or woman, unalded by Illus |
trations, can do more than burlesque
this grand climax of the worlds wisdom,
this aggregation of her wonders, this
contribution of all the centuries and all
the countries to civilization and in COM
pliment to Columbus and Columbia.
The Worlds Fair is a reality surpass-
ing in beauty and magnifcence the wild
est dreams of romancists and poets. BY
the subtle and electric power of mind
they have never been able to present on
paper or to coniure up such grand, grace
full and gorgeous palaces and enchanting
landscapes and vistas of beauty as may
now be seen in Jackson Park.
The genii of Oriental fable could not
cope with the spirit of progress that an
imates the bosom of this Republic as en-
phasized by the revelations and creations
of the Columbian Exposition; and espe-
cially could they not contend with hope
of success against the energetic, rushing,
ver-to-be-outdone, financial, CONNER
cial and agricultural giants of Chicago,
who have changed mere trading post
on the shore of Lake Michigan marked
less than hundred years ago by few
Indian wigwams, into the charming and
colossal city of Chicago.
The ornamental work of the grounds
ings, the largest ever erected, in their
superb and sublime architecture embOdy
every principle contained in the architec-
tural marvels of the masters in the Old
World. Visit Chicago now and you may
see what the usual tour around the world
does not present, and enjoy what it has
required six thousand years to produce.
This Exposition is as far superior to
that of Vienna, Paris, Berlin and London
as the Ferris wheel is to the Eifel Tower.
All the principles involved in the build
ing of the tower were known to the build
ers of the Tower of Babel some thousands
of years ago, but the idea OF hanging
wheel 274 feet in diameter, weighing
1900 tons, in mid air, with SO cars at
tached as large and as elegant as Pull
man sleepers, carrying 10 passengers
each or 1 40 in all, a big load for an eX-
cursiOn train OF 26 cars, then revolving
that wheel with it's human freight i'll per-
| feet salty, no flaw, no creak, no yaria-
| ton, could only emanate from the brain
of a mechanical genius, pronounced at
| first by the greatest mechanics of the
| world as crazy and could have been re-
| allied only in the 10Th century.
! The Paris Exposition cost nine million
| dollars. The Columbian cost thirty mill
| ions. There is an entire absence of any
thing like extortion on the part of rail-
| roads, vehicle owners, Fair authorities
and hotels; indeed, one may obtain
| board at dozens of hotels as cheap, and
| almost as good, as at the splendid and
noted hosiery of our good friend Mas
senburg in Henderson. Employees are
| commanded to be courteous and obliging
| to visitors and they observe the order.
| Except on certain State days there is no
rushing and crushing by the crowd. Ev
| erything is On such vast scale there is
| plenty OF room. The facility with which
| the thousands OF Fair visitors are trans
| ported to and from the ground is re-
markable. They can move three hum
dred thousand persons every two hours.
| An immense uncompleted building
stands just outside the enclosure 1t was
intended as an auditorium for the produc-
ton OF kiralfy's great spectacle, " Amer
| ica,' now being presented in the Audito-
rum in Chicago. The building had cost
| 100000, time pressed, it would cost
100000 more to finish it, they aban-
| doned it. By invitation | went to see
this play, and found, as expected when
told that such building was designed
for it, that it is the greatest thing OF it's
kind that the world has ever seen. There
were 700 performers on the stage. The
play is a pictorial representation of
| America in Peace, War, Art and Science.
The electric lighting power OF the Expo
sition is three times that of the city of
Chicago and ten times that of the Paris
Exposition.
The gigantic Allis engine in the Power
| House, is twice the size of the famous
Corliss engine OF the Philadelphia Cen
| tennial.
e IL -
grounds may be obtained by the Lake
approach in the morning as the sun
gilds the domes, colonnades and stat
uary with its golden light and shimmers
like molten silver upon the water of the
lagoons and grand canals. The next
best view is from the top of the Ferris
Wheel at night just as the vari-colored
electric lights flash before you like
million jewels browning the buildings
and grounds and basins with diadems
OF diamondesque splendOr.
The three hundred and six miles from
Cincinnati to Chicago, barring 80 miles
beyond the first named city, is as level
as a ball room floor. Certainly there is
not an elevation in the landscape as high
as q potato HILL 1t is substantially a
field of wheat, oats and corn three hun
dred miles long. On both sides of the
road as far as the eye can reach may be
seen great yellow mountains of wheat
and painted alike, substantial frame
structures. Droughts are long and ruin
Gus. In the country near Chicago they
had not had rain in three months. Wheat
so cents bushel, corn 80. People about
the stations do not look as well as our
people. The negroes look worse. | am
not impressed by the beauty of the
| western ladies; of course there are excep-
| tions, but the climate seems to dry and
| roughen their compilations, and you
know the men of the South are accus-
toned to peach bloom complexions and
small feet. A visit to the Worlds Fair
will broaden your brain but it will make
you want to die in North Carolina. God
bless her with her grand climate, fertile
soil, lovely women, and brave men. She
is doing well at Chicago, holding her
own with all the States except California,
Michigan, and perhaps a few Others, in
Guiding New York and Pennsylvania, and
she is equal to all in some things.
France is ahead OF the Nations, Italy
not excepted, in the Fine Arts Palace. She
has sixteen rooms filled with statuary
and paintings. This Palace is the most
beautiful thing at the Fair. Within its
walls are the masterpieces OF Europe.
The United States is supreme. Great
Britain is great. Germany everywhere
presents hand OF iron; it may be COW
cred with silk but it is a hand of iron
still. | think Electricity the greatest de-
velopment shown by the Exposition.
Man will advance, but like Alexander,
he has no more worlds to conquer here.
If he advances during the next four cen
turtles as he has during the last four he
must needs bride the very whirlwind
and ride upon its bosom, manufacture
cyclones for special occasions, harness
the ocean to his machinery, drive Niagara
about submissive as a Shetland pony,
roll up thunder storms at his pleasure,
water the fields with refreshing rains or
deluge the earth, conquer the stars and
assault the sun. 1 saw him make rain
bow and bend it in heavenly beauty
| above the ColIlInh ian E,ountain