The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1893-03-10
THE INAUGURAL DISPLAY.

Baddeford, Ne.
THE INAUGURAL DISPLAY.
A Washington correspondent says of
the ceremonies Saturday: Capitol hill,
as far as the eye could reach from the
eastern front of the capitol, was an un-
dulating sea of humanity assembled to
witness the administering of the oath of
Office to the new President by the Chief
Justice of the United States and to hear,
as many of them as could get within
ear shot, the inaugural address. The
picturesque and thoroughly republican
practice of taking the oath of office and
delivering the inaugural address in the
open air in the presence of the people
was begun by Zachary Taylor in 1S49.
Previously the inaugural address had
been read in the Senate chamber. JEFF
ferson was the first president to be in
augurated in Washington city. Wash
ington read his inaugural in New York
Adams in Philadelphia. Washington
first inaugural was 1900 words in length
his second only 1874. John Adams in
augural was 2300 words long; Jefferson
POO; Madison's 100 on both occasions
Monroe's 1900 and 400; j. Q. Adams
2900; Andrew Jacl'son's first and second
each 100; Van Duran employed $500
words and William Henry Harrison, the
most voluminous of them all, $500. John
Tyler, in entering uUou the duties of
President after the death of Harrison,
addressed his inaugural of 1900 words to
the public and published it in the news
papers, Congress not beiug in session.
Polk employed nearly 5000 words; Tay-
Tor 100. Fillmore simply announced the
death of Taylor in a message of 26O
words sent in to each house of Congress
and delivered no inaugural. Franklin
Pierce's address was $500 words; Lin
coins, on his first election $500; on his
second only $50. johnson took up the
reins of government after Lincoln's death
in brief message of 800 words. Grants
first inaugural was 100 words long; his
second 1900. Hayes employed 2400 words
Garfield 1900. Arthur followed the Gus
tom of other Vice Presidents in succeed
ing to the Presidency through death by
giving only short address of 400 words.
Cleveland's first inaugural, which he
committed to memory, was 1000 words.
Benjamin Harrison entered Office with
an inaugural of 1900 words. The Install
alton OF every President, elected as such
by the people, has been attended by
more or less of civic and military
parade, The firing of cannon and other
manifestations of public rejoicing. The
story that Jefferson rode unattended to
the capitol and hitched his horse to the
fence is simply one of three contradic-
tory accounts of the event, and the one
bearing least evidence of authenticity.
Contemporary newspaper reports repre-
sent him as being escorted to the capitol
by a body OF militia and a procession of
citizens.
In the matter of weather, the inaugu-
rations of William Henry Harrison, Polk,
Lincoln, Grant, Hayes, and Benjamin
Harrison alone were married by storms
or rain. All the other Presidents were
favored with sunshine; some even with
balmy warmth. Thus the popular idea
as to the prevailing inclemency of March
weather in Washington does not seem to
be borne out by the facts. The excep-
tions, however haYe been of great sever
ity. At Grants second Inauguration
some of the troops nearly froze at their
posts, and many deaths were directly
attributable to the cold, drenching rain
which accompanied the late Presidents
entry into Office. President Cleveland
spoke in the midst of snow storm.
The parade of to-day was greater in
numbers and more imposing in military
and civic display than that of any pre-
vious Inauguration. Gen. Martin T. Nc
Mahon of New York, the grand marshal,
carried out in the organization of the
procession the same admirable methods
of assembling his forces which made his
management Of the Columbian parade in
New York city last October so success
full. With military sagacity he recog-
nized the fact that it takes many hours
to march 10000 or $4,000 men past a
given point, even under the most favor
ing circumstances of broad and we'll
paved streets, and instead of ordering all
the organized bodies to be ready to fall
in at one and the same time, he allowed
sufficient intervals between the hours of
assembling to prevent as far as possible,
fatiguing waits, and SO arranged the
assembling places on contiguous side
streets that the men wer6 able to fall in
without delay and without crossing the
eral, Col. II. c. Corbin, U. S. A.