Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1893-10-17
WORLDS FAIR POINTS.
A GLIMPSE OF THE "xrpwAr."

not, as q great many suppose, tcIn
manufactured to be applied to one Tea
ture Of the worlds fair. Il 10 the nam,
given by the city Of Chicago to tn
boulevard connecting jackson Park ant
Washington Park, two OF the chain O.
parks which encompasses the principal
part OF the city. The Midway Plaisanc'
Il has been heretofore, and the Midwa!
PiaIsance Il will continue to be, ate
the Oriental and other temporary real
dents have departed thence, aud tn
boulevard has resumed Its normal condi
tlOn.
For the occasion and the purposes oil
the worlds fair, however, the Midway
as II IA popularity called, has been con
yerted Into u great side-show ground
with shows of rather higher order thar
those which furnish m Indispensable
feature Of county and town fairs. IL
was one of the happy thoughts OF the
fair management thus to separate the
commercial, m0ney-making features
from the fair proper, aud everybody
cOmmends the arrangement.
BY far the most Interesting class OF
shows on the Midway are the foreign
villages. BY paying your money and
passing through the gate, you are ut
once In another land. You zee The
houses or the huts of foreign land, you
see the industries of that land In opera.
ton and Its products displayed for sale,
and you see genuine natives as a rule In
genuine costume. There are some ex-
ceptions to this latter statement. The
Orientals, rs q rule, have become Amer
lcanlzed AS to their footwear, and oc-
casionally you will see one who has be-
come fully Amerlcanized ~ to his cloth
lng,-except his fez. lie cllngs to the
fez to the last extremity.
Ii Is also insinuated that Hlbernlans,
In various foreign garbs and speaking
various kinds of "glbberish," may be
found In several of the villages, but such
an inslnuati0n may have no basis OF fact.
There IL a fascination and an interest.
Ing study In thus travelling through
twenty different countries In the space
of mile, and some OF our party made
the fair secondary consideration, and
started out each morning to lido the
Midway" until they got tired OF 1t and
wanted u change.
hut by the way, one who is going to
take In the Midway thoroughly must
have pocket full of change, or else he
must have u press pass to the fair and
have sufficient cheek to work II on every
gate-keeper that he wants 70 get by.
had the pass, but was born without the
amount OF cheek that newspaper man
really needs, so probably missed con-
siderable that I might have seen with
out expense. The money which 1t takes
TO get Into one OF the foreign villages ID
rs q rule only the beginning OF sorrows'
Once inside you fnd q native theatre,
with characteristic performances, Tor
an extra admission, and OF course you
want to take that In. Also museum OF
antiquities, n native temple, or some
thing of that klnd-with an extra adnis-
sion. Then on every side are the native
shops, where the "Yankee notions" OF
that country are sold, and II you buy
everything you want 1t will take big
trunk to get II home. The attendants
In many Of the shops are Americans,
whether because they can talk English
easier, or because of their greater enter
prise, I do not know.
One Irish village was established on
the Midway, and then, with the lrish
propensity for getting into q row, there
was quarrel, and another Irish village
Was opened. One OF these villages has q
reproduction of Blsrney Castle, with
the real, original and only Blarncy stone
For fee of ten cents one may have the
privilege of endowlng himself with pc
culiar gift Of tongue by pressing bis
lIps TO that stone which so many other
lips Of all sorts and conditions have
pressed. I am destitute OF the gift OF
cab, but prefer some more reliable and
hyglenic means OF occurring 1t. And
then, I don't believe In such promiscu'
Gus kissing, anyway.
There is q Javanese village, where a
large colony Of these little people live Ia
their warm weather houses OF bamboo
with roof OF thatch. There was we'd
ding In this village the day went In
not a stage wedding, but a real, genuine
marriage ceremony, rs was attested Dy
the excited condition Of the little women
natives. The crowd was so dense
couldn't see much, but | did get Y
glimpse Of the happy couple borne slofi
In palanauln ut the head of the wed.
ding procession, and heard beating OF
drums and picking Of strings, intended
to represent music, but without time
tune or harmony. The music of th,
Midway Is very largely Of the tum-tum
variety.
There Ia a German village, and street
In Old Vienna, each Of which Il all III
name implies; and the realism OF then
IA heightened by the fact that all availa
bic space inslde them IL occupied by beef
gardens-with magnificent bands ant
Orehestras, OF course. There 10 an en-
campment OF Bedouins, a Johore bunga
low, a Constantinople street, which u
mostly shops, and various other villages
and settlements, with theatres galore
but the one that Is universally patronlzet
Il the Cairo Street.
Pass through the gate, and II you Cal
shut out from your sight the American
crowd, and from your ears the broker
English of the natives, you can readil!
Inns CINE yourself In Cairo. The street ]
narrow, crooked, and without sidewalks
II Il we'll supplied with shops, and Their
is an opportunity to have your fortun
told, to visit an Egyptian temple, &c
While you are taking look at all this
voice behind you cries, "Look ouer
der way for Ta-rs.ra-boom-de-ay." YOU
turn and see an Egyptian boy OF SOM
twelve summers leading q camel, an,
admire the readiness with which th
foreigner "catches on" to our popula
songs; but afterward you learn that TIL
particular camel has been endowed with
the name Of the song mentioned. =
The donkeys and camels are kept busy
In the Cairo Street. A lady who
ycnturcsome enough 10 mount one o
the little donkeys, realizes, 40 soon No b
starts of at brisk trot, how insecure
her foundation, and In terror she clutclc
at tina saddle and emits feminine screams
The louder she screams the harder tn
wicked darkey behind lays the whip Of
the donkey. lt'a one OF their tricks
But the camel riding II the most fun
The camel 10 nat upon the ground =
start with. A "fellow and girl" noun
and secure themselves by straps an
stlrrups % that there 10 hardly . possl
blllty of their falling OLA necessar
precaution. Il may DO unnecessary :
J! mention that young lady who 70 :
ride : camel shoald So neatly and b
comingly attircd ~ 10 feet and ankles
The load being 10 place, the camel rise
J, 70 his feet by . series OF sudden an
, mirth-provoking lurches, which thrsste
/. 70 prscipltats the riders, .aFss ovsF d