The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1896-12-04
THE CANTON PILGRIMAGE
How tho Railroads Handled the Crowd,
tlItt f'i,cktd to &C Mckinley.

How tho Railroads Handled the Crowds
tItt i'i,cked to &c Mckinley.
Washington dispaCh Chicago Times
Herald. Qnd.): The greatest pilgrimage
known In modern times was that which
was seen at Canton, Ohio, during the
recent campaign. Major Mckinley to-
day enjoys the unique distinction OF
having been visited by larger num-
Der OF persons In given tima than any
other living man. Perhaps the country
Will never again sec such an outpouring
of people as that witnessed at Canton
during the past four or five months. II
viii he n long ttnB before another
presidential candidate attracts such
mul;itudc3 through his popularity and
the intense interest which his coun-
trymcn felt IN the election. Great as the
number OF pilgrims 60 Canton was. the
figures prepared by the railroad COM
paHkes and submitted to Major Nc
KInlcy about ten days ago are incrrdl-
bic. They had Just completed Ihrtr au-
Giting aud sent him O statement 10 the
eject that they had carried into Can
ton between June IS. the day the nomi-
nation WAS made al st. Louis. and No
Ncmber 3. election day, $50, 900 people.
Major Mckinley could not believe that
these figures were accurate. He had in
Il general way kept tab upon the num-
Der OF people who gathered IN his front
yard day after day. and he had estims-
ted the total At something like 100000.
Eut there are the cold figures submit
ted by the various railroad companies.
and the President elect does not think
1t Is competent for him 70 question
their accuracy.
. ~
into Canton the number OF people which
they say they did. they performed an
unexamplcd feat In railroadinS. Canton
Is not great railroad center. as Chi
caEo or St. Louis. or even Indianapolis
is. But one trunk line runs directly into
the town, the Pennsylvania The BaltI-
more * Ono has q Canton ccnnec-
ton, whioh Is fairly direct via Ak
ron. There Is only one other road, and
that Is OF n local character. Stop and
think for a moment what the figures
10000 applied 10 passengers by rail
means In the way OF transportation. II
means 1850 cars loaded 10 their ca
paCIty, reckoning sixty persons to 4
car. Between the nomination of Nc
kinlcy and the election there were
about nineteen weeks. The average
number OF cars. all fully occupied. must
therefore nave peEl IutHer more tnan
six hundred a day. Il may we'll be
doubted II this number OF cars was ex-
cccded by all the railroads running into
Chicago during the Worlds Fair, except
the last six weeks OF the exposition.
Six hundred cars a day means sixty
trains OF ten cars each. Did the rail-
roads do II, or nr they making some
mistake or eXagSerat!on In their fig
urcs? II does not seem credible. There
were days in whhch they rolled into
Canton thirty or forty such trains. but
they will have to come forward witt,
some detailed statement before they
make people believe they kept up an
average of sixty trains n day. Sundays
and all, through that period.
Even II the number of passengers
carried into Canton was only half that
reported It vas n marvellous perform
ance in rnilrOadinS. So numerous were
the special trains 10 Canton that rail-
road yards IN that town We're practlc-
ally cleared OF freight cars Az the aide
tracks were used for passenger cars
and extra tracks were laid. Even this
did not suffice, and the PENNSYLVANIA
Company. which handled the bulk OF
the tratIlc. found It necessary to run
trains from the east through MasShlOn
eight miles west. IN order 10 find a
place for the ears to stand during the
few hours elapsed while their pasSeu-
gers were standing before Major Nc
Kiuley'S porch.