The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-10-12
ON VIM. M'KINLEY'S
FAMED FRONT LAWN
Scrantonian's Glowing Description Of
the Canton Pilgrimage.
THOUSANDS THR0NGED TuE CITY
One Of the Greatest Crowds Of the
Campaign. How the Presentations
Are Conducted. .Relic Hunters Are
Making 1t Imperatively Necessary
That the Major Should Get to the
White House If He Wants to sleep
Under Roof.

unite in saying was one of the greatest
experiences of their lives. They lucki-
ly selected a day which proved to be
one most noteworthy of them all in
many ways, as can be seen by reference
to the United Press dispatches.
There were eight car loads leaving
Wilkes Barre and the members of the
party expected to create a big sensa-
ton when they reached the home of the
next president. But as they put 1t
themselves they Were only a drop in a
bucket The jam at Canton made itself
felt even at Pittsburg where an hours
delay occurred by reason of the large
number of extra trains which the Penn
sylvania was handling. Canton was
reached at noon, which Is IL O'Clock a.
m. according to watches of the local
men, and without waiting for dinner
the march to the Mckinley residence
was taken up. n the way out $50 was
was taken up. On the way out $50 was
telegraph from Pittsburg. They ac-
cOrdingly made their call in style. Pro-
fessor Gray. of Wilkes Barre. made the
presentation speech. Major Mckinley's
response Is contained in the United
Press despatch.
Harry Y. Hopewell, one of the Scran-
tonians who accompanied the excursion
was seen by a Tribune reporter on his
return yesterday and gave an enthus-
iastic and glowing account OF the visit.
why we don't know here" he said.
that there is an election going on. 1t
is simply impossible for one who has
not been to Canton to form anything
like a conception of the enthusiasm.
They are fairly wild out there. I don't
know how many people were there but
the Canton people say that 1t was the
lf fuu 1n Sn
last the newspapers stated there were
$4,000 in the city"
"McKinley's house Is about eight
blocks from the center of the town.
where the depotS are located. on a
street quite as pretty as our Jefferson
avenue AS the delegations leave the
trains they form their lines and pass
ing under an immense Mckinley arch
made entirely of incandescent lamps.
pass up the street to the Mckinley
home.
CROWD WAS VERY LARGE.
Yesterday the thrOng was so great
that delegations had to stand along this
street for several hours sometimes
waiting their turn to possess the now
famous lawn. We were presented
shortly after noon and did not have to
wait long. because We got In before the
big rush. How many delegations were
there it is hard to tell, as two or three
and sometimes four or five would go
up In body. 1t is said that Major
Mckinley made twenty speeches dur
ing the day, and as he has an average
of say three delegations as auditors to
each speech. there must have been
fully sixty delegations present.
"The West Shore road alone ran
twenty-eight excursion trains to Can
ton. / didn't hear what the other roads
brought. but l think the Panhandle
and Pennsylvania must have had a
dozen apiece. Nine states were repre-
sented, one delegation coming from st.
Louis, a distance Of over 700 miles.
Kentucky sent a uniformed club led by
one hundred men everyone of them six
footers and each of them uniformed In
blue and white and wearing tall bear
skin hats. Wheeling. West Virginia,
sent similar organization.
Major Mckinley, as is supposed in
these parts, does not speak from the
front porch, at least he doesn't any
more. A platform has been erected in
the lawn and here all the speechmak-
are made. And thatlawn! Judging from
the pictures | have seen Of Mckinley S
home and from the character of the
neighboring lawns. 1t was once thing
Of beauty. Now 1t Is as bare of grass
and shrubbery as billiard ball. as
level as a billiard table and as hard
as asphalt. Even the trees are fast
disappearing. The relic hunters have
broken off the branches up to the very
trunks and have even stripped many
of them Of their bark. Even the house
has been attacked and everything that
can be torn from its fastenings seems
to have disappeared. They are now be-
ginning to tear off strips of the siding
from the back of the house The place
looks as If 1t had been struck by a
cyclone. | wanted to get some me-
mentO of the visit and after looking
vainly around for as much as q blade
of grass, forced my way up to where
Mckinley was shaking hands and ask
ed If / could have picket from the
fence. He laughed heartily at the re-
quest and bade me help myself. saw
ing he would have to build q new one,
anyhow. Howard Payne and I each
got a picket. Why the fence hasn't
disappeared before this is more than |
can understand"
M'KINLEY'S MAGNETISM.
Mr.. Hopewell had much to say of the
personal magnetism of Mckinley. The
crowds could not leave the vicinity of
the lawn after being presented, but re-
mained around to hear the speaking
and to feast their eyes on the great
leader of men.
These delegations" said he. "are
not excursionists. They are truly Pill
grims.'