The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-09-08
HOW LABOR DAY
WAS CELEBRATED
Thousands Of WOrkingmen Observe
Their Annual Holiday.
BIG PARADE AND SMALL PICNIC
Marchers Represented Nearly all the
Labor Organizations in the City.
There Were Music and Enthusiasm.
The Picnic at Lincoln Park Not II
Prominent Success.

Labor Day was celebrated in Scran-
ton with parade of the union societies
in the afternoon and a picnic at Lincoln
park, Dunmore. after the paraders had
finished their march in the city. The
picnic was not as largely attended as
was expected by the Central Labor
union officials. who had the affair in
charge: but the parade was really
creditable and the thousand men in
line. cheered by many hundreds of
spectators, shows the t.'lers in Scran-
ton have not forgotten the great day
of tribute to united labor.
The weather was made for parade
purposes. The day wasn't warm,
neither was it cold: it was just about
right and the marchers did not COM
plain of this new kind of work which
comes in yearly installments. Every
workman who belongs to a workman's s
organization was, in his best clothes,
on the streets bright and early. Short
ly after the noon hour the streets be-
came more and more crowded with pc
destrians and at O'Clock. when the
parade started from Franklin avenue,
there was IA pretty good sized aggresa-
tion of On-loOllers.
IN THE PARADE.
In the lead Of the line We're two
mounted policemen followed by Grand
Marshall Stephen Il. Price, Chief of
STAFF james McLane. and Aides Charles
w. Wilhelm, John F,merich, and NJ. II.
Stone. The Lawrence band was the
first OF the musical organizations.
Then came the carriages. In the first
We're: Mayor James a.. Bailey, John
Williams. Of Utica. n. y: G. Ben
Johnson. of this city. and President
Philip j. Thomas, of the Central Labor
union: and in the second. C. G. Boland.
city treasurer; Edmund Robinson, city
controller; Nelson @. Teets. secretary
of Labor Day committee and state or
eanizer for the retail clerks: John NJ.
Knowlton. treasurer of Labor Day
committee.
After the carriages the following was
the order: Slaters' union, stone Mas
onS' union. Laceweavers' union, Brick
layers union, Plasterers' union. Cigar
makers union. Timers union, Paint
ers' union. This ended the first divi-
sion. In the next We're the Carpenters
union. No. 563; Carpenters union. No.
4S4: Stonemasons union, Plumbers
union. Iron Moulders' union. Typogra-
phical union: Visiting Clerks associa
tion, Scranton Clerks association,
Boilermakers' union, Stone Cutters
union. Scranton Progressive union,
I.athers' union, the different Mine Ac-
cidental Fund associations and the
Brotherhod of Railway Trainmen.
| Bauer's band and Crumps' West Side
band. the Forrest band played march
music In the line.
The paraders made u prcsentable ap-
pearancc. The Typographical union.
with "Roxey" Stone on a horse in front,
looked as neat as new type. The typos
Wore linen busters with headgears
similar to tourists helmets The white
busters OF the Plasterers' suited that
style of labor. 1t was noticed that the
heads Of many of the men I'm this Or
ganiZation were the color of the dust
ers. Yet they marched as sprightly as
the younger typos.
THE LARGEST ORGANIZATION.
The Carpenters and Joiners' union
had the largest number of men in line.
!
Laceworkers made Il fine appearance.
Each man carried regalias of white
lace and their standard was a quantity
| of the material draped about Il cross
work of poles.
In the last division of the parade
was the trades display. 1t was not
| large. The Industrial News, the otiic-
| ial organ of the Central Labor union.
headed this division. From carriage
copies Of the paper We're distributed.
The line of march was: Franklin
| avenue to Lackawanna avenue. To Nd
| ans avenue. to Linden street, to Wash
| ington avenue, to Vine street to Jeffer-
| son avenue. to Pine street, to Madison
| avenue
A mistake with detrimental cOnse-
| quences was made when Pine street
| was reached. II was the intention of
! the committee in charge To have the
| parade disband on Madison avenue Ac-
cording to this arrangement the parad-
.rs would he along the Laurel Hill line
Of cars and within a short distance
from Lincoln Park. where the picnic
| was held. But when the line reached
| Pine street part of the second division
| 'loWll tOWdtu AudIlS avenue
| and the picnic was minus the attend
ancc of several hundred men who were
expected to attend.
| ATTENDANCE WAS SMALL.
This caused a great dampening of the
festivities. Very few persons were at
| the park up to : o'clock i'm the evening.
The speeches which were to have
| been given by c. B. johnson, of this
city, and John Williams, president of
| the Carpenters and Joiners' union of
| Utica, n. Y, were delayed for want of
hearers. Toward evening. however. the
| attendance warranted speech by Mr..
| Williams and he talked at length on
"The Merits and Benefits of the Or
| der" 1t was an interesting argument
in favor of unity. Mr. Williams es-
| chewcd the discussion of politics.
| though he Is candidate for the state
| assembly from his district i'm New
York. I:e is the Labor Unions candi-
date and is likely to be endorsed by
| the Republicans. Personally, he
| seemed anxious to know how the pcG-
pie of this region behaved themselves
on the silver question. but he never
once referred to it in his talk.
| Dancing and other amusements occu-
pied the time of the picnickers.