The San Francisco call., 1897-02-23
OAKLANO'S GREAT PARADE
San Francisco Joins in the
Successful Celebra.
tion.
Oakland is all right.

Oakland is all right
If the Father OF his Country could have
stood at good post of vantage on Broad
way yesterday morning and gazed upon
the great parade held in honor of the day
that gave him birth his bosom would have
swelled with pride As it was the breasts
of San Francisco and Oakland patriots
did all the swelling necessary to proper
sense of appreciation of the magnificent
scale on which the celebration was carried
out.
Even the elements seemed to reveI in
the general scene of jollity and gayety,
the air was pure and clear, the sky was
deep, ultramarine blue, and the god of
day gaZed down from his exalted throne
in the heavens with smile that lit up and
gave warmth to the general effect, and
added the last artistic finishing touches
TO what was day of happiness and gem
eral rejoicing.
There were at least 1900 spectators
of the celebration in honor of the
one hundred and sixty-ffth ami
versary of the birth of George Washing
ton, held in the beautiful city across the
| bay, and it is safe 10 say that few of them
will ever forget it. 1t will remain day
to be pointed to with pride as the stand
ard of celebrations.
When some great event IS celebrated in
Oakland in the future there is no doubt
that there will be many to stand by and
shrug their shoulders with the remark:
'Oh, yes, this is a good enough parade,
all we'll enough, but you should just have
seen the one held in honor of Washing
| toms birthday in 1877
Bright skies, banners, tall-masted flags,
b rilliant uniforms, marching columns,
| thousands of onlookers, the blare of
trumpet and roll of drum, martial music,
song, cheers and a waving sea of starry
emblems-that was the programme: and
through it all the great kaleidoscope
throng surged to and fro, hither ana
tnither, to see first one attraction and then
another.
Long before 10 80 o'clock, the hour set
for the start. the streets were filled with a
dense throng of people from the city and
the surrounding country. The streetcars
gave free transportation to all the scnool-
children, and every car that came in from
the suburbs was almost concealed by the
mass of children on it. They filled the in
side and the car platforms, stood on the
| steps, clung to the posts and rails, and
! few of the more daring and ambitious
were perched on the top.
The hour following $3.50 O'clock was a
busy one The different divisions formed
| on the side streets below Broadway, and
though the time of starting was fifteen
| minutee behind the schedule, there was
| far less confusion than is generally seen
on such occasions, owing to the perfected
plans of the committee. When the
final command was given the column
moved forward in excellent military order.
Little tots in kits trudged along as
proudly and a great deal more noisily
than their elders, all carrying flag and
most of them bedecked with bunting. A
large mum Der of girls were also in line.
The councils of the Junior Order of
American Mechanics from Oakland, Ala
media, Berkeley and this City made fine
showing with their uniformed organiza-
ton. This order took the rear of the line
on account of the fact that the parade was
under its auspices
Over 5000 persons were in line, and it
took Just three-quarters of an hour for it
to march past a given point. The column
marched up Broadway to Durant street,
countermarched on Broadway to Four
teenth street, thence to Washington, on
to Eighth, thence to Alice and finally to
Tenth. The reviewing stand was placed