The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-08-19
Charles II. Wishart to BE the New
President--Secret Orders and Prohf-
bitiOn-The Programme for To-Day.

The delegates to the Christian Union
convention poured into the city yesterday
from all the four points of the compass
and to-day there are perhaps ten thousand
strangers in the community Every train
that arrived in the depot brought its extra
coaches and no less than five specials came
in over the Big Four from Chicago, over
the Pennsylvania from Pittsburg, over the
Erie and Big Four from New York points
over the Burlington and Big Four from
Iowa and Illinois, and over the Pennsyl-
vania from Louisville. Coaches from the
far West were brought in by the Vandalia
and from the far South by the c., H. &
D. Cheap rates prevailed from all parts of
the country and thousands not members OF
the union availed themselves of the oppor-
tunity to see the famous inland city.
The depot was crowded the whole day
and by evening the streets began to take
on the usual convention aspect of wander
ing crowds of sight-seers. The hotels were
soon filed and the private houses that
have offered accommodations were being
called upon by large numbers The ease
with which Indianapolis can swallow up
multitude of strangers without dscommod-
ing anybody was never better exemplihed.
A distinction is to be drawn in this con-
nection between this particular convention
and an ordinary secular gathering of
political or industrial nature. A religious
body of young people, composed largely of
the fair sex, must needs be domiciled in
wholesome, God-fearng quarters, and
though Indianapolis stands on a higher
moral plane than any other large city yet
it cannot be excepted from the rule that
there are hotels and places not trictly re-
metropolis. These places may be utilized
for politicians, but not for psalm-singing
Christians and it is one of the prime duties
of the steering committees to see that the
youthful guests do not unwittingly find
their way into them. Yesterday quite de-
tachment of delegates was seen going into
a tabooed hotel south of Washington street.
but they were rescued promptly and headed
toward more godly quarters.
STEERING THE DELEGATES.
The work of steering the delegates pre-
sented a pretty piece of systematic ma
chinery of cogs within cogs and parts with-
out apparent number. The parts were
made up of young men and young women.
many beautiful young women at that.
whose distinctive features. differentiating
them from the rest of mankind. wore inn
maculate white caps and yellow badges,
thereby giving rise to the rather doubtful
honor of being termed "whtecappers."
There is nothing sinister, however, in the
minds and purpose of these whitecappers,
but something quite the opposite. They
are in a sense the ministerng angels of the
delegates. Being ubiquitous and omnis-
cieEt they are always ready at the dele
gates elbow to tell him what's what and
how to get there. That is their business
- r a., ..f.~A A.
ergy prove them equal to the emergency.
And speaking about their caps it may be
well to remark that these caps are the
second consignment, the first having been
discarded with disgust. The cap that was
thus ruthlessly disdained was Of remark
ably high crown something like dervish's
or some other pagan's headgear and was
ornamented with certain embellishments
in the way OF printing. The young people
declared they didn't look pretty in them
and that settled II. Hence the natty civil
ized white cap which now adorns the heads
of men and maidens alike.
OF the whtecappers there are about two
hundred One detachment of them spread
itself out over the country. They went
20 Kokomo. Richmond, IT Terre Haute.
boarded the special trains and ptloted the
delegates into the depot. w. II. Elyin
managed this portion of the machinery cry, At
the depot the delegates in passing through
the station gates marched between rows
of another whitecap detachment that was
under the generalship of Miss Cnariotte
Moore 1t was the business of these white
cappers TO take the delegates in tow, bag
gage and all. and escort them to the Oneida
Hotel headquarters. It was dverting
sight to see some of the young ladies at
tempting 70 life the heavy valises of the
incoming strangers ana SOMETIMES serious ies
mistakes were made IN supposlng tnat
everybody that came through the gates
were Christian Unionists when as like as
other unsympathetic individuals.
AT THE HEADQUARTERS
AS soon a the delegate was pioted across
the street he found himself In the large
room of the headquarters. which was
crowded to the full with another band
of whitecappers under the control OF d.
l., Cowan There also was y. w. Wier
with large force of assignment clerks
setting at tables and handling books con-
tanning the locations of suitable boarding
and lodging places. The delegate. after re-
ceiving from one OF these clerks a printed
slip assigning him to such and such
place, was handed over TO a whitecapper
who escorted him to the place of residence
mentioned on the slip. After domiciling
himself the delegate was left free to re-
pair TO the Denison Tomlinson Han.
where he exchanged his residence slip for
a button. the insignia OF membership in
the convention. The residence slips were
then utilized in making register of every
one, so that in order to ascertain where
any delegate is stopping it is only neces-
sary to repair to the sky floor of Tomiin-
son Hall In the east wing, where the regis
ter Is kept This wonderful piece of ma
chinery is further extended by the placing
of stilI another detachment OF whitecap-
pers on the principal street corners under
the charge OF Charles Reagan, whose busi-
ness il Is TO steer the lost and struggling
delegates back 10 their bearings. one
privilege which the whitecappers avail
themselves of with pride is that of free
srreet-car rides. the Citizens Company