The San Francisco call., 1897-02-20
SAN D|EGO'5 BIC
WATER CARNIVAL.
Everything Ready for the
Grand Opening This
Afternoon.
Crowds of Visitors Continue to
Arrive by Train From
All Directions.
Storm Ceases, Barometer Rises and
the Success of the Celebration
Is Assured.

SAN DIEGO, CAL, Feb. 19.-To-night,
the eve OF the carnival finds everything
IN readiness for the big celebration which
will begin tomorrow afternoon at 1855
o'clock and continue at full speed, with the
throttle wide open, until the last rocket is
fired and the electric light is turned out
on the bay of San Diego Monday night.
The weather tonight is squalIy and
threatening, and an unsteady barometer
rising and falling portends continuation
of present conditions. Some three-q ua--
ters of an inch of rain has fallen to-day
and many of the streets are nearly i'm
passable. The fear among the members
of the general committee is not that the
carnival itself will not be a success, but
that some of the visitors W no contemplated
coming tomorrow from Los Angeles and
other cities may be deferred from starting
on account of the threatened storm. II
the high wind continues the boats will
not be able to race on the bay to-morrow,
hut there is no doubt but that the weather
for Sunday and Monday will be perfect, as
usual.
The carnival will be formally opened at
/: :55 o'clock tomorrow afternoon with the
firing OF q signaI-gun from the prov of
the flagship Philadelphia, which will
also be the preparatory signal for the
aquatic sports. At 2 o'clock the boats in
the yacht regatta will start, all four classes
getting away together. In the regatta
will be thirty boats-sloops, schooners,
catboats, sharpies, yawls and fishing
boats-and the course will be six miles in
length-from the Pacific Coast Steamship
wharf to Twenty y-eighth street and return.
Following this will be a series of races be-
tween the crews of the warship boats, in
cluding races between 12-oar cutters, 6-oar
gigs, 10-oar cutters and free-for-all cata-
marans.
The day will conclude with a grand
naval and military ball in the spacious
ballroom of the Coronado Hotel, which
has been decorated as never before for The
occasion.
Literally hundreds of fazs of all na-
tions, banners and pennants of every de-
sign and color, have been suspended from
the splendid vaulted dome, and the loges
of the guests of honor arc draped and fes-
tooned with battle Tags and naval PEN
nants, crowned with splendid baskets of
roses and wild flowers, the brilliant poppy
and delicate yellow violet contrasting WV
idly with the trailing smilax and dark
green English ivy. In the most gorgeously
decorated loge in the ballroom will be Adj
miral Beardslee, the guest OF the carnival,
with few invited guests. 1t is a matter
of general regret that illness will prevent
Mrs. Beardslee from participating in the
festivities given in the admiraPs honor,
although her many friends are glad 10
know she is conYalescing.
AT the ball tomorrow night the splen-
did military band of the flagship Phila-
delphia will furnish the music, and the
brilliant uniforms of the officers mingling
with the beautiful costumes of the fair
guests will make the occasion notable
one IN the social history of the bay region.
The crowds OF visitors which are arriving
by every train make it plain that San
Diego will be called upon to entertain the
largest crowd in Ter history if it does not
rain to. morrow. The two Santa Fe trains
arriving to-day brought 1000 passengers
and the steamer Queen tonight discharged
over 200, mostly from Los Angeles. All
the suburban trains to-day have been
crowded and several times as many are
expected tomorrow.
BY a fortultous arrangement made by
Manager Fisher John P. Sousa's great
military band has been engaged to appear
twice at the opera-house on Sunday. The
music for the carnival will be furnished bv
the City Guard band, two smaller bands
and a chorus of 100 trained voices, who
will sing from the barge Tortuga dnring
the parade of the f1otiIla Monday night.
Chairman Isaac Poihapus of the god
dess committee announced tonight that
the goddess barge was com plete and ready
for occupancy by its fair ruler, the god
dess of the carnival, Mrs. Lewis Reed
Works, who with her retinue of thirty
TT1n nd dam afn H.
eled, will take possession of the floating
palace at 7:45 o'clock on Monday night.
The barge is most beautiful and artistic
creation, 120 feet in. length and 35 feet
beam.
The main deck has been carpeted for
dancing, and suspended from an arch
which extends from bow to stem of the
barge will be 200 colored incandescent
electric lights with as many moro hung in
festoons about in such a manner as to
bring out the best effect. The barge IS
gorgeously decorated in bunting and flags.
with splendid floral designs abounding
everywhere.
Everybody is happy tonight, for the
sky is clear, the stars are shining and the
rapidly rising barometer indicates that
the storm is over and Queen Climate has
again resumed the reins in the San Diego
bay region. This insures the success of
the water carnival.
A pleasant feature OF the present cele-
bration is that sufficient funds are now in
the hands of the committee to paw all bills
incidental to the carnival, about $1,000