The San Francisco call., 1898-02-06
THE CHILDREN
 WERE THERE By Hundreds and Thou sands They Visited
 the Fair.
Barrels of Candy Were Given Away to Them by the
 Management.
The German Choral Societies Will Sing This Even
 ing.

When the doors of the Mechanics Pavilion at the Mining Fair were thrown open yesterday, there arose soft and clear, above the noise of the ma chinery within and the roar of the streets without, magical and melodious notes of weird music. It is said that they fell from the far-famed reed of the Pied Piper of Hamlin. Just how the management secured the services of this mythical musician of fairyland or where they had him hidden is not known, but certain it is that when the music was heard a vast army of chil- dren came dropping and dancing from all directions.
 First by ones and twos, but quickly the infantile stream of glad and happy humanity grew to hundreds and thou sands. There were girls and boys of all ages, sizes and kinds. Soon the main entrance of the pavilion was damned like the vortex of a mighty funnel, with the clamoring, pushing and struggling mass of little ones. Just inside the en- trance were countless numbers of bar rels filled with bags of candy, and over 5000 of these were given away Each girl and boy were made happy in the possession of a bag of the sweets, and the thousand teachers were not forgot ten.
 Once on the inside the children pro- ceeded to take immediate possession of the entire pavilion. They took in all the exhibits, passed by hundreds through the tunnel, visited the horse show. the art gallery and the moving mir Lo,, ears wide open, they saw and heard all that there was to see and hear with in the four walls of the pavilion. At ? o'clock the band struck up a lively march, and there was at once a rush for the band stand. Every avail able inch of space surrounding it was occupied, and in moment the galler- ies were crowded to overfiowing. With the beginning of the programme the small visitors wonder and admiration knew no bounds. They laughed and shouted, and generously clapped their hands at all they witnessed.
 First came John and Johnnie" the trained bears, in their unrivaled antics, and loud was the applause that greet ed them. Next followed an up-to-date cake walk by little Miss Ribble Kirby Butler and Master Harry Mangles. These infantile wonders are aged and 6 years, respectively. They wore cos tunes of the Louis Quinze period, and did their dance with all the grace and ease of their professional elders At it's conclusion they were each presented with a cake so large that they could not carry it. Mephisto, the marvel ous King of Fire, next mystified his youthful audience by eating living and burning flames. The popcorn eating contest between the small boys was ex- tremely funny.
 The children made a oala day of it, and when it came time for them to leave they turned from the scenes of pleasure with reluctant steps, only to | take away with them pleasant memo ries of a pleasant day. So successful was the children's day that the man. agement is going to repeat it on next | Saturday.
 ! Despite the indictment weather, there was no diminishing in the attendance upon the fair last night. The after