The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1898-09-02
Life at Poland Springs, Maine.

|
i'll the Grove-The Game of Golf
Drive to the Shaker" Village anc
Elmwood Stock Farm.
| Poland Springs Maine, is a surprise to the CUES
on arrival no matter what they may have read o
heard about it. Situated as it is several miles from
the railroad, it is reached by II tallyho coach o
four-in-hand and once there you are isolated from
the business world, and the domain consisistins
of 1000 is to be during your stay little worlt
| of itself. You find among its six hundred inhab
| itants peoples from every State in the Union
| And one fact soon dawns upon You that grea
| majority of the guests are REGULARS" having
| been coming here from year to year, some ex
tending through decades. These people are
called "Poanders," as they meet here summer
after summer and know each other intimately.
While Boston and New York furnish much the
largest portion of the patronage entire families
are here from the extreme West, and South as
we'll Shut in as they are for the summer season
daily entertainment becomes daily product OF
the ingenious minds and diversified tastes SO
gathered together in one compact community.
In this respect there seems to be no lack OF
resources, and morning, afternoon and evening
of each day finds something announced on the
bulletin board tor your pleasure. Besides what
the propretors furnish the guests club together
and send off for athletes, ball teams, lecturers,
&c, so that life at Poland Springs never grows
weary
The views from the high position of this resort
are fine. As you approach it, by good roads,
through woods whose branches meet in arohway
overhead, you emerge from among the pines into
large open area where the hOstelries are perched
upon II plateau, and you are surprised at the
grandeur and immensely of the work of years
that man has accomplished for the place. Turn
ing to what nature has done for the place and IL
landscape is unrolled before you like map. The
eye and the mind reaches out before you from
field to lake and lake to woods and on up into
the foot hills ofthe White Mountains of New
Hampshire, and further beyond you see "Old
Kearsarge'' and Mount Washington, one rising
above the other as seeming props that hold up
the sky beyond. People of all ages and those of
modest income as well as the millionaire live here
enjoying this continual feast, this wealth of col
oring and bank of beauty.
When the sun, the headlight of times engine,
reaches the horizon before even-tide it grows
mellow and golden shedding lustre on placid
lake and woody hill top that surpasses description.
THE WATER.
Ofcourse Poland spring water is the basis of
this resort. Its history runs back oyera century,
when the property was in the hands OF the an
cestry of the present owners, who Edward
Hiram and Alfred Kicker, sons of Hiram Kicker
who died in 1898, and who lived to see at last his
favorite spring rise to the eminence sot success
He was laughed at, turned down and rebuked on
every hand when struggling through poverty and
reverses, but was never beaten. Dying at the age
Of nearly one hundred years, he is said to have
had bottle of Poland water at his bedside upon
which he looked with qualification and remarked
that it had done more for him than all the doc
tors in the world could do
The spring pours forth eight gallons per minute
The guests drink it, battle in it, and use it for
every need in which it applies. The commercial
branch of the business is simply immense ship
ping it as they do to all parts of the world.
THE HOTELS
Two great hotels have grown up at this resort
one of which accommodates $50 guests the result
of annual additions from what was once a small
roadside inn, which was farm house and tavern
combined. Strange to say this old house, over
one hundred years old, has still been preserved
aud now forms unique corner of large hotel
built up around and about it by artistic
architecture.
The management OF both hotels are the same as
everything else on the premises. and while the
character of the patronage justities high rates,
beyond that fact the management is broad and
liberal.
THE MUSIC.
This is a feature pre-eminent on the part of the
hotel management. The Boston symphony is a
musical organization known every where and
stands at the top. The orchestra here is taken
from that organization, and discourses the high
est and best standard of music and finest of selec-
tons at the concert morning and evening in the
new and elaborate music hall ofthe hotel.
THE MAINE STATE BUILDING.
Every one who attended the Worlds Fair in
Chicago, 1893, remembers the beautiful State
buildings that were erected upon the grounds.
The Rickers purchased the Maine State building,
and undertook the task of removing that beau
tiiul structure from Chicago, and erecting it in
tact upon the grounds at Poland Springs. ltadds
immensely in the line of architectural display.
1t is used art gallery and library for the free
use of the guests besides furnishing rooms for the
guests.
TIE SQUIRRELS.
Hard by the Poland Springs House is--a beauti-
full grove of ,pine trees which nod and whisper
good morning to the cool breeze that comes
from the east, that blows out the lamps of night
aud good evening to the setting sun when it is
rolled by the hand of the Cmnipotent into the
shining valley beyond the purple hills To this
cool spot hundreds of guests retreat after the
dinner hour, and carry with them nuts for the
numerous grey squirrels that play upon the green
sward and run into their laps for nuts, which if
cracked they eat, but if not they carry away to Il
hiding place The proprietors say the squirrels
eat more nuts from the table than the guests.
THE GAME OF GOLF.
This is Il prevailing feature of Poland Springs.
The hotel furnishes free to the guest something
unusual set of links of nine holes extending over
a mile and a halt. They are fine and everyone
plays, from the urohin of six to the man and
woman of seventy.six. They play all day long
two hundred enthusiastic" golfers" upon the great
lawn starting at the Hotel piazza, with their gay
uniforms, afford an attractive spectacle.
DRIVE.
Numerous drives abound, we note but one.
Leave the hotel with II four-in-hand and drive to
the lake side; take ride upon its placid surface
in the steam launch This is but one of score
OF lakes through this section.l Continuing the
ride up shaker" Hill lined on either side by
golden rod and pine trees, you pass through the
deserted Shaker village on to the spot where they
have now, owing to decreasing numbers. COM
bined both settlements upon the banks of Sab