The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-10-22
. pennsylvania DAY At Omaha. .
Features of the Visit of the Keystone Commission to
the Tranc-Mississippi Exposition.
e.e,ee$ $Me.g.e.N gee,Nq,NpS

speeches on similar occasions and i'm !
parted to 1t a dignity, an earnestness
and an effectiveness which cannot be
described. 1t is not an eXaggeration
to say that the people Of Omaha and
of the west were literally astounded at
the unexpected sweep, force and charm
of this memorable Grafton. 1t was
their first introduction to Charles EN-
ory Smith but it will not he their last,
for he captured them Internationally.
ORATORY THAT WON
The delivery of this oration, coming
! after brief but kindly welcome from
ex-senator Henderson, and immediate
! ly following an admirable response
| from the chairman of the commission,
John w. Woodside, of Philadelphia,
| concluded the formalities of the day.
! Prior to 1t the commission had been
| entertained at luncheon by Major T. S.
| ClarkSon, representing the exposition
| management, and following it the la
! dies of the commission were received
| by a committee of prominent women
OF Omaha.
The only other programme event of
| the commissions visit to Omaha was
a basket picnic given in its honor, on
| the third day of it's stay, in Hanscom
park, a charming pleasure ground be-
| longing to Omaha's excellent park sys-
TEN. This picnic was in charge of the
| Pennsylvania club of omaha, an or
| ganiZation with a membership of 5000
persons, all of whom are natives of the
Keystone state. The president of it is
ex-senator Charles f. Manderson, who
was born in Philadelphia, but who
moved west when young, represented
| Nebraska in the United States senate
for two terms, and retired to become
| legal adviser of one of the big railway
systems centering in Omaha, at SAL
ary, it is said, of $4,000 a year. Cen
eral Manderson comes near being the
whole thing in Omaha, and a more
charming gentleman does not exist in
all that western country. The vice.
president, Major Clarkson. a native of
Gettysburg, is general manager Of the
exposition company and n type Of
| Western>energy. r. G. Patterson, born
in Huntington county, is the second
vice president. ]. II. Patrick. a native
of Washington county, is third vice.
president, II. =. Isey, originally of
| Chester county, is treasurer and the
secretary Is W. G.. Shriver, a native
| of Waynesburg. The Omaha club is
only one Of fifteen organizations of
Keystone state prodigals which flourish
in the state of Nebraska and repre-
sent altogether $1,000 of its population,
so that picnic and reunion of Penn
sylvanians out that way is no small
matter
THE STAR EVENT.
This particular picnic was the star
event of the whole affair and we'll
worth going 5000 miles to attend. 1t
was an old-fashioned, pumpkin-pie
and cold-chicken affair, in which the
mothers and daughters with Pennsyl-
Vania memories went to splendid
lengths to show that they had not
forgotten since their westward migra-
ton the culinary excellence of the Key
stone state. 1t thawed out the last
bit of reserve homesickness and even
Postmaster General Smith shOveled In
the vands without napkin or knife.
smiling all the while in appreciation of
the familiar havors. The assemblage
around one board of 800 or more per-
sons of all ages and stations i'm life.
strangers to each other yet drawn to-
gether by the kinship of birth and in
terest'in a distant state-Pennsylvania
Germans, Quakers, Scotch-Irish and
plain United States, representing more
than half of our siXty-seven counties,
though many of them had not seen a
Pennsylvania face since they left the
old commonwealth years ago to seek
new fortunes in the direction Of the
setting sun-was a spectacle to see; but
it was as nothing to the reunion that
followed, when after the eatables were
cleared away the multitude turned it.
self into a big experience meeting,
W hprp haart Cnp1ya ha pf
fellowship within it.
Here again, Charles Emory Smith
stOrmed new citadels with his elo-
quence and in a speech of exceptional
felicity and warmth called up memories
of the mother state which caused more
than one eye to moisten in sympathy.
The season of speechmaking lasted un-
I'll the available fund of reminiscence
and eulogy was exhausted and then
the whole company adjourned to a
neighboring hillside and was photo
graphed IN mass.
: OMAHA.
{ A word about Omaha. 1t reminds
: one of Scrsnton, only it is more so.
r Founded in 1854. and shortly before the
= stamping ground Of savages, it today
I is the commercial and distributing CEN
\ population with as many more coming:
= is laid out on common sense lines, with
4 great, wide streets and plenty Of elbow
[ room; has G. miles of ell-lghted, well
S paved streets, 600 miles of graded
= streets and 120 miles of sewers: has a
0 fine water supply, 80 public and paroch-
e ial schools and eleven colleges, l2C
f churches with a Sunday school attend.
S anCc of 10000, a public library with
o - 600 volumes, a splendid art gallery
: and convention hall seating 12OOC
n persons; is the third largest live stock
= market in the United states, pack.
Il ing center with an annual product
o valued at $4,000, 900 and the site of the
e largest smelling and refining plant in
: America, annual product 1000 900 tC
e $"O,poo,0 900; has $50 acres of public parks
J. and o. miles of wel-conducted electric
: car lines and is reached by fourteen
d railways running so passenger trains 2
# d9y, Omaha has two good newspapers