Hopkinsville Kentuckian., 1900-10-26
The Democratic Band Wagon
Traverses North Christian.
Two Thousand and Five Hundred
People Hear rlusic and Oratory
Up To Wednesday Night.


ocratic band wagon has split north
east Christian county wide open,
travelling fifty miles in less than
90 hours and leaving behind it
trail of enthusiasm that will mean
many votes tor the ticket in Novem-
Der.
The crowds everywhere have
been large and enthusiastic and af-
ter the first half day the weather
has been perfect
Monday morning the prospect
was dreary enough. A steady rain
was falling and there was a most
discouraging outlook for whirl-
wind tour over the hills and hol-
lows of north Christian.
The band boys at Lafayette were
true blue and telephoned at seven
that they were coming rain'or shine.
The Committeeman on the route,
Lee King at Dogwood, Dave Smith
at Fruit Hill and Foster McCown
at Bluff Spring, also telephoned
that it would take Galveston flood
to damper the order Of the Demo-
Gratis of their respective districts
and that the band wagon must
come rain or no rain.
The band did not arrive until
eleven o'clock and it was nearly
one before everything could be
made ready for the State. Col. w.
X. Howell and Ben c. Boyd were
sent ahead, before noon, to cancel
the appointment at Dogwood and
hold the crowd at Fruit Hill.
The band in the two light wagon
cites, and followed by the commits
sary department in a road wagon,
engineered by Geo. Green, Jr. made
the trip over a very muddy road to
Dogwood, eight miles, in two hours.
Here stop of ten minutes was
made. The crowd had been dis
missed, but about so people still re-
malned. These were given. a cou-
pie of tunes and after a brief ex-
planation by Mr., Meacham of the
change in the program, a forced
trip was made four miles further TO
Fruit Hill. Here Col. Howell was
just concluding an hours speech to
a crowd OF 80 people. Mr.. Meach-
am followed with a ten minutes
speech and after music and good
rest, the journey to Bluff Springs,
5 miles further, was resumed. This
point was reached at O'Clock and
the party of 20 men had just
enough time to pitch camp, eat sup
per andIfeed the horses before dark.
The people had already begun to
arrive and by 6:30 o'clock 300 per-
sons we're on hand and after tbs
band had played for half an hSssr
the speaking began. Judge Th&s.
p. Cook and Ashby EdmundS saDe
down for the night meeting and W.
A. Wilgus and J. G. Duffy arrived
from Hopkinsville, and became per-
manent members of the party.
Judge Cook led off with an hours
speech, Col. Howell followed with a
80 minutes "hot number" and
then came Meacham and Duffy
with short speeches. The meeting
broke up at 9:3O and the boys scat
tered out for the night, closing the
first half day with two regular
speakings to an aggregate of near
ly 500 hearers. The good people of
Bluff Springs opened their homes to
the campaigners and on Tuesday
morning they all come together at
the Red Bridge for the second day.
The weather was all that could be
desired and the roads were rapidly
drying out. Full of hope for the
day, the band wagons completed
the long drive of 8 miles to Haley s
store over a very rough road by III
o'clock, arriving only an hour late.
Howell, Boyd, Wilgus and Duffy
had been sent on ahead and held
the crowd. At the foot of Esq. Geo.
N. Johnson S hill, the worst road
ON Pond River, a stop was made
to rest the horses and standing on
a little bridge the boys played a
stirring tune that caused a drove
of cattle to come believing down