The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1901-10-09
An Unprecedented Demand for
Tickets for the Full Course of
Entertainments to Be Given
Under Y. M. C. A. Auspices
MANY PERSONS UNABLE
TO SECURE TICKETS
A Long Line of Members Awaited
the Opening of the Sale =
Leader Of the Line Was on
Deck at $50 o'clock in the
Morning - Usual Kicking Done

Every seat for the Association course
of entertainments was sold yesterday
between o'clock in the morning and
6:15 in the afternoon. There is not a
course seat left. There will be, how
ever, about 100 single night tickets
which will be sold later, as there is
room in Association Hall for about that
many additional chairs.
The Y. NJ. C. A had one of the bus
lest days in its history, and its story
is worth telling.
At $3.50 o'clock yesterday morning,
long before the rosy tipped fingers of
dawn were visible even from the top
of the lofty State Mutual building,
with the thermometer somewhere near
80 degrees Fahrenheit, Willard Os-
born. son of Louis B. Osborn, one of
the directors of the Y. NJ. c. A, took
up his station in front of the Elm
Street entrance as No. l in the line.
There is no dispute that he was the
first to come. For an hour he waited
alone. Then No. 2 came. At $50 there
were 40 persons in the line.
At s o'clock, when George B. Parks,
the janitor of the building, arrived, the
line extended down Elm Street to Main
and around the corner. 1t did not
reach quite to The Spy office.
AT $50 the doors were opened and 25O
persons-rushed? No. for in the rush
they would have lost their positions in
the line They filed in one by one and
received line checks, which assured
them that they would get their seats If
they were present when their turn at
the chart came. Then the secretarial
force with several assistants engaged
for the day, got to work.
Assistant Secretary w. B. Norris
ran the check book, General Secretary
c. c. Miles handled the chart, Frank
H. Sears was cashier, Elmer Sanders
folded envelopes and stamped tickets,
and E. R. Whitman also did some
stamping. Boys Secretary o. E.
Bourne looked after the renewal of
membership tickets and the giving out
of new tickets while Assistant Secreta-
ry F. o. Conant was information bu-
reau and telephone girl.
The ticket manipulators had their
lay out in the mems parlor. During
the first hour or two things went
rather slowly, about % persons being
waited upon to the hour. After that
they were put through faster. 1t was
a steady grind all day. The line was
never broken until the last seat was
sold. The secretaries ate sandwiches,
etc, for dinner-they called it luncheon.
Those who had been through the
mill before said that everything went
more smoothly yesterday than ever be-
fore. OF course there was plenty of
kicking but that could not be helped.
There are only ST. seats in Association
Hall and that settled it. At 6.15 o'clock
the last seat had gone and the books
were closed. About $50 line checks had
haoT1 p1tf M hainer allowed
to get more than two seats except for
members of his own family.
Scenes humorous and pathetic were
in evidence all through the day. One
man who came in the afternoon and
could not get a seat was affected even
to tears. He said that he was a life
member and ought to have a seat. One
prominent business man drew No. 1872
in the line. He had waited some time
and thought he would go out to get
his dinner. No. 12O was at the chart
then. He asked Janitor Parks whether
he would have time to go out for dim
ner before his turn came. Mr.. Parks
didn't think he would. But he needed
not the good advice. When he came
back he had been passed. He was in
body else. His second number was way
up in the three hundreds and they new
er got to him again.
Alderman Louis ]. Kendall was
among those who lost. He had to go
out with his brother aldermen on
STRENGTHENING trip, and when he
came back everything was gone.
During the afternoon somebody had
to be at the telephone nearly every
moment answering the questions of
the holders of places in the line as to
how far the numbers had gone.
1t was big days work, the biggest
of the kind the association has ever
had. but it relieves the mind of all
doubt as to the success of this years
course. Last year there was a rush
in the morning, but the line broke in
the afternoon and the tickets were not
all taken the first day.
| Nearly all those who buy tickets are
members of the association or of the
woman's auxiliary and get the reduced
rates. These are the persons that the
| course is arranged for.
The length to which so many people
went yesterday to get seaADshows that
the inhabitants of this borough appre-
ciate a good thing-when it is prac-
tically free
There was a meeting of the board
! of directors last night but there was
no further news, according to Secre-
"a n n