The evening times., 1901-05-18
THE PRESIDENTS JOURNEY.

DEL MONTE. Cal. May 12.-SiX days
the President has now spent amid the or
ange groves. the palm trees and semi
tropical environments Of southern Cali
fornia, and not quite Oue-haif Of his visit
in the Golden State is over. He would
unquestiORably appreciate the OppOTtuni-
ty Of 9 more prolonged stay, and there is
no doubt but that the people would will
ingly entertain him. As the enthusiastic
Mayor Of Santa Barbara said in intrOduc-
ing Mr.. Mckinley, Mr.. President, We
wish that we had you with US always and
that Santa Barbara might be, as she
should be, the Capital of the United
StateS,T so the welcome has been
throughout the State. Certainly no prince
of royal blood could have received in
passing through his province a more gIO-
rious greeting than has been accorded to
the President of the United States in his
trip through this section of the country
Throughout the South there was all that
warmth and cordiaIity displayed for
which that region is justly famed. but to
that southern California has added a
splendor and luxury which it of all parts
of the nation is capable of giving. Towns
have We'd with each other in their efforts
to produce the most spectacular display,
0-4ieA ~ HJtAtA u NitLt-Llt ~ AtCASiC NLAlt4i
has succeeded best in its efforts
one method which southern California
has taken to express her welcome has
been in the language pf flowers. From
the time of the Presidents entry into the
State his path has been literally strewn
with fragrant blossoms. At S-st is SEEM
ed almost sacrilege to see the streets
through which the President rode carpet
ed so thick with roses, carnations, and
Gala lilies as to hide the pavement and
to see them ruthIeSsly ground beneath the
wheels Of the vehicles and trampIed un-
der the hOOfs Of the horses-these flowers
which in the East would htve been worth
q fortune. Yet to look again, -, abundant
y Go they grow that it was impossible to
see where any had been pIuckad. Then
the fruits in all varieties and kinds heap
ed up in triumphal arches through which
the President drove, and festocned into
countless designs and figures, have form
ed conspicuous feature Of thedecoratI tIons
Of every town and have been strikfrgIy
picturesque beside the bunting and calico
prints in the ordinary fete day displays.
The Olympia has been constantly filed
with floral offerings of the people. and the
President and Mrs. Mckinley have been
surfeited with gifts Of the choicest fruits,
which are here so abundantIy produced
The climax of floral beauty was reached
in Los Angeles, where the grand Fiesta
de los Flores was held in honor of the
distinguished visitors. Here the President
rode in a carriage which was completely
hidden beneath thousands of white car
nations, nlargueTites, and strings Of sIni-
lax and drawn by four white horses
whose harness was enwrapped IN yellow
satin From his stand in front Of the city
hall he reviewed the floral procession
One Of the most unique features OF. this
unique pageant was the mammoth Chi
nese dragon borne by two-score of CeIes-
tla!s whose enthusiasm was no less than
that Of the native sons of California. This
was followed by float which bore the
inscription. God Bless Our President,
ana carried half hundred little Chinese
9 9GLiIorerl- and was particularly impressive
Lhese same Cinnamon had welcomed The
executive BY firing tens Of thousands of
Chlaess HTecraCkcrs which made q deaf
ening din as the Presidential train rolled
into the Arcade depot.