The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1905-02-03
ScotIand's Sons and Daughters
Pay Homage to the Poet.
MapIeton the Scene of Joyous
Festivities Last Evening.
Magnificent Address BY Rev. I.
G Sykes of st. Paul.
From Thursdays Daily.

DOMAIN lurllIS cluD, VOL the piZe vi
the four am-O'Shanters at the Burns
birthday bonspiel at Mapleton. The
handsome, Scotch made head gear was
awarded on Tuesday to the victorious
rink composed of DIR. Nerbovig, skip; o
f. Morrow, Louis Dodds and Alba Lewis
This was the first prize of the first
event. The second prize of the first
event, thirty two pounds of Scotch oat-
meal, fell to William McDonald's rink
representing the Blue Earth Valley
Curling club of Winnebago City. The
first and second prizes of the second
event, silver badge donated by the bus
mess men of Napoleon, and four beauti
full silver thistle pins with amethyst
stones, will both 90 to Kinks of the
Maple River Curling club of Mapleton
but whether the rink of B. F. Taylor
will obtain the first prize and that OF
James Taylor the second prize, or vice
versa, was left to be determined later
Then there was the third, or consolation
ing. Four large brooms or besoms, the
first prize, were captured by the rink
representing the Thistle Curling club
of Vernon Center, George Gray, skip;
and four small ones, constituting the
second prize, were carried off by Frank
Wasgatt's rink of the Blue Earth Valley
Curling club of Winnebago. Eleven Kinks
in all participated in the contest on the
ice, four being from Winnebago; two
from Vernon Center, one from Mankato
and four of Mapleton.
Poets Birthday Fittingly Observed.
Never did the village witness more
splendid celebration of the birthday of
"Bobbie" Burns, Jan. 25, than that
which terminated last night or rather
early this morning The festivities were
managed by What is henceforth to be
known as the Maple River Burns club
this being new name for the Maple
River Curling club. This was decided up
on at the annual business meeting of
the club held yesterday afternoon. All
the officers were reelected as follows
President, T. B. Taylor; vice president
William Howieson; secretary, A. j. Ell
lis; treasurer, William Morrow. This
club will henceforth take charge of the
annual Burns gathering in the village
and will leave the care of the curling
to the newly organized Heather club
an Incorporated body which came into
being about month ago and has erect
ed fine covered rink, which, all told
including the purchase price of the land
cost $1,000. L. B. Taylor is president of
this organization; b. F. McGregor, secre-
tary; and H. c. Hotaling, treasurer.
The celebration proper was carried on
in the village opera house, where the
merry-makers began to gather as early
as five o'clock yesterday afternoon. An
elaborate banquet was served in a spa,
cious annex. Here hundreds were serv.
ed together. A blessing was asked by
Rev. G. E. Brown of Nicollet county
living out on Rural Route No. g. Major
George Sinclair, captain of the central
police station at Minneapolis, dressed in
the typical Highland costume, with
plaid, Tam 'Shanter, and all the accou-
trements, performed on the bagpipes
showing himself Scotchman of the tru-
est blood James Ellis, ST., of Sterling
delivered Burns famous address to the
Haggis," Characteristic Scotch dish
composed of oatmeal, suet and onions
that was served along with the other
courses.
Scotch Dialect Prominent.
AS the attendance increased, one might
almost judge from the dialect that was
spoken on all sides, that Scottish rur.
al community had been actually picked
out from Caledonia itself and transfer.
red to American soil.
At eight o'clock the stage curtain
arose before crowded house. Possibly
three hundred attended from outside the
village, and the Mapleton people them.
selves did ample justice to the occasion
A. j. Ellis acted as master of cere.
monies and introduced Editor H. C
Hotaling, who acted in place of the may
or in welcoming all the celebrators and
visitors to town. He remarked that 8
newspaper man is supposed to stanc
ready for any emergency, whether it is
to pose as witness in murder case
nail shingles on curling rink, or wei
come q Burns gathering. He took oc
casion to congratulate the villagers or
the erection of the curling rink, a great
undertaking, but one that had been ac
complished by united effort. AT this