The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-09-02
C. A. R. TOURISTS 10TH
TO QUIT MINNEAPOLIS
FIFTEEN THOUSAND ARE STILL
~5sr IN THE CITY. Il 49,.
Ticket Validating Bureau Officials
Have the Figures to Prove That 206,-
600 Persons Came to Minneapolis on
the Encampment Rates on tho Steam
Roads.

Reports made to George L. Rhodes,
local representative of the Western Pas
senger association and secretary to the
twin city passenger bureau, show that
$4,000 Grand Army tourists are still in
the vicinity of Minneapolis. Friday
was the last day in which railroad
tickets sold on encampment rates could
be extended upon deposit at one of the
valldation bureaus in the two cities.
The bureau will remain open until Sept.
80, by which time all Of the tickets
must be taken up and used.
Mr.. Rhodes reports that 100000 per-
sons were carried into the twin cities
by the steam roads in Grand Army
week. Nineteen thousand of these had
their tickets validated in Minneapolis
and 1900 deposited their tickets with
the bureau for extension. The Mime
apolis bureau handled $4,000 excursion
tickets and the st. Paul bureau 10000,
making an average of $4,000 persons
But, according to Mr.. Rhodes, not 25
per cent of the tickets were ,vaidated
as the rule did not apply to, local
travel.
Mr.. Rhodes employed twenty-seven
vadilation agents brought from differ
ent parts of the country in his Mime.
apolis bureau, and fifteen at St. Paul,
|
has now been reduced. The st. Paul
bureau is at 176 East Third street and
the Minneapolis bureau is on the ground
floor of the courthouse.
Finest Of all Bureaus.
The local bureau is generally accepted
as the finest valuation bureau that has
ever been established before. The room
holds 1000 people at time, and from
goo to 600 persons were handled every
five minutes Grand Army week The
plan was an eyeopener to the public
as we'll as to the railroad men, and re-
fleets well on the foresight Of Mr..
| Rhodes and the general committee
which made the arrangements.
The situation of the bureau was
great advertisement also for Mime
apolls, as it was necessary for every one
OF the $4,000 people who visited the
place to pass thru the grand marble
entrance that had just been completed
at great expense.
Two other bureaus are maintained in
the twin cities by Mr.. Rhodes to vail
date summer excursion tickets which
are limited for extension to Oct. 81.
The St. Paul office is at the union sta,
tion and the Minneapolis office at 24O
Railway building.
The bureaus report $500 summer
tourist tickets on deposit in Minneap-
oils, with !, 800 validated. St. Paul, the
transfer point, had record of 5000.
st. Paul's Part.
st: Paul has been trying ever since
itself into believing that the city en-
terta1ned almost as many people as
Minneapolis. In one OF the st. Paul
papers yesterday was a statement to
the effect that more than one-fourth
OF the 6: A. R.. visitors stopped in st.
Paul. This is because 1896 pieces Of
baggage were handled in the st.. Paul
union station in encampment week. !:
The comfort to be derived from this
statement will be small. The paper
says only 9,777 pieces were handled in
the Minneapolis station during the
week. When compared with the correct
figures, st. Paul's share in the enter:
talnment was small. More than 10000
pieces OF baggage were handled in. Min
neapolls stations during the week. The
st. Paul union station is used by all
roads running into the capital, and
handled 1896 pieces. The Minneapolis
union station, accommodating part OF
the Minneapolis roads, alone handled
1885 pieces. The Milwaukee station,
accommodating several roads, handled
approximately 10000, and the two 9TH:
SA utAN1c0 duOuC o,OVO pieces.
There is one feature of the St. Paul
entertainment that the st. Paul paper
did not mention. Tho st. Paul enter
tanned so small a share OF the encamp-
ment crowd, even that small share was
too much. The St. Paul business or
CARNATIONS tried, to divert visitors by
saying that Minneapolis was full and
that it would take hours of waiting in
the railroad yards to reach the sta
tions, which, it was said, were greatly
cOngested.
A few Of the unwise listened to the
siren only to find that it takes but
few people to fill St. Paul In the last
year two Of the large st. Paul hotels
have closed and no new ones have been
opened. The few thousand visitors that
stayed there found difficulty in finding
accommodations. To prevent them from
coming to Minneapolis, many visitors
were sent out Of the city, even to Still
water, only to find that the prison
town was full. Arrived at Saltwater
many were obliged to sleep on floors or
cramped cots. All in all, there was
little glory in the encampment for St.
Paul. The st. Paul attempt to enter
tain and at the same time give Mime
apohs black eye failed miserably.
and on top of it all, Minneapolis enter.
tanned the encampment royalty, making
a wonderful reputation for herself as
49,