Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1906-08-23
A Chautauqua Experience
An Audubon County Citizen Attended
TueSday--It Was Fine. Went
Again On ThursdaY---It
Was @

EDITOR JoURNAL:-Being one of the
unfortunates that attended Chautauqua
Thursday afternoon, and got q good
wetting and dirty walk to the con-
veyance l cannot help but say Il word
that Chautauqua had better heed.
Through your solicitation we went to
hear Booker T. Washington Tuesday
and found everything running smooth
ly, and returned home delighted with
the whole entertainment and resolved
that next year we would take our FAM
lily and get as many of our people as
was possible and go to the grounds and
remain all week. Thursday was Billy
Sundays day, and being used so clev-
erly by the management on my first
trip, to the extent Of providing convey
fances' to and from the grounds at ten
cents or five cents just as the stranger
would desire for the one way, and back
ing the train down near the grounds to
save trip to the depot after Chautau-
qua was over, we thought was very
considerate of the management Thurs
day, though, with $500 people present,
was the testing of the management,
and we are sorry to say they fell flat
down, which unless a strenuous effort
is put forth will see the Chautauqua
dwindle next year. Everything went
well Thursday until that heavy rain
came up and continue which not only
drenched a goodly number who hap
pened to be sitting under the seams of
the tent which were not covered, sim
ply being drawn together Then to add
to our discomfort ditch had not been
dug OH the upper side, and half of the
water that fell on that tent and all the
side hill came rushing through. An
Irishman with spade or an American
with pillow would have fixed it in an
hour which would have prevented
hundreds of wet feet, and hundreds of
skirts from getting wet After the
shower was over the march for town
commenced, and of all the pushing and
ljamming and jostling one ever witness
ed, it was there, and all because the
greedy management who We're out of
debt the night before, failed to have
conveyances there to handle the peo-
pie. We learn that the privilege of
conveyance was let to one man, or to
one barn, who established ten cent
rate. The other liverymen taking ex-
ceptions pooled at five cents, and thus
a merry FINE WEATHER war began;
but as soon as the rain commenced to
pour and the roads became muddy, the
five cent men pulled off so rs to punish
the ten cent men, as they were obliged
under contract to run till all were cared
for There is where the shoe pinched
the visitors, hundreds of whom will
never return. The management, We
think, being OUT OF DEBT, and having
procured our money, should have come
to our rescue and hired every team in
Atlantic if needed, and should have
taken the people whom they loved fol
the dollar, to town, to the depot, any
where was welcome to a leaky tent, but
instead the visitors tlocked by the score
up town afoot, and imagine, Mr.. Direc
tor, their condition when they go
there, especially the ladies. With lis
: we Jared somew hat better than the av.
eiage. There Were only two ladies il
our crowd and unfortunately dressed il
white and when they went there wer,
as pretty as pins, but after that, Billy.
talk, and the leaky canvas top and we
feet, they were cast down, at least thu
starch was out of the white cloths, thel
to the bus over new clay bridge over
laid with new mown hay that mad,
fine mortar that stuck we'll, then to tn,
bus in well trampled muck, where on,
had to wallow for four rods to get t.
the bus, and if you got there first yol
was lucky. Well, we could write ,
column on Atlantic's Chautauqua mis-
management, but quit by saying tina
when our ladies with about ten other
that were in the bus walked into tn
hotel they attracted the atten
ton of everybody and many were tn
complaints entered. We trust tina
something may be done to avert Il sim
liar coincidence. THE TRUTH.