Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1907-08-26
REHA GETS BIG RECEPTION
Omaha Turner Who Wins Honors
Abroad Welcomed Home.
MAYOR HELPS IN RECEIVING
Tel jed SOkol Gives Demonstration
TO Man Who Brings Interna-
tionnI Championship to
Gate city.

The return of Frank Reha from Prague,
where he represented the omaha Tel. Jed.
Sokol in the international exhibition and
contests was marked with festive features
not common in omaha. The society of
which he is a member turned out in force.
with a brass band and colors flying, to
meet him The mayor OF the city greeted
him as he left the train and his admirers
presented him with a large bouquet as
mark OF their pleasure at his safe arrival.
The welcoming parry marched from the
Bohemian Turner hall to the Burlington
depot, where their champion arrived at 4
o'clock From the depot he was escorted
to the hail. stopping enroute to greet his
mother, who waited for him at home. At
the hall V Schneider president of the So
ccty, made a short address in Bohemian
and was followed by Mayor Dahman, who
told how proud Omaha was to have an
international champion in the city and how
pleased, he, with all Of Mr. Rehas friends,
were to have him home again.
The guest of honor responded in a few
words I'm Bohemian and thereafter an in.
formal reception followed the bouquets
being scattered among the young women
as mementos Of the occasion. The turner
drill team gave a brief exhibition to show
the champion that they had been at work
during MS absence,
First Medal and Diploma.
Mr.. Reha brings back with him a first
medal and diploma for the excellence of
his turning. His team also won a second
prize in the team contests lacking eight
points of carrying away a first prize.
Mr.. Reha was a member of the Bohemian
American team. There was but one other
team from America, that sent by the
] C1s,- ,Nr., s-Ff N-EA
10 and arrived in France June II. From
Havre he went to Paris, where the team
gave an exhibition.
Mr. Reha doesn't have a high opinion OF
French arrangements for athletic exhibits.
He says the exhibits were held in a barn,
the floor covered with sawdust 80 deep
that when the men were at work the dust
nearly smothered them and that after one
exhibit he refused to appear again in that
hall. The exhibitions were then removed to
government gymnasium, which was some
what better.
Nine Thousand Mt Once.
At Prague there were 1900 turner's, rep
resentng the United States, Bohemia, Rus
sa, France, Belgium and Arabia. At one
time every man of the 1000 was on the
floor at one time in a calisthenic exercise
Five hundred turner's not In the contests
attended the meeting and 200 musicians sup
piled the music After the international
contests the American team visited several
places in Bohemia, where they gave exhi-
bitions and received high praise for their
work.
! Mr.. Reha says the European turner's do
not pay as much attention to athletic de-
vices as those OF America, depending more
upon calisthencs and similar drills. Tho
American team was outclassed in the mat
ter of age, the European contestants all
being older. This is due TO the fact that
all of the young men serve in the army
and cannot take up turning seriously until
after they are "a years old.
The Fourth OF July celebration of the
party was held in Prague The American
consul and his family invited the MEM
bers OF the team and all visitors to take
part with him in the observance Of the day
picnic was held and frecrackers and
blank cartridges were exploded in honor
of American independence.