Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1909-09-28
SPLENDID PAGEANT
N MANHATTAN
Floats Worth
900 Feature of
Parade
10000 MEN IN COSTUMES
Periods of History From
Time of Indians to Pres
ent Illustrated.

New York, Sept. 2S.-The center
of the Hudson-F'uton festivities today
was the route taken by the historic't
pageant OF commemorative floats.
The celebration committee has at
tempted to illuminate the periods of
history made famous by the achieve
ments of Hudson and Fulton. For
months three hundred artists have
been engaged in preparing floats,
while nearly 10000 men. women and
children most of them in costume
posed as historic personages on the
floats or marched beside them, The
cost of the spectacle was 100000.
Every available spot along the line
Of march was occupied while the win
doWs and seats on the stands brought
fabulous prices. Members of the
commission, officers of foreign war
ships. and diplomats had seats in
the reviewing stand in front of the
new public library. The story unfold
ed by the floats dealt with the his
tory of New York divided into four
periods, Indian, Dutch, Colonial and
Modern. The latter only extending
to the time of the Erie canal and
Croton waterWorks. The Irish socie-
ties led in the parade while the Itali-
an, Hungarian, Bohemian, Norwegian
and French societies also participated
as did the Iroquois Indians.
All Records Broken
New York, Sept. 2S.-All records
of street celebration crowds was
broken today Record prices were
paid for windows and even soap box
es At ten o'clock, all available room
along the curb was taken and the
police had difficulty in keeping the
way open for the line of march, Seats
on scaffolds hanging from unfinished
buildings sold for from So to 81 each,
Display Of American History.
New York, Sept. 2S.-American his
tory in visible form passed in review
today before the eyes of more than q
million spectators that lined the route
of the first Hudson-Fulton land pageant
from the upper end of Central park
to Washington square. Thousands of
dollars and months of effort were
spent to make this parade of "a floats
an accurate reproduction of the life in
New York state from legendary Indian
times that preceded the first settle
ment, to the first voyage of the Cler-
mont in 1907.
The line of parade had to be select
ed with great care because of the
great size of the floats, which are said
to be the largest and most elaborate
ever exhibited. They vary in dimen-
sions from 20 to 40 feet high, SO feet
long and fourteen feet wide. They
could not pass under the elevated rail
road, and even the electric decorations
of the Court of Honor and reviewing
stands on Fifth avenue. opposite the
new public library, had to be changed
at the last moment to accommodate
them.
The four main divisions summarized
the history of the country. First came
the Indian period, with floats depicting
the five nations with their totems, the
legend of Hiawatha. the first Sachem
of the Iroquois, clothed in kissing
snakes, and then a succession of allie
gories.
The Dutch period followed with
floats representing the discovery of
the Hudson river: the fate of Henry
Hudson, who was set adrift by his
mutinous crew in Hudson's bay in
1911, and never recovered; the recep-
ton to Peter Stlyvesant, most famous
of the Dutch governors general the
first ship built on Manhattan Island,
and other matters of like typical signi-
ficance. All impersonations in this di-
vision are by the United Holland So
cieties.
The third division. colonial was
treated with greater amplitude than
any of the others. ':wenty-one floats,
depicted as many scenes and legends,
from the reception of Schuyler's In
dians to the pursuit of Ichabad Crane
by the headless horseman of Sleepy
Hollow. representations and escorts
were by the English societies. repre-
senting British rule. at the front: The
Society of the Colonial Wars; The
Junior Order of American Mechanics;
The Patriotic Order of Sons of Ameri-
ca; The United Irish Societies; the
Sons of the Revolution: the American
Continentals; lineal descendants of
Paulding and Van Wart, the captors of
Andre; the order of the Cincinnati,
and a host of lesser organizations.
Last came the modern period, led by