Evening star., 1911-06-07
SITE QUESTION UNSETTLED
Four Places Suggested, But None
Yet Selected.
NATIVES ARE ENTHUSIASTIC
Every Resident Of the Golden Gate
City Feels That He Must Add
to Its Success or Failure.
BY WILLIAM b. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence Of The Star and the
Chicago Record Herald.

SAN FRANCISCO. May 26. 1911.
Preparations for the great exposition
which Congress has authorized the people
Of San Francisco to hold in 1915. to cele-
| brate the opening OF the Panama canal
are going on slowly, and with a good
| deal Of agitation and controversy. as Is
| usual in such cases. Everybody in the
city is thoroughly worked up, and the
newspapers devote considerable space to
| the discussion of various subjects and
features that have been proposed. Tne
| fifteen million dollars which Congress re-
quired to be raised before the President
can invite foreign nations to partici-
pate has been underwritten by the banks
| five million to be paid by the state. hve
million by the municipality and the bal
ance by popular subscription. This. how
ever, is the easiest part Of the prelimi-
naries. Twenty-Five millions could have
| been raised quite ars easily.
| The board Of directors of the exposi-
| ton has elected it's executive officers.
| Charles C. Moore. head Of firm OF engi-
| neers which has taken leading part IN
rebuilding San Francisco. has been elect
ed president, and will probably serve as
| director general also, as David r. Fran
| els did at the St. Louis exposition, thus
having one executive for the whole bust-
| ness.
magnetic personality, his enthusiasm and
public spirit, and no man has the public
confidence to a greater degree He nrst
| came into prominence in connection with
sary several years ago, when he had the
naval parade In charge, and succeeded
| in persuading all the great powers or
Europe to send over their fleets. He has
been chairman Of the finance committee
of the exposition and still holds that po-
| sition.
Prominent Men at Head.
The vice presidents are William H.
Crocker who is perhaps the most promi-
nent banker in San Francisco; r. B.
Hale, a dry goods merchant, who has q
dozen department stores in the different
cities of California; L. w. Heilman. N.
H. de Young. editor and proprietor OF
/ the Chronicle; Leon Sloss, and James
Rolf, jr.; A. w. Foster Is treasurer, and
Rudolph ]. Taussig is secretary, while
Mr.. Frank L. Brown. a prominent broker,
formerly from Racine. Wis. Is the head
of ~ publicity department.
Mr.. de Young is the only one OF the
executive staff so far selected who has
He was a vice president Of the ma
tional commission of the Chicago ex-
| position and director general OF the
San Francisco exposition that followed
| it.; but the rest Of the directors are
being slowly educated and will have
all the experience they want before
i 1915. The disposition is to 1ocalize.
| There seems to be an excess OF self
confidence. and an opposition to the
employment Of outside talent. None
on guard. and the fact that man
was born in California is considered q
sufficient qualification for any posi-
| tion. These people here have tre-
/ ~vtA nd avnfh Cf-
asm, which will sustain them through
| many severe jolts. They will learn
a great deal by experience. and their
| education will be as expensive as in
Chicago, st. Louis and elsewhere.
1t is unfortunate that we do not
have a corps of professional exposi-
tion men in this country as they
have in Germany. France and other
| European countries-men who make
a business OF conducting expositions
and have been trained for the man
| agement When Germany, for ex-
ample. decides to hold or to partioi
pate in an exposition details for the
different duties are made from the
| what to do and how to do 1t. and are
as well organized as the army or the
navy. In this country. when we de-
eide to hold an exposition or partici-
| pate in one. our custom Is to select
men who have never had any expert
ence, and therefore have no knowl-
edge OF what is expected OF them. and
we are compelled to pay for their
education and their mistakes. There
ought to be bureau Of expositions
connected with the State Department,
to take charge Of and organize such
things. There are now In progress
two foreign expositions at which the
United States is represented by green
men who have had to learn the busi-
ness since their appointments, and
everybody is not competent to man
age an exposition any more than to
| run a hotel.
Four Sites Proposed.
Four sites have been proposed for