The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1911-06-10
The Sane Fourth
In Chicago

| Little Gill S illness Leads
to Sane Celebration
New Ways of Giving the
Day Meaning-Debruta
ling Independence Day
| (By c. S. Raymond of the Chicago
Tribune)
| Exclusive Service The Survey Press
Bureau.)
(For years the Chicago Tribune
| has compiled the statistics of the IA
talities following the celebration of
Independence Day. This article by
| one of the best staff writer's of that
paper, has therefore, a special inter-
est because very largely owing to the
| leader in the Sane celebration of the
| Fourth and shows by her example
that the methods used in small cit
les can be applied successfully in the
! largest.)
Years ago a little girl invalid in
Chicago had her feeble grasp on life
| shaken by the senseless blasts of a
noise mad Fourth of July. Her suf-
fering prompted the thought that in
hundreds if not thousands of homes
other sufferers were enduring the
pain caused by mad mans holiday.
The demand for sanity in the eel
ebration of Independence day had
| this beginning in Chicago and by 1909
its result was a day free from the
h no Y-it Of
A steady drizzle of rain aided the
restrictive ordinances which had been
passed by the Chicago city council.
The quiet was almost that of the
Sabbath. The Fourth of July had
beeen made a noiseless day but it al
so had been made an empty one.
Heretofore noise had taken the
place of proper celebration but it
in it's crudeness had served to mark
the day. 1t was recognition, how
ever thoughtless were the rowdies
whose dynamite canes and high ex-
plosives gave it it's distinctive char
acter.
With the noise eliminated there
was a void. The day went without
celebration and there We're many men
who felt that American patriotism
was challenged by the awkward si-
grew purpose to give the day, now
debrutalized, proper meaning.
1t was proposed to half dozen
of the large and influential organi-
cations of the city that they under
take to fill the void. 1t was propos-
ed that the day be made to mean
something to the cosmopolitan ele-
ments of such a city as Chicago. 1t
was suggested that the foreign born
citizens would be willing to contrib
ute to an expression of sentiment
which would be. as truly patriotic as
the noise had been truly barbaric.
These proposals took shape when
representative of the different asso-
Citations met with members of the
Sane Fourth association and under
took to give the celebration of 1910
worthy character. The aid of var
ious nationalities in the city was en-
listed and a pageant was planned.
1t was necessary to limit the ex-
penses to moderate sum- the lar
ger part Of the fund available being
required for the u. S. Army tourna-
ment which had been secured as a
part of the Chicago celebration. A
promise of this tournament had been
made to the Chicago Commercial As
ISOLATION and when the plans for a
genuine celebration of the Fourth
were put on foot it was arranged to
secure the army exhibition as a part
of it.
With a modest expenditure the
committee in charge of the pageant
was successful in presenting re-
markable Fourth of July demonstra-
ton, enlisting, as it did, the adopted
sons of the country.
The citizens interested in making
the celebration worthy of the day
were no longer concerned with elm
mating Objectionable features. They
had been suppressed effectively. 1t
was Necessary merely to find a sub
stitute. The plans of 1910 served
to show that the pageant idea could
be retained in succeeding years, bur
that this should be reinforced by
which would bring neighborhoods
and communities together in parks
for observance of the day.
1t is planned for this year to add
such features to the program. Last
year the central attraction, after the
tournament in the down town dis
trict This year it is hoped that the
parade will be of much larger sig
nificance. Many nationalities have
been interested and each has assum-
ed responsibility for it's own repre-
sentation by floats and marching
bodies of uniformed men. It was
the original idea that each nation
should illustrate so far as it could it's
contribution to the United States, and
this, it was thought, would produce a
healthy rivalry, to the benefit of the
This hope was realized in part last
year and promises more for this year.
There being no central attraction
aside from the parade of nations, the
sectional celebrations are expected to
be of value in teaching the true
meaning of the day.
Originally it was planned to obtain
a man whose worth and importance
would give added value to his words
for a notable Fourth of July speech.
to be made, if possible, in great
outdoor assembly place where by the
use of sounding-Soarcs he might
make himself heard to thousands. 1t
was the intention to have as a part
of the celebration a speech which
would contain the best thought of a
notable man on some subject of
great interest to the American peo-
pie.
If succeeding celebrations prove
the lasting value of the Chicago
method this original plan may find a
part in future programs. Chicago is
endeavoring, thanks to the efforts of
men interested in the Sane Fourth
associat ton, to create customs which
will lgive Independence day a true