The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-05-28
Patriotic Pageants and Civic Parades Mark Second
 Centenary THREE GOVERNORS
 MAKE ADDRESSES Wonderful History of Alabama's Port Which Has Been Ruled
 Under the Flags of
 Five Nations
By B. H. THOMAS

By B. H. THOMAS
 Mobile, May 27-(Special.) l.)-Gorgeous pageants, military and civic parades
 receptions and banquets at which the addresses, delivered by some of the most prominent men in the country, teemed with patriotism and optimism; Historic Night at the Mobile theatre,
 when the deeds of the early pioneers
 of the south were extolled and eulo- l gized, and joint flag raising, at which the colors of the five nations whose flags have foated over the historic city of Mobile, were flung to the breeze by representatives of the powers who had been delegated for official partici- patton. were some of the features of Mobiles celebration of the second cen tenary of the founding of the city by
 the French under Iberville and Vien- vile, which came to a close tonight.
 Magnificent decorations in which the flags Of France. Spain, Great Britain, the United States and the Confederacy | were conspicuous upon practically all
 of the buildings in the business section
 of the city, the decoration of the mu- nicipal and county buildings being par lticularly gorgeous, with the crowds upon the streets, congested at every pos sible point of vantage, gave the city, l for the two days of the celebration, ev- cry appearance of Mardi Gras, with the grotesque features of the annual cele- bration omitted.
 Naval Participation
 1 The battleships Minneapolis, Missis- sippi and Vermont, designated by the Secretary of the Navy for official par
 ticipation in the bi-centennial cere- monies, did not come to Mobile as, at the last moment, 1t was decided to send 300 bluejackets to this city on a spe
 cial train to participate in the parade Friday. Rear Admirad Aaron Ward and Rear Admirad Lucien Young reached the city on Thursday afternoon as the guests of the city, accompanied by heir staffs.
 The signal for the inaugura ton of the ceremonies was flash ed from Wash ington by President Taft at 10 o'clock on Friday morning when the first pageant began Its march around the original limits of the city, disbanding at the municipal building where a bronze tablet, commemorating the an
 niversary was placed. Addresses were made by the governors of Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana, and the tab let was accepted on behalf of the city l by Mayor P. J. Lyons Hundreds of school children, divided into companies,
 each waving the flag of one of the nations represented, participated in the l ceremonies.
 Flag of the Lost Cause l A touch of pathos was added to the scene, especially from the standpoint of the patriot southerner by the pres | ence of the stars and bars, the beloved | flag of the lost cause, whose only rep resentatives were the battle scared veterans, now few in number, who made every sacrifice for what they thought was right; and particularly touching was the raising of the banner so cher ished in the south on the staff in the l Place of all nations," Duncan square, | by the survivors of the might struggle of the sixties.
 | Officials of the different countries raised the flags of the respective tions to the music of the national airs; | the stars and stripes the tri-color of 1 France, the banner of Spain and the l brilliant ensign of Great Britain were oh heered enthusiastically, the demonstra- | ton being particularly great when the | colors of the union were unfurled. | The stars and bars were hauled to the masthead to the stirring strains of Dixie" amid the cheers of thousands who had massed in the square in an- | ticipation of the ceremony. But 1t was | just a memory that they cheered; tri- | bute to the heroes of half a century }ago.
 Historic Points Marked Every point of historic interest in the city was marked for the benefit of vis- itors and at many of these historic spots permanent tablets or markers were erected, with appropriate cere- monies, for the benefit of future gener- ations. The parades passed over line of march which formed the boundary of the city as shown upon plats of the time of Iberville and Bienville, aud the principal ceremonies were held in front of the municipal building, located within the boundary of the original city and which, itself, Is of more than ordinary historic interest.
 While Mobile Is a Catholic strong hold, the Catholics, as church, did not officially participate in the ceremonies, the church celebration of the bi-centen- nial of the city having occurred on February 26, consisting of an immense parade of Catholic societies and par ishes, which was reviewed by his em- thence, James Cardinal Gibbons, of Bal timore, from the porch of the residence of Bishop Edward P. Allen of the dio cese of Mobile. Archbishop Blenck of New Orleans and number of bishops from the southern dioceses were also present on that occasion. the ecclesi- astical party of which Cardinal Gib- bons was the center, numbering nearly score. The church celebration was deeply impressive, particularly the scene at the Episcopal residence as the parade passed. each of the thousands of marchers raising his hat to the car dinal and the others who made up the party and at the Cathedral of the I'm maculate Conception. where pontifcal high mass and benediction were cele. brated
 History of Mobile
 The history of Mobile is, in part the history of the Mississippi basin and of great expanse of territory to the eastward of the great river, first cele- brated in history by the explorations of Father Marquette, who, following up a story of an immense river to the south. told to Father Allouez by the Indians on the southern shores of Lake superior, made his way up the Fox river to the head of navigation, DOT tagged to the Wisconsin and finally entered the Father of Waters, upon whose bosom he in company with the French trader Juliet and few others, fioated southw until the mouth of the Arkansas river was reached, only &l tn,, on1