The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1912-05-30
The Portland Board of Trade

Welcome to Belfast A Banquet in the
Opera House and Post PrandiaI Exer-
cises.
Last Thursday was a rainy day, but fortu-
nately the rain had ceased falling at 7.30 p. m.,
when the special train bringing 80 odd mem-
bers of the Portland Board of Trade arrived,
and it held up until after their departure. The
officers and a goodly number of the members
of the Belfast Board of Trade, with many citi-
zens, and accompanied by the Belfast band,
met the visitors at the station and after an ex-
change of greetings took up the line of march
for the Opera House, each visitor escorted by
member of the local board. The stores all
along the route were illuminated and many of
them had their windows attractively decorated,
while sign suspended over Main street from
Pythian block to Masonic Temple bore the
word Welcome in electric lights. There was
also welcome in the air and in the counte-
nances of our people.
The hall was attractively decorated The
stage was banked with evergreen, with the
Stars and Stripes draped on the sides and from
the proscenium arch, and in the center plac-
ard which read, "M elcome brother Portland
ers; we have near feeling for you.'' Other
placards read, Belfast wants trolleycars ABEL
fast wants factories" Help US and we will
help you" "B. A. Booster for Belfast all the
time" Watch US Grow, Watch US Grow, No
Crow, No Grow" Belfast is Booming, Gentle
men. Portland is our Beacon" At intervals
along the balcony front were pennants bearing
the word Belfast. A table laid across the hall
directly in front of the stage was reserved for
the speakers and officers of the two boards
Other tables were laid lengthwise of the hail.
with covers for 315 and there was not va
cant seat. There was plenty of room between
the tables for the walters and by this arrange
ment every one was seated without the least
confusion. The tables were most attractively
laid and bore an abundance of appetizing food
such an abundance, in fact, that the appe-
tites of twice the number present could have
been satisfied. Before the company took their
seats, Rev. A. A. Blair, pastor of the Univer-
salist church, offered prayer. The menu in
cluded cold chicken, sliced ham, salads of va
rious kinds, escaloped clans, rolls. cream pie
and other pies, doughnuts. and coffee. 1t was
all home cooking, and by experts in that line
the kind of cooking that appeals most strong
ly to the average man, and particularly if he
has been through a course of hotel cooking
Some of the visitors had dined in the Pullman,
but the service broke down and fully half of
the party were unable to get anything to eat
and rejoiced when they heard that banquet
awaited them. One of the visitors ate scallop-
ed CLANS for the first time, and manifested his
appreciation by partaking of secondhand we
are not sure but a third-helping. The ser
vice was equal to the viands. The ladies serv-
ing were all in white and were everywhere
present. ready to anticipate the slightest wish
When the repast was over the deft manner in
which the tables were cleared, without the
slightest noise confusion calls for further
commendation. In the speeches that followed,
as IN private conversation later, the visitors
expressed their appreciation of the food and of
Belfast. The banquet was prepared and serv-
ed by the ladies of the Baptist church, with
Mrs. Robert ?. Coombs as chairman.
S. A. Parker was postmaster and when
cigars were lighted and the tables cleared he
rose and proposed toast to the women of
Belfast, without whose assistance the banquet
would have been failure, and every man rose
to his feet when the toast was given, as fol-
lows woman, gentle, patient, self denying,
without her man would be savage and this
world desert" Then, after greeting the
guests, MIR. Parker introduced Dr. w. L. West,
secretary OF the Belfast Board of Trade who
had been assigned to the duty of delivering
the address of welcome, and said of him. "He
is good deal like an accordian; you have to
squeeze the wind out of him before YOU can
stop him..
DR.. West in welcoming the visitors express
ed the appreciation of our citizens that the
Portland Board of Trade had deviated from
the main line for trip 35 miles out of their
way to visit US. Warming up as he proceeded
he invoked capt alliterations artful aid," and
in his flights of eloquence scared so high as to
be almost out of sight Then, descending to
terra tirma, he dispensed some convincing
facts concerning the prosperity and solidity of
our banking institutions and our thriving local
industries. 1t was departure from the usual
stereotyped address of welcome but evidently
pleased our guests, which was the end all Bel
fast had in view.
The response was by Silas B. Adams, first
vice president of the Portland Board of Trade,
who expressed the appreciation of the visit
ors of the royal welcome extended them and
said that the object of this trip was to get
better acquainted with our neighbors, and with
the resources and business opportunities of
the State. He told of Portland's industrial
exposition, when there were exhibits of over
100 articles manufactured in Portland "a
revelation to many of the citizens-and of the
success which had attended their corn ex-
hibition, which had awakened the interest of
farmers all over the State. In closing he said:
Remember. gentlemen, that long after you
are dead and gone Belfast will live, Portland
will live and the good old State of Maine will
live"
The next speaker was Edwin H. Mcdonald,
president of the Advertising League of Port
land, who told some apt stories and paid
handsome tribute to the ladies' who had pre-
pared and served the supper. Speaking Of the
benefits of such trip he said that something
of interest was learned at every place visit
ed. In Rockland he was told that, conserva-
lively estimated, that city furnished fully so
ner cent of the lime nsed in Nau, York He