Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1914-10-10
EVENING CHAT

LvLlVIIVO O7Al
More people went up to the top OF
the dome of the State Capitol this
week than has been known in any
similar period since the week of the
opening of the Capitol just eight years
ago. The State firemen's convention
brought thousands of visitors to Har-
risburg and hundreds of them took
the 100-foot climb inside the shell of
the dome which is necessary to reach
the balcony surrounding the base of
the lantern. fully $50 feet above the
ground. The total height of the Capt.
tol from the ground to the top of the
gilded figure representing the genius
of Pennsylvania is 272 feet. but only
couple of steeple jacks have ever
been there, and most people are con-
tent with the view at the cupola. The
elevators running to the eighth floor
ran overtime and traffic was congested
occasionally. On Thursday, the day
OF the parade, there were more Wis
itorS to the high-up point of vantage
than any other, the progress of the
parade being watched by so many that
the Capitol police had to limit people
going up to avoid crowding at the
top. The week came near being a
record breaker for visitors to the
Capitol and one thing that nonplussed
the average Capitol official was the
early hours they came around.
The 1915 state firemen's convention
shows signs of going begging. The
executive committee. whose members
left the city yesterday, said that they
had not received any applications for
the next gathering and were wonder
ing whether they would have to ad-
vertise. They complimented Harris
burg for the fine preparations made
and on the crowds that came to see
the big parade and the local folks
thought maybe that Harrisburg had
scared off the other places. Scranton,
Erie. Allentown and Johnstown were
mentioned for the honor, but they
withdrew any booms in their behalf.
1t is becoming an expensive thing to
entertain the state firemen's conven-
ton.
A couple of the numerous musicians
here for the state firemen's convention
paid a tribute to the city's progentor
yesterday which was not only some
thing very unusual but would doubt
less have surprised the good old John
Harris if he had noticed the garb
of the men who did it. The men be-
longed to couple of bands and wore
uniforms of variegated hue, each hav-
ing enough medals and badges to deck
a German army corps commander
These men were walking along the
river and when they reached Harris
Park went to see the grave. One man
who had a cornet at once proceeded to
play Peace, Perfect Peace" Then
they played taps.
The extension of the rifle practice
season has caused a boom in work at
the ranges in this section and some of
the companies are talking about hav-
ing contests around election day. The
number of men proficient at the
ranges in the Guard has been increas-
ing lately and the Eighth has been
making some good figures. Uncle Sam
pays for the work at the ranges as a
part of the national defense system.
Here is hot one, as they say
around the Courthouse:
On Thursday a couple of firemen
were taking a walk up Third street
and about the time they reached Lo-
Gust Gust they hesitated which way to GO
one man wanted to walk down to the
river front, but the other pointed to
the Capitol Park and said: Lets go
take walk in the woods"
One of the interesting features of
the flying overnight visit of the sec
ond battalion of the Third Field Ar
ullery here last week was the youth
and splendid conduct of the 4OO-odd
men in the outfit; another feature was
the style and complete character of
the equipment and apparel of Uncle
Sans enlisted soldier The artillery.
men all wore the latest sinister looking
1O-shot 45-caliber Colt automatic re.
VolVer. That was one part of the
equipment that won a whole lot of
attention. Another was the neat olive.
brown sweater coats that Uncle Sam
provides for all his soldiers while
they are afield during the cool months
Of the year. In the evening of the
camp near Wormleysburg many of
the young artillerymen came over to
the city and not one wore his blouse.
His sweater served instead.
Uncle Sam is also taking notice of
the polyglot character of his patrons
Tor the post offices are now posted
with placards giving official informa-
tion in half a dozen tongues and in
type that looks as though a printing.
office roach had mistaken ink for
paste and designed to put protesting
feet on paper. There was a time not
so very far distant when the only
language outside of English which
the government recognized in these
parts as necessary to convey infor-
nation was German. And most of us
raised around this part of Pennsyl-
vania knew enough of it and loved our
Teutonic neighbors so we'll that we
accepted 1t as entirely proper, but
when it comes down to printing in
the various dialects that we only dimIv
know OF as spoken in the Near East
or the Whirlpool of Europe we begin
to realize the obligations of a pre-
ponderating element even though our
eyes suffer from strange writings. '
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