Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1915-01-14

[speech of COLONEL FRED PAUL
GRoSscUP, president of the West
Virginia commission to the Panama
Pacific international Exposition, de-
livered before the state board of
trade, Wheeling, Oct. 10, 1914.I
Mr.. President and Gentlemen of the
State Board of Trade:
Some weeks ago we received an invi
tation from this body, through your ex
cellent secretary, Mr.. R. B. Naylor, to
address you on the subject of the Pan
ama-Pacific Exposition, to be held in
San Francisco, beginning Feb. 20 and
continuing until Dec. 4, 1915.
must confess, on receipt Of this in
vitation my first impulse was to write a
courteous and respectful letter declin
ing to appear before you. mainly be
cause all of you who know me know
that am not a public speaker, that /
have not devoted my life and what lit
tie ability may have to making pub
lie speeches and have not used the
press, by letter or otherwise, to enun-
ciate opinions; but the position l oc-
cupy as chairman Of the West Virginia
commission, having in charge West
Virginia's interests at this great Expo
sition, makes it a duty that l. on after
thought, felt could not be avoided.
The Centennial Exposition.
We have had many expositions in the
past. In 1876 we had the Centennia!
Exposition at Philadelphia to celebrate
khn
American independence.
In 1892 and 1893, in the great city of
Chicago, was celebrated the four hun
dredth anniversary Of the discovery of
! America by Christopher Columbus.
That also was great subject to be
placed before the minds of the Ameri-
can citizenship. 1t was the beginning
of America, and the American boy and
girl today hear the name of Chris
TOPPER Columbus with greater degree
Of thankfulness and with an enlarged
reverence because of having celebrated
that event at the Chicago Exposition.
In 1901 the American people conceiv-
ed the idea of holding the Pan-Ameri-
can Exposition. This was not for the
purpose of celebrating any great past
or historical event, but the purpose was
to bring together in a closer relation
ship and communion Of interests the
various nations of the great American
continent.
In 1904, at st. Louis, we celebrated
the Louisiana purchase, celebrating an
event that extended our country across
the great domain of the plains in the
! west to the place where the sun sets
last upon this country's shores, and
lastly, in the year 1907, we celebrated
at Norfolk, or Jamestown on the At
lantic coast, the tercentennial, the
landing of the first permanent English
settlement at jamestown. in the moth
er state of Virginia.
Mans Greatest Engineering Feat.
As l said in the beginning, all of
these, except the Buffalo Exposition,
were historical and intended to re-.
fresh the mind and review the history
of our country, all of them celebrating
events which started the United States
of America toward the greatest nation
of the globe. Unlike these past EXPOSE
tons, we now have before US an Ex-
position that is to celebrate an event
Of the present, to celebrate not only
the greatest practical engineering feat
known to mankind-a feat that could
not be accomplished successfully by
the great French nation-but we are to
celebrate an accomplishment that
brings the great Atlantic ocean on our
east to the great Pacific ocean on our
west, shaking hands with each other
and, in the process, handing the COM
modities of the east to the west and
the commodities of the west to the
east, as If it were a kernel In the
hands of two men face to face. The
lesson taught by this is that the com
mercial relations of the world from
this date are changed.
After contest by many Of the states
of the south and west for the honor OF
being host In the celebration of this
great event, California was chosen by
the national congress as being the most
fitting state and San Francisco, its
greatest commercial city, as the most
fitting place for this great Exposition.
There can be no doubt Of the wisdom
shown in this choice. Dramatically it is
almost perfect During the months of
the Exposition the mean temperature
is about SO degrees. In the last TWEEN
ty years there, have been only twenty
seven days during which the Temporary
ture exceeded 80. and during the same
period it has not fallen below 3d. The
difference between. day and night tenn
perature Is little. The warmest hour,
about 2 o'clock in the afternoon. has q
mean temperature of 50 and the cold
Continued o.