Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-08-09
5000 AT ANNUAL
GROCERS' PICNIC
AT HERSHEY PARK
Record Crowd Turns Out For
Frolic; Varied Program
Is Enjoyed

Approximately eight thousand Har-
risburgers Joined grocers of the city
in holding high revel in Hershey
Park yesterday on the occasion of
the annual Harrisburg Grocers' Pic
mic. A ball game in the morning at
tracted hundreds of sport lovers,
who saw the uptown grocers
squelched by the Hill grocers with
a. score of 2S-7. Impromptu ath-
letic contests amused many others.
The baseball game was the prin-
cipal feature of the days program.
Some game it was! Groeers fat,
thln and medium forgot their hair
was slightly silvered and in good old
collegiate style ran for the base.
Slicing out ng-distance hits all
over the diamond became habit
and many of the players ran so
we'll yesterday that it is rumored
they will make application for the
marathon in the next Olympic meet.
Wagner and Crownshield were the
stars of the game, receiving wild
applause for their spectacular play
ing.
SwimmiBg Races
While no program for the days
activities was announced, a number
OF impromptu contests were held.
No prizes were awarded, members
of the committee saying that the
| official contests had not been held
because of the heat. Swimming
races, diving contests and aquatic
| events. of every description attract
ed the crowd and thousands sought
| relief from the blaze of the sun by
plunging into the cool water.
Following the baseball game, the
crowd scattered to the tables and
the grass. where boxes were opened
and everybody partook of big din
ner. The restaurants and cafes of
the little town were crowded to ca
pacity and it was necessary to Sc
cure a number of extra walters to
help in taking care of the huge
crowd
In the afternoon a free matinee
performance of I'm Walked Jimmy"
was given by the Pickert Sisters
Stock Company in the Hershey Park
Theater. Every seat in the house
was taken and many of the picnick-
ers stood at the back of the house,
watching the performance. For low
ers of dancing there was a free
park.
community Singing
Preceding the afternoon perform
ance in the theater. the audience
was led in community singing by
l.. G. Orr and A. P. Kitchin. A
number of songs, among them the
war and soldier songs, were included
in the program given.
After the theatricals, the baseball
field was again the scene of a
mighty battle between the Hill and
Uptown grocers. When the smoke
of battle had lifted it was found that
the score was tied, 1922.
In the late afternoon another sec
ton of the large crowd began to
swarm in from Harrisburg and the
surrounding district. Street cars,
trains and automobiles were crowded
with the merrymakers. The pic
nickers had dinner in the park. This
was followed by a band concert at
$50 o'clock, given by the Hershey
and. The concert continued for
more than an hour. while the audi
ence enjoyed popular and classical
airs. Another free dance in the
evening closed the days festivities
and the happy crowd turned home
ward again.
There was only one serious acci-
dent to mar the days happiness.
John Bentz, of near Dillsburg, was
drowned in the swimming pool Of
ficials say this is the first drowning
in the history of the park.
Although no efforts wN'e made to
gather a crowd for the picnic, yes
terday's was one of the largest in
the history of the association.
High praise has been given to the
park officials and to the committee
in charge of the picnic for the eff
cient work in providing amusement
and for handling the crowds. The
committee in charge included w. A.
Gernert, president; S. A. Schrecken-
gaust, vice-president; Monroe NJ
Morrison, secretary; A. P. Kitchin,
treasurer; Ed. Crownshield, L. G.
Orr, A. H. Kreidler and Charles
Zimmerman.