Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1920-09-09
5000 PEOPLE ATTEND
RICHMOND CELEBRATION
Local Post of American Legion
Provides a Full Days Enter
tainment, Including Parade,
Ball Game and Other Sports,
and Closing with Dances

niue Odu FOru, or the pranClnR f1erCe-
Arrow, blew up the tires, filled the tank
with gasoline and headed Richmond
ward. People and automobiles swarmed
into the town ell day. 1t is estimated
that there We're fully 5000 people there
during the course of the day. And there
was entertainment for everybody, from
S:A5 in the morning until nearly daylight
of Tuesday morning The celebration was
in charge OF Richmond Post, No. "a.
American Legion. This post has put In
"a great deal Of work In preparation for
this Labor Day celebration and the re-
suits were highly commendable to their
efforts.
| Tho first thing on the program was the
most remarkable street parade which has
been seen in this section i'm long time.
| r. w. Randall, commander OF Richmond
! Fost. acting as drum major of the Rich
mond Cornet band, led the parade, with
! G. s. Goodrich and f. r.. Kenyon, mar
shals and j. G. Berry and Clayton Kill
peck. aides. This band did excellent serv-
ice through the day, playing at the ball
games and assisting at the dances in the
evening.
| Following the band IN the parade were
two notable figures on horseback.
huge Indian in full war paint presented
! A very feroCious appearance. Just behind
UlII was "a tndTnllnE uTtsStu III Il
fetching red. white and blue costume.
Then came the floats, and there was a
large number of them. wonderfully and
elegantly trimmed. It takes a town the
size of Richmond to get enthusiastic
over an occasion Of this kind and put
their best work into decorations. There
was a great deal of work in some of
these floats and all of them were effec-
tive. Space does not allow a description
of them. SOME of those which attracted
particular attention were the floats of
the Richmond Underwear company. the
Cooperative Creamery, the Order of the
Eastern Star the Christian Endeavor and
one which displayed evergreen COW
cred framework. with snowshoes and
other winter sports equipment scattered
about
Then there was the Rag Time band,
a company of vagabond musicians in
various stages of dsreputa bleness who
dispensed a variety of noise which once
in a while bordered on harmony. Their
general get-up was popular with the
sightseers, producing some sideshaking
laughs Equally popular was the Goat
, and Baby combination, which was an
other one of the seven wonders of the
! parade.
There was an extensive automobile sec
|
Cadillacs, Oldsmobles. Dodses. Chevro-
lets--yes. and even Fords. We're so gor-
> >geous as to disguise the different makes
| so that their own manufa cturers would
I not have known them. Here again, it is
t impossible to do Justice in detailed de-
scripton. Every decorated car in the
4 parade was a credit to the decora tors
and some Of them showed the results
g OF a vast amount of careful work. Many
RI of the drivers wore costumes in keeping
/, with the decorations of the car which
e they drove.
Y When tho parade was over. the sight,
4 scers gathered at the ball field. where
Il baseball segregations from Burlington
T. Post and Richmond Post, American
G Legion. entertained with "A contest which
r was cut to seven innings account oi
8 the lateness of starting and the unwil-
II linEness of the oX-service men to post
r pone longer their eating hour. 1t was
IS an Interesting game and was won by
e Burlington Post by the score of to :
h At several times during the contest. The
- score was tied, keeping the interest OF
the fans well tuned mp until the end
=, The field was not in the best of condition
!, the grass being too high for good field
l., ing, so that the players had an alib fol
% many Of the errors. The batteries were
# Richmond Post. Berry and Whitney
. Willis struck out II men and eight hit.
=. We're scored Off him. Berry struck on
. five and allowed seven hits.
. When the game was over. the sight
d seers, who were beginning to feel the neec
ia of inner refreshment by this time. fol
IL lowed the red, blue and yellow arrows
IN which led to the cafeterias arranged TO
If the occasion by the ladies of the Catho
Y. lie, Congregational and Iniversalist so
~ ceties In these places. excellent re
IA freshments We're served
ID The greater part of the sports tool
in place in the afternoon. During the prog
IN ress of the ball game in the morning
A. however, the wall scaling contest wa
in held. with several teams of two men eacl
eS entered, This was won by George Case
IN and Lee Stevens of Richmond, who pu
up good exhibition of getting over
of lo-foot wall IN short order.
id In the afternoon, the first event sched
an uled was the creased pole contest. Their
ty were plenty of ambitious young men VIII
" We're willing to make try, at this inter
,e esting sport but trying was about n
re far as anybody got. The force of gray
st ty and the peculiar quality of grease t
n resist the upward reaching hands an
al legs Of the would-be climbers was sufl
~ cicnt to keep everyone of them on tn
". ground and this contest was finally give
a up in despair.
r. Then came the tug-of-war between TIL
40 north end and the south end OF Rich
re mond. One pull settled this importar
NJ test. the men from tho north end carrN
or ing off the south-enders and the troph
he of an eight-dollar box of cigars TIL
he south-enders are still contending that III
no northenders had the better position a
To- to slope OF ground and that the conte,
nv was not a real test of poweress. How
ne ever that may be, the cigars have bee
IN smoked.
40 creased rooster was then release
CIV upon circle of expectant sight-seer
Of ana tho younger element at once launcl
he ed drive to capture the thorough,
,lv frightened fowl 1t was short work II
St the ring was quickly filled with wild
* chasing youngsters and Frederick Pa
w. ent of Richmond was successful in fal
wo ing bodily upon the rooster and holdir
old 1t to the ground by superior weight.
was given the rooster for his trouble
The next event to give the sight-se
thrill was heated race of 80 yart
10, scheduled for fat men. If there were al
co, really fat men in the race, they were
c,E far in the rear at the finish that tn
eco were not easily discernabe. The race W
zoo won in eight seconds by DR., c. Il. Mitche
A., a man who, If he has any superfluo
40 flesh, conceals II nicely,
900 There were a number of entries in (
qoc 1oo-yard dash. In the first heat, j.
Thompson of Barre led the leld at [