The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1920-06-24
POWELL WRITES
FINAL CHAPTER
DESCRIBES LAST DAY OF PRESS
MEET FOR LAKE REGION" AND
TELLS OF SHIP LAUNCHING.

tEEIS OF Sf1tF LAONCf7iN6.
Willis PowelI's final chapter re-
scriptive of the meeting of the Flor
IDA Press Association appears in the
Lake Region, Tavares, as follows:
Last Day of the Press Meet.
1t was midnight before the press
people got back to the hotel and after
comparing notes of the evenings
cuckoo clock sounded a warning on
a. mat least it came out twice and
said cuckoo two times.
The supernumeraries who chase q
wet cloth over the marble tiles looked
at the press gang like they were
Shriners getting up steam for the
ceremonies of the next day.
You see the editors were not paying
room rent and they didn't have to
sleep all night to get their moneys
worth.
Everybody aroused the night clerk
and left call for S in the morning.
He said: IF you wait around a few
minutes we will serve cheese and
crackers and thus save the wear and
tear on the bed linen."
The early call was put in because
the press people had to launch a $500
ton steamer at high tide. Clarence
Woods couldn't understand about this
tide business and wondered why the
tide didn't come in at about D. m.
And also" quoth he: when it comes
in as tide when they don't have it
tied SO it will hold"
Then about day break terrific rain
storm came up and Pensacola awoke
to another fresh morning, and some
what of an event.
This Hastings they were to launch
was q mountain of steel something
like 1874 feet long and weighed in it's
stocking feet $500 tons. 1t was 9S
per cent complete. 1t had all its in
nards in place. All it lacked was
some breakfast food in the pantry.
The thing set up in the air like a
three STORY house, and was sideways
to narrow stream. Underneath it
were a million blocks. I never before
saw steamer launched sideways, but
as they had been so foolish as to try
it, did not interfere. The American
people took to water sideways and
every other way, so what's the use
to worry. 1t wasn't my boat any
how.
Mrs. Fitzgerald. wife of the editor
OF the Daytona paper, and president
or the press association, was to chris
ten the ship, aided and abetted by all
the newspaper women present. The
male species of the tribe were given
sponges and a position beneath the
Prov of the vessel so that when the
champagne bottle was broken they
could absorb some of the spirit OF
the occasion.
The ceremony was set for S:45. At
S:44:59 whistle blew and immedi-
ately 1000 men began driving in the
wedges to lift the mass of steel off the
key blocks. 1t sounded like a million
snare drummers playing jazz accom-
paniment,
Then a wise man with surveying
instrument called halt while he took
soundings in the air, and after sati-
flying himself that the time had not
come to waste a bottle of champagne
on a little tin tub he told the whistle
TO toot again. And so it proceeded
for ten minutes. when the men who
didn't care to grease the skids with
their hides. got from under Then
simultaneously man at either end
of the ship raised an axe and cut a
straining strand of rope and the mass
OF steel slid into the water just as
easy as If / had not been there to boss
the job. The boat settled at even
keel and laughed at the wave it had
kicked up. And it was all over.
The Hastings was named after the
town OF Hastings in PotatovilIe. 1t
carried spud fore and aft. / under
stand that Hastings Chamber of Com
merce. which was not present at the
ceremony. will soon present the boat
with peck of potatoes in lieu of a
silver service.
We. the press gang, and some &c.,
900 other folks. who were at the
launching. then returned to town be-
fore rat would bite us. And again
the Pensacola folks turned on the
sprtnkling cart and while the press
gang continued their deliberations for
the next three hours in the San Car
los auditorium another rain fell. and
that was some rain. believe me.
This arrangement OF weather was
most perfect all through the sessions.
At the morning session Gilbert
Leach. of Leesburg. was made presi-
dent and Tampa was named as the
next meeting place. and $3.50 named
as the amount subscribed to the
Montverde Printers Craft School.
The last complimentary luncheon at
the San Carlos by Prince Charming
Hervey and Princess Charmer Her.
vey was ordered to final edition. The
plate matter, as on other occasions.
was good filler. all original matter
no syndicate stuff.
was made chairman Of this food so
wouldn't talk so much. just like they
put muffler on a fellow when they
make him vice-president.
The choir-master sang a few songs.
but they had burrrs on them. Hervey
stand it. And he can stand
a lot. When they sang for the 49th
time NO Flies On Us" he distributed
wire fly killers.