Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-07-04
ORATORS, IN PANIC,
NEARLY MISS SHIP
FIapper's Vanity Plays Havoc
With Sailing Plans of
Contest Party.

BY STAT Correspondent.
NEW YORK, July "a fapper .
vanity played havoc with the sailing
plans of the members of the Natlonal
Oratorical Contest party here TINS az
ternoon, coming so close to making
the entire party miss the U. >. ;:
Republic and their two and'one -halt
month tour Of 10 foreign. countries
that there was no room for comfort.
particularly on the part OF Randoiph
Leigh, director, and Miss May +.
Bradshaw. official chaperon.
Miss Anne Hardin, is years old, or
Louisville. KY. was the guilty miss,
but no one in the party had the feart
TO take the popular auburn halred
orator to task for her thouGhtiess 4 si.
They caught the boat, and thai was
enough.
Happens Over u Coat.
1t all came about when Miss Har-
din received word late this afternoon
that a topcoat her mother had mailed
her was at the post Office. MISS mar
din. who had been lamenting this
missing link In her otherwise correct
wardrobe, won permission to slip away
from the party as 1t was checKlns
out at the hotel, In company with an
official chaperon. She said she would
be back Immediately after she got the
topcoat.
At the post office. however, IL was
founa thai there was considerable red
t,no to go through TO get the top
coat. But Miss Hardin considered the
topcoat worth It. The next delay
came when they We're caught In
traffic tam. Spotting clock, the pair
sensed their plight and took the TUBES
direct 10 the pier.
Unwilling to conclude that MISS
Hardin had gone direct to the pier,
Mr. Leigh and Miss Bradshaw or
dered the five taXicabs packed with
the orators and their impedimenta TO
wait for a solid hour for the return
Of Miss Hardin, at a cost or $I.io per
cab. Finally 1t was decided they must
take a chance on finding Miss Hardln
at the pier or miss the boat them
selves. And there she was.
Flushed with anxiety and painting
for their breath, the members OF the
oratorical party accorded the little
lady a relieved welcome and promptly
forgave her for the torturous period
they had spent fearing they all would
miss the liner and their keenly antici-
pated trip abroad.
Ieisurely Plan Abandoned.
According to the original plans. the
orators were to take the trip to the
pier leisurely, and four hours were
allotted for 1t. The actual dash to
the Hoboken side, with the specter OF
having the gangplank pulled up when
they arrived, was quite in contrast to
the schedule.
The actual sailing of the young
orators must have given these seven
much -feted boys and girls the biggest
thrill of their lives. AS the gigantic
Shipping Board liner glided from the
pier they were accorded tumultuouS
ovation by those ashore.
Perched at vantage points on the
decks of the liner, the orators &C
knowledged the applause Of the crowd,
which included scores Of their friends
and relatives, until they were FAR
down the bay Tonight they are on
the high seas, dreaming OF London.
Venice, Paris and the other foreign
cities they will visit.
Shortly after their first dinner on
the liner tonight. Mr.. Leigh will i'll
troduce them to the officers OF the
Republic and present to the captain
personal letters from Secretary or
State Kellogg. Tomorrow the orators
are expected to take prominent part
in a Fourth of July celebration to be
held on the ship.
A number of dignitaries Of the
Catholic Church, who are bound for
Ireland after attending the Eucharisttc
Congress, were aboard the Republic
and evidenced especial interest In
Thomas P. Cleary, the Philadelphia
orator, who represented the parochial
schools in the national finals In Wash
ington.
Miss Helen Bylund, the Brooklyn
New York orator who won third hon
ors in the national contest, was well
coined at the pier by scores Of Wad-
leigh High School girls. Miss Bylund
is president Of the student council
at Wadleigh. She expects to decide
upon a place to study art while
abroad, as it is her ambition to be an
artist.
Miss Guita Bearman, the Mime
apolis orator. is accompanied on the
tour by her sister, Miss Beryl Bear
man. The latter purchased the pas
sage Of Joseph Mullarky, who won a
trip but had to take a cash settle
ment. due to the Ill health of his
widowed mother.
Miss Posey Meets Friends.
Miss Myrtle Posey. the Washing
ton, ~. u, "hN 'AAA
be the official spokesman for the four
girls in the group while they are
abroad, was elated to find two OF her
former Eastern High School teachers
aboard the Republic. They are Miss
Kate c. Moore and Miss Lewanna
Wilkins. She Immediately planned
to see as much Of them as possible
in Europe.
Perhaps the most lonesome mem
Der Of the party is Jose Munos Gotta,
the Mexican champion orator. whose
knowledge of English is limited. The
others vow they will keep him tollted
up. however, and will teach him
English in return for his teaching
them Spanish.
Gotta will leave the party for two
weeks while abroad in order to speak
at an international Y. NJ. c. A. con-
vention at Helsingfors. Finland.
The orators will arrive at Cher
bourg in six days, and will go direct
to Paris. Mr.. Leigh has planned for
the young people to see as many Of
the plays and dramatic productions
abroad as possible. Following their
Paris stay they will make a three-day
trip Of the battleflelds.
Other points on their itinerary fol-
low: Avignon. Nice. Genoa, Venice,
Milan, Bellagio, Lugano, Stresa, In.
terlaken, Lucerne, Wiesbaden, Rhine