The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1936-05-25
Vagabond
from
Indiana
ERNIE PYLE
ERNIE PYLE

EDITORS NoTE-This rowing reporter
for The Times goes where he pIeases.
when he pleases, in search Of odd
stories about this and that.
DALLAS. May 25.-It now be-
II comes my great privilege. ladies
and gentlemen. to present to you for
the first time on any stage, screen,
newspaper or air. a preview of that
colossus of the summer South-the
Texas Centennial
1t costs you so cents to get in.
Ahead lie 200 acres of the grandest,
packed-in conglomeration of his
tory. beauty and nonsense you can
imagine.
You'll see 200 magnificent build
ings. You'll see 325 exhibits. rang
ing from block square ON down to
the size of your bathroom.
You'll see myriads of pools, and
fountains and lagoons, and trees
and grass, and colored lights, and
buildings that look like temples,
and startling murals, and cowboy
policemen on horseback
You're through the main gate. In
a grove of trees. Right In front Of
you is the Centennial's piece de re-
Sistance-the Esplanada of State.
IT is long rejecting pool with
Il fountains spouting colored
water, and alongside it are beauti-
full walks. and terraced lawns, and
all the different trees of Texas, and
thanking the pool on each side are
long. handsome, new buildings.
Beyond the pool, across a parks
way, is the finest building on the
grounds-the Texas State building.
In here will be the historical ex-
hibits-the early Texas documents,
the old Sam Houston coats, and SO
on. 1t is the idea that you can walk
through here, and come out with a
pretty good idea of just how Texas
was born, and how she has lived
for 100 years.
From here on, it's every man for
himself. To the left is building
after building of agriculture and
native Texas products.
To the right is the Federal gov
ernment's building, with its tall
three-sided cement tower, and its
exhibits broughtS from Washington.
You can step on across the drive,
and do curtsy to Henry Ford in
his wo-ano-a-half-m illion-dollar
layout.
VOU can go on over to the Hall
l. of Religion, which looks like
combination of all the church
architecture in history, but isn't I'M,
slightly 30
Or to the Negro building, a
sweeping, square-angled low build--
ing painted red and blue. 1t cost
$50,000, and is the first Negro build
ing, they say, at any exposition.
There are dozens of other i'm
mense buildings, all with names
like Industry" or Food" or Pc
troleum," with friezeS around them
and bright murals. They house the
hundreds of commercial exhibits.
So we just mosey through, and
wind up down at the far end of
the grounds. Here we see the
thing the Centennial is proudest of,
and most scared about. It's the
great historical play.
You sit IN race track grand
stand. Out in front is huge OPEN
air stage, some say the biggest in
the world. A river runs between
you and the stage. Mountains rise
beyond. Buffalo and Indians cross
the prairie.
A girl from New York, vacation
ing, comes and sits on the river
bank. She doesn't like Texas. A
cowboy comes and sits beside her.
He loves her, the poor fish. He
wants her to like Texas. She says
there's nothing in Texas. He says,
why, my sweetie pie, just listen
here while tell you the story of
Texas +. :" So the scene changes,
and we cut back to the discovery
of Texas, and the Conquistadors.
and we come right on up through.
to today.
Il =
THERE are 300 people in this
Il show. The actors don't say a
word. They just act, and people in a.
control room watch them and do
the talking over a loud speaker. In
the end, the cowboy marries the
girl. It's either going to be grand.
or simply awful.
After that we walk over and sea
the replica of Judge Roy Beans old
Jersey Lily saloon and courtroom at
Langtry; and the Texas Rangers
buildings; and the duplicate of the
Alamo.
And now we're ready for the mid
way.
The midway is nearly half a mile
long. It'll take week to do them
all
Personally, I'm getting pretty
tired. You go ahead and see the fan
dancer if you want to. I'm going
back to the hotel and put an ice
pack on my burning feet.