Elsie at the World's Fair

by Martha Finley

  CHAPTER II.

  It is summer again, the summer of 1893, for two years have passed awaysince the occurrence of the events related in our former chapter. Therehave been few changes among our friends at Ion, Woodburn, and the otherplantations belonging to the family connection, except such as time bringsto all. The elder ones seem scarcely any older, but the younger ones aregrowing up. Elsie's sons, Harold and Herbert, are now practisingphysicians, still making their home at Ion, but having an office in aneighboring village; Rosie has attained her twentieth year and enteredsociety; but Walter is still one of Captain Raymond's pupils, as are Luluand Grace, now blooming girls of fifteen and seventeen, their father's joyand pride and as devotedly attached to him as ever.

  Max is still a cadet in the Naval Academy, pursuing his course there in amanner altogether satisfactory to his father and friends. The captainthinks no man ever had a brighter, better son than his first-born, or onemore likely to do good service to his country in his chosen profession. Itseems hard at times, a sad thing to have to do without his boy, yet henever really regrets that Max has made choice of the naval service as hislife work. He did, however, regret that Max would not be able to go toChicago to visit the World's Fair, in which they were all much interested.

  Some of the connection had attended the dedication ceremonies of theprevious autumn, and nearly all talked of going to the formal opening,appointed for the first of May; among them Grandma Elsie, her father andhis wife, Captain Raymond and his wife and family. The captain's plan wasto go by water--in his yacht--up along the coast to the Gulf of St.Lawrence, through that up the river of the same name, through the WellandCanal and round Michigan by the great lakes to Chicago, and he invited asmany as his vessel could well accommodate--including, of course, hiswife's mother and grandparents--to be his guests for the trip.

  The younger gentlemen and their wives all preferred going by rail as thespeedier way, but Mr. Dinsmore, having no longer any business to attendto, and both he and his wife being fond of the sea and desirous of keepingwith his eldest daughter, accepted the invitation promptly and withpleasure.

  Mr. Ronald Lilburn, too, having a like taste as to his mode of travel,and no business engagements to hurry him, availed himself of theopportunity to make the journey by water. The other passengers were EvelynLeland and Rosie and Walter Travilla.

  Something, however, occurred to change their plans, and it was the latterpart of June when they left home for their trip to the North. They had apleasant voyage, making few pauses by the way, and reached theirdestination on Monday, the second day of July.

  It was early in the evening when the _Dolphin_ neared the White City; thelittle ones were already in bed and sweetly sleeping, but all the othershad gathered on deck to catch the first glimpse of the fairy-like scene.They had passed the mouth of the Chicago River and were steaming on downthe lake.

  "Oh, papa, what is that?" asked Grace, pointing to a bright light in thewater.

  "A lighted buoy," he replied; "a spar buoy with an incandescent lamp ofone hundred candle power. It is a wrought-iron cage at the end of a sparwhich is held in place by a heavy cast-iron anchor. You will see anotherpresently, for there are thirteen between the river and the White City."

  "To warn vessels to keep off shoals?" she asked.

  "Yes," he said, and went on to explain how the electrical current wassupplied, winding up with a promise to take her, and anyone else whowished to go, to the Electrical Building to gaze upon its wonders, andalso for a ride in the electric launches. "But," he added, "I think thereis nothing you will enjoy more than the sight of the electric lights whichyou will get presently in the Peristyle and the Court of Honor."

  "Oh, I am very eager to see it all, papa!" she exclaimed.

  "As we all are," said Lulu.

  "Well, my dears, I think we can all go there at once and spend an hour ortwo; all but the little ones, who can be left in the care of their nurse."He turned enquiringly toward his wife and her mother as he spoke.

  "Oh, yes," said Violet; "they will not be likely to wake, and Agnes willtake good care of them."

  "I think we are all probably ready to accept your invitation withpleasure, captain," Elsie said. "Surely none of us are fatigued--unlesswith lack of exercise."

  "No, surely not," remarked Mr. Dinsmore, "and I, as well as Grace, ameager to see the beauties of that much talked of Court of Honor."

  "I think we will find some other objects worthy of our attention before wereach even the Peristyle," remarked Captain Raymond.

  "Oh, yes!" exclaimed Lulu, "there is another of those lights."

  "I am so glad you brought us in the yacht, captain," said Evelyn; "for wecan start out at once to see the sights--not being in the least fatiguedwith our long journey."

  "And we have already a beautiful view of water and sky," remarked GrandmaElsie; "those sunset clouds are certainly lovelier than any work of man'shands."

  "Yes, mamma; and they are beautifully reflected in the water," saidViolet.

  "But such things can be seen at home," Rosie remarked in a sprightly tone,"and I propose to give my particular attention to such as are to be foundonly in this part of the world and at the present time."

  "What will there be worth looking at before we reach the Peristyle?" askedWalter, apparently addressing his query to no one in particular.

  It was Captain Raymond who replied, "I hope to be able to point out to youpresently some exhibits worthy of your attention," he said.

  "Oh, yes; the battleship _Illinois_ for one, I suppose."

  "Yes; she will come into sight presently and we will have an outside viewof her. Some day I hope to take all of you who may desire to go on boardto have a look at her internal arrangements."

  "You may put my name into that list, captain," said Mr. Lilburn. "I'm abit too auld to take part in a fight, even in a righteous cause, but notfor taking an interest in the means provided for ither folk."

  "And I want to see it, too, though I hardly expect to ever make one of thecrew of such a vessel," said Walter.

  "And we girls will want to visit her also," laughed Rosie, "though I amvery sure no one of us will ever form part of such a crew."

  "Well, as my father has and my brother expects to, I shall be very muchinterested," said Grace.

  "Especially as we shall have a retired officer to explain everything tous," added Lulu with a smiling look up into her father's face.

  He returned the smile, then pointing southward, "Yonder it is," he said,"still too distant for a critical survey, but a better view will beafforded us presently, as we pass it."

  As he spoke all eyes turned in that direction.

  "Oh, what a big vessel she is!" exclaimed Grace, as they drew near enoughto obtain a good idea of her size.

  "Yes," returned the captain, "she is a full sized model, above water line,of our coast line battleships _Oregon_, _Massachusetts_, _Indiana_."

  "Not a real ship, papa?"

  "No; only a model: she is built of brick, on the bottom of the lake, andmerely simulates a man-of-war."

  "Only a model!" repeated Walter. "And how about her guns, sir? are theyreal?"

  "Some of them are wood; but there are enough genuine machines on board todestroy almost anything of ordinary resisting power within three milesrange. But I expect to go more into particulars when we pay ourcontemplated visit."

  "I suppose she must have cost a good deal?"

  "One hundred thousand dollars."

  "How much this Fair is costing!" remarked Evelyn. "Do you think it willpay, captain?"

  "I hope so," he returned cheerfully. "What is worth doing at all is worthdoing well."

  But they were drawing near their port, and there was much on both land andwater to attract their attention. Presently they were in front of thebeautiful Peristyle, gazing in awed admiration upon its grand Arch ofTriumph, its noble colonnade and statuary, and catching glimpses here andthere between its pillars of the beauties beyond.

  It was impetuous Lulu who
broke the silence with an exclamation ofdelighted admiration and an eager request that they might land at once andget a nearer view of the fairy scenes that lay before them on the fartherside.

  The other members of their party, old and young, seemed scarcely lesseager, and in a very few moments they were all pacing that grand colonnadeto and fro, and gazing out delightedly now upon the blue waters of thelake and anon upon the fairy scene--the Court of Honor--on the inner side.And soon they hurried their steps thitherward.

  "Oh, there," cried Lulu, "is the statue of our great republic! Is she notmagnificent?"

  "She is, indeed!" replied Grandma Elsie. "See in one hand she holds a polebearing a liberty cap, in the other a globe, an eagle with outstretchedwings resting upon it; that symbolizes protection, which she has ever beenready to extend to the oppressed of all the earth."

  "She is a large woman," remarked Walter; "as she should be to adequatelyrepresent our great country. Grandpa, do you know her size?"

  "I saw it stated the other day," replied Mr. Dinsmore. "Her face isfifteen feet long, her arms thirty feet, forefingers forty-five inches,and ten inches in diameter. Her cost was twenty-five thousand dollars; thegilding alone amounting to fourteen hundred dollars; quite an expensivedress for my lady."

  "But we don't grudge it to her, papa," remarked Grandma Elsie pleasantly.

  "No," he said; "nor anything else the liberty she represents has cost--inmoney or in life and limb."

  "But what is her height, grandpa?" asked Rosie; "it should be veryconsiderable to go with a face fifteen feet long."

  "Sixty-five feet, and the pedestal on which she stands is thirty feetabove water. There is a stairway inside which you can climb one of thesedays if you wish."

  All were gazing with great admiration and interest upon the beautifulstatue, though seeing it somewhat dimly through the gathering shades ofevening, when suddenly the electric lights blazed out from all sides,causing an exclamation of surprise and delight from almost everyone in ourparty and from others who witnessed the wonderful and inspiring sight;words failed them to express their sense of the loveliness of the scene;that mighty statue of the Republic dominating the eastern end of thelagoon, that grandly beautiful Macmonie's Fountain at the other, itsGoddess of Liberty seated aloft in her chair on the deck of her bark,erect and beautiful, with her eight maiden gondoliers plying the oars atthe sides, while old Father Time steered the vessel, his scythe fastenedto the tiller, Fame as a trumpet-herald stood on the prow with her trumpetin her hand, while in the gushing waters below sported the tritons withtheir plunging horses, the terraced fountain still lower with its cloudsof spray showing all the colors of the rainbow, as did that of the smallerones to the right and left.

  And what a ravishing sight was that of the Administration Building withits corona of light, its dome, arches, and angles outlined with thosebrilliant lights, as were those of the Peristyle also, and of the grandstructures between--Manufactures, Electricity, and Arts on the north side,Machinery and Agriculture on the south--and the beautiful fountainsthrowing spray of all the colors of the rainbow.

  "What a magnificent sight!" "How lovely!" "How beautiful!" exclaimed oneand another as they moved slowly onward, gazing from side to side.

  "Let us go into the Administration Building," said Mr. Dinsmore.

  All were willing, and they sauntered on toward it, still gazingdelightedly as they went.

  Reaching its doorway they paused for a few moments to look at the statueof Columbus, represented as landing with the Spanish flag in his hand, andto listen to the inspiring music of the bands; then passed on into theinterior which they found as artistic and wondrously beautiful as theoutside.

  After feasting their eyes upon the lower part they took an elevator--ofwhich there were six--and went up to the upper promenade, which they foundalso very beautiful, giving lovely views of the surrounding grounds. Thevault of the dome was ornamented with allegorical paintings, some of themcommemorating Columbus' discovery of America.

  Looking out from the promenade under the dome they saw the Ferris Wheel,upon which they gazed with a good deal of interest.

  "I must have a ride in that," said Walter emphatically, "and mamma, youwill go with me, will you not?"

  "Is it quite safe?" she asked, looking from her father to the captain.

  "Oh, yes," they both replied, Mr. Dinsmore adding, "and I think we willall want to go once if not oftener."

  "Go where, grandpa?" asked a familiar voice, and turning quickly aboutthey found Harold and Herbert close at hand.

  Then there was an exchange of joyous greetings, and enquiries were madeconcerning some others of the family connection who had come by rail.

  The answer was that some of the little ones were in bed at the hotel whereboarding had been taken by the party, and in charge of the faithfulattendants brought from home, while the older ones were scattered aboutthe Court of Honor and other portions of the Fair.

  "We have been on the lookout for you," continued Harold, "and only a fewminutes ago discovered the _Dolphin_ lying at anchor down yonder on thelake. We had hoped you would be here sooner."

  "Yes, we thought we should have been here weeks ago," replied his mother,"but as the delays were providential we did not fret over them."

  "If you had fretted, mother, it would have been truly surprising, as Inever knew you to do so about anything," Herbert said, smilingaffectionately into her eyes.

  "No, that was never one of her faults," remarked Mr. Dinsmore.

  "No, indeed!" exclaimed Rosie. "But Harold, can you take us to the others?I am sure it would be pleasanter for us all to be together."

  "I cannot promise certainly," he replied, "but if we walk about the Courtof Honor we will come across each other finally, no doubt, as they willpresently discover the _Dolphin_ and look about here for you."

  "Yes," returned his mother, "they will surely know that we could notpersuade ourselves to go farther to-night than this bewitchingly beautifulCourt of Honor."

  Even as she spoke all were moving toward the elevator nearest them, and ina few moments they were again strolling along the shores of the lagoon,gazing with delighted eyes upon the fairylike scene--imposing buildings,playing fountains, the waters of the lagoon dancing in the moonbeams, andthe pretty crafts gliding over them filled with excursionists whose merryvoices and laughter mingled pleasantly with the music of the bands.

  "Oh, this is just delightful, delightful!" exclaimed Lulu. "Father, dear,I hope you will let us stay a long, long while."

  "I have not thought of fixing the time for departure yet," returned thecaptain, "and if our friends intend to go home in the _Dolphin_, as theycame, there will be a number of voices entitled to a vote on thequestion. My wife for one," glancing down fondly upon the beautiful,graceful lady on his arm.

  "Thank you, my dear," returned Violet. "I certainly feel no desire tostart for home yet, dear and lovely as I esteem it."

  "Oh, here they are!" cried a familiar voice at that instant, and the twosets of relatives had found each other. Glad greetings and kind enquirieswere exchanged. Then they broke up into little groups and sauntered onthrough the beautiful scene till it was time to seek their resting placesfor the night, when, after making some arrangements for the sight-seeingof the next day, they bade good-night and hied them to their severalplaces of temporary abode.