Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (April 23, 1905)
. l l ! n i i m i - - - i ii i " 1 HITTING THE TRAIL WILL BE POPULAR AMUSEMENT At THE FAIR! . ..-. . --..i . . ------- - ' , , ,,.., in i,,.lu..li,--TTril..ii, -.. T . , , f I IT the trail! It is hardly necessary to say so, though, for you will naturally hit the Trail, the amusement street at the Portland Fair, before you have been Jn the Exposition very long. Of course you -trill see the Agricultural palace, the mining: novelties, the natural park, the Fine Arts building, and tne thou sand and one things above the terrace. But eventually you will land on the Trail. This amusement thoroughfare of the Exposition presents the cream ' of at tractions from the World's Fair at St. Louis, as well as affording many new features of local significance. The "Trail" Is readied from the Grand EsT planade and from the various road ways In the Exposition grounds. The street Is built on piles-over Guild's Lake and follows the surface of this basin until It Joins with the Bridge or Nations. The diversity of amusements offered uppn the trail are of the high est oharacter, all applications for con cessions of an objectionable nature hav ing been denied. Through Japan and Siberia. Interest Is paramount in the war in the Far East, between Japan and Rus sia. and. It Is therefore fitting that a Japanese village and trans-Siberian railway have been provided at the Trail. The crafty workmanship of Jap anese laborers Is becoming perceptible In every feature of the Japanese vil lage. Here the imperial gardens of the Mikado are being faithfully reproduced, to give a pleasing picture of the rich and beantlful floral growths of the Island Kingdom. And treeg transplant ed In this village under the careful training of ingenious Japanese land scape gardeners, will twist themselves Into grotesque shapes. A profusion of ! bright and varl-hued blossoms will steal surreptitious glances at the curi ous spectators from out the more deeply-colored, foliage. Picturesque streams will meander Indolently through the gardens and antique bridges and pat terns span the water. Japanese archi tecture is being Illustrated with the street of Asakusa, which will abound with odd native stores where porcelain pottery workers, silk rug weavers, ivory carvers, painters, Jewelers and candymakers are to work. Street acro bats will frequent the thoroughfare's j ana give tneir curious exhibitions. A number of teahouse? are provided for in tne village, and Geisha girls will per form their graceful dances for the vis itor's amusement, while he sips his tea, served by native Japanese women. The theater will offer an excellent enter tainment In which the distinctive Jap anese dramatic and vaudeville offerings are to be seen. From the. sunny garden . of Japan the Trailer may plunge by ' the illusion route Into bleak and desolate Siberia. Entering a railway station at Moscow you board a train consisting of four Pullman coaches. A seat is taken in one of the cars. The train starts with all the motion of a genuine thing. The sta tion glides away, the yards are passed over bumping -switches-and short- jerks; Then the open-country landscape of SI. beria ensues. Invisible blowers produce j the effect of Russian atmosphere. The j effect of motion bf a flying train is ' perfect The journey carries the trailer through Irkutsk and various other large Siberian cities. The train skirts Lake Baikal, where- a body- of Russian troops recently perished In an attempt to cross upon the Ice. Then you dash through the scenes of the war opera tions in Manchuria and reach the ter minus of the road to Port Arthur, where, from the forts overlooking the harbor, an unobstructed view is ob tained of the Japan Sea, the marine theater of the wax. Five different scenes, at varying distances from the car windows, oach revolving at a dif ferent rate of speed, accentuates the Il lusion, being scientifically and artisti cally arranged as to perspective and light. The beauty of Siberian scenery, known only to few Americans, is rapid ly unfolded as niile after mile of mov ing . drops are passed at high speed. Stops are made, and Important cities and way stations viewed where real life takes the place of plastic represen tation.' It Is for all the world as If the trallor was doing .Russia Instead of being delightfully hoodwinked at the Lewis and Clark Exposition. In the .infant Incubators. Chicken-hatching by incubator was known in the time of Seti, but it has taken centuries to apply the same methods to raising babies. The ques tion is: "Will the TralJ-nurtured Infant become a jolly good fellow hy virtue of his earliest environs? Aside from any humorous speculations, the baby Incubator Is quite certain to appeal to visiting motherhood of the wide' world. It is "the nearest realization man ihasjseen of the dream of the old philosopher who looked in vain for the creation of human life through his alchemy. Dignity permeates this curious exhibit. A staff of prominent physicians and a corps of trained nurses are to be present to tenderly urge the living embryo to live Its way Into full growth under abnormal con ditions. In a high-celling observatory 24 incubators with glass doors contain the fledglings who are to be trained in the first voluntary movements of actual life, through all the .interme diate stages, up to fully developed babyhood. Every two hours the more advanced infants are hastily taken from their warm nests In heated blan kets and fed on the knees of the nurses In full view of the public. Unless the baby is doing "poorly" It is unswathed each morning from its soft cotton bandages and dusted with a dedicate preparation of rice powder. The mites are rarely- promoted to the dignity of taking milk from a bottle until they have been in the incubators -10 days. After one or two months' residence within the walls of the incubator there comes a suggestion of color to the wee cheeks, bf Intelligence to the eyes, and the little nvalf of the Trail has be come something to pet and coo oyer as well as. an unique testimony q'f the power of modern science. The baby Incubator Is a nearly square box of silver metal, placed about three feet from the floor on Iron supports. It Is airtight except for a ventilating pipe which sends Into the box a constant stream of Altered air, fresh from the outside. The proper temperature has been maintained by the air passing over hot-water pipes in the floor of the cage. An exhaust pipe carries away Impure air. A wheel revolving quickly inside the Incubator, accord ing to the air exhausted by the tiny lungs, "becomes an indicator of the oxygen being consumed in the nest by Its occupant. Suitable apartments are arranged In other parts of the build ing for the exhibition of the unoccu pied Incubators, where they may be examined in detail by the Trailer. One of the most bewildering and Im pressive concessions on the Trail is the Carnival of Venice, a gigantic and spectacular stage conception In which 500 persons participate. Sitting In a comfortable opera chair at this point, the Trailer will see before him a heau tlful stretch of water In representation of one of the canals of Venice. Beyond rise many "buildings of the pleasingly unique Venetian design. Occasionally a gondola, propelled by a swarthy son of Italy, glides gracefully across the surface of the placid water. The scene changes. The house is darkened and thousands of lights in the buildings across the canal present a brilliant scene. Suddenly zephyr-like figures, garbed in filmy gauze splendor, ay pear upon the great stag In the marvelous ballet. The Streets of Cairo show recalls the greatest amusement success of tho Midway Plaisance In Chicago, for It Is reproduced on the Trail by Its orig inator, but -on such an elaborate scale that the previous shows are easily eclipsed. Egyptian buildings of Arabio architecture- are Included In this con cession, as well as Innumerable booths and stands along and In the streets which hold the warus and manufac tures of Egypt. These are sold by na tives. Unique modes of transportation are afforded by numerous camels and donkeys. The Trailer may laboriously climb upon the hump-back of an elght stomaohed quadruped. Suddenly ho will be jerked forward rather abrupt ly and almost simultaneously In the oposlte direction. The camel has merely arisen to Its feet. Then the Journey ' begins, through the plctur esque streets of the Egyptian village. Upon the completion of his Egyptian tour, the Trailer Is once more severely jerked back and forth, and then he weakly slides from the camel's back, quite ready to concede that Portland's street-cars as a mode of transportation are much to be desired. If he Is made of stern stuff, the Trailer may Journey further upon the back of a donkey. A Turkish theater will be maintained in conjunction with the Streets of Cairo. In this, productions characteristic of the Oriental country are offered. Hard ly a man, woman or child In the country who has not heard the wail ing strains of a "dee-dee-dee, dee," to which some maid from the Orient does "the extraordinary, muscle dance. This Is ever a feature of the Turkish theater. All in all. the Streets of Cairo are both Interesting and In structive. . Terrible Flood Reproduced. Possibly there is no one who a few years ago was not appalled with the dispatches which told' of the awful calam ity that had overtaken Galveston, the heartrending stories of the devastation of a noble city and the perishing of its peo ple. ' The horror of the catastrophe Is vividly pictured In the Galveston Flood spectacles. Tho immediate foreground Is real and the still life full size. Real grass, trees", fences and -buildings appear about the Trailer. As the picture recedes ob jects gradually flatten out. yet with their angle so constructed that each retains its true .perspective. They, become flatter SUNDAY OREGONTAK. . PORTLAND, APRIL - 23, 1905, TEEW OF TICK GOVERNMENT BCrXTJINOS AND THE BRIDGE OF NATIONS, TAKEN FKOM AMERICAN INN. and flatter until they are merged Into silhouettes. In the view of Galveston the foreground is real water, carried back into the picture so that practically all the water lapping the beach and stretch ing away Into the middle distance is real. A new invention keeps the water In continual motion. Waves break upon the beach. This illustration Is carried out all the way to the horizon. so that the eye may follow a wave as It flows from under the feet of, the Trailer far away Into the picture, until Its individuality Is lost In the wide-ocean distance. The scene, as the Trallor looks across the "bay at the city, is one of continuous life and action. Waves scintillate and sparkle as they break on the white sand, vessels and boats enter and leave the harbor, trolley cars traverse the streets and trains cross the three-mlje bridge that separates the city from the mainland. Night falls with new and beautiful effects. Crimson clouds that form as the sum slowly sets over the ocean are gradually dissipated as the last rays light upon the church spires and tall buildings. Shadows of building! are seen, objects change their direction and lengthen with the setting sun. Dark ness deepens, lights appear one by one la these buildings', the lighthouse throws its glare across the moving water and trains, brilliantly illuminated, cross the bridge." The moonlight in the heavens marks its reflection across the waters of the Gulf. Daylight returns after a real istic sunrise, the lecturer leading his au dience up to the history of the storm. Suddenly the scene changes. Winds howl across the Gulf. Clouds gather in the sky. Darkness comes on with the ap proaching storm. Rain falls In torrents. Lightning flashes and the detonations of the heaven's artillery -fill the Trailer with awe. The water rises. The Trailer sees the waves Increasing In size and fury as they dash madly on the strand and are lashed Into foam, Each succeeding wave encroaches farther on the shore until the bearch and near-by streets are Inundated. Louder shrieks the wind, fiercer Is the roar of the waters, until eyerythlng be comes blotted out In the mist. The storm ales away. The rain ceases and the water recedes. The Trailer sees naught but ruins. Where once stood tall and majestic buildings, nothing remains but debris. Shattered houses, wrecked ware houses, vessels driven ,hlgh out of the water and lying in a wlerd tangle on the beach Are all that now remains of the thriving seaport. - Then the spectator is suddenly relieved by a change of scene which shows Galveston restored; with the splendid sea wall protecting It against future catastrophes. A vision of two worlds is beheld In Dark ness and Dawn. The shades of Hades are depicted with startling realism by the most advanced mechanical and electrical ingenuity. Entering an apparently limit less gallery, p, mirrors. , the Trailer sees In the distance a playing fountain. The ; corridor Is followed for some distance until the visitors stumble Into the ghoul ish gloom of the Cafe of the Dead, where they partake of gruesome repasts served ; upon coffiae by undertakers and widows. J A monk appears and offers to guide ! the living through the realms of the dead. One of the party consents to die. i and Is transformed Into a skeleton be J fore the eyes of his companions. He . then assumes his natural "form. Piloted by the solemn monk, the party descends to the infernal regions, where they j gaze across a vast gulf. Charon and j his craft wait to carry them across the ; woeful river of Acheron. The gloomy j guide holds tiie spectators spellbound; j by reciting passaages from Dante's In ferno to illustrate the various phases of hell, through which the party Is passing. His Satanic Majesty Is ap proached. He receives the party and speaks to them in tho words of tne Italian poet. The environment of the Prince of Evil is full of awful majesty. Sulphurous smoke encircles him. The cries of the damned souls make a cho rus of despair that Is chilling In its reality. All the punishments described by Dante are shown by living figures. Tho Imnrc.i.ilvpnM!! of line Illusion Is thus rendered under a personal feeling, J which makes the Trailer a spectator In the scene? around hfm. In the midst cf these tragic scenes the audience Is suddenly saluted with goblin laughter. The guide explains that they are ap proaching the more humorous punish ments meted to the sinners with whom we are-so well acquainted, especially the policeman who says "move on" and, the ice man who sells his ware at 25 cents a chunk, ' and those who poke their olfactory organs Into other peo ple's business. The tramp is treated to a boiling hot bath an 1 the teller of fish stories Is suspended by fish hooks over ATEtV SHOWING PROGRESS a boiling lake, and so the fun goes on. Without warning, the Trailer comes upon Daphne' Grove, with Its seduc tive pleasures, emerging unaware Into the visions of Paradise. Tne birth of the Star of Bethlehem, Its Increasing brilliancy, with hosts of celestial forms revolving In the widening star until the final Intensity of tho celestial dawn sends the visitor forth with' the strains of the Holy City sounding in his ears. The Temple of Mirth, popularly termed the "foolish house," is one of the unique features of the Trail. The trailer finds himself In a hallway, the walls of which are mounted with myriads of plate-glass mirrors. Attempting to open what he supposes Is a door, the trailer suddenly appreciates the fact that he Is fencing with the old conundrum, "when Is a door not a door?" Unless In the hands of a guide, all attempts to And egress from this remarkable maze- are futile, and the trailer, provided he be other than a chron ic dyspeptic, must needs wax mirthful. Lack of space does not permit mention at length of all the attractions on the Trail. Among the various offerings of this unique thoroughfare of the revelers are Alaska and the Klondike (Land of the Midnight Sun). Roltair's Haunted Castle. Electrical Music, Haunted Swing. Gay Paree. New York Animal Show. Temple of Palmistry. Cascade Gardens, Diving Elks, the Chutes, and various other offer ings equally meritorious. From Portland to Ala6kn. In the Land of the Midnight Sun the trailer Is taken from Portland via the Northern Pacific Railroad to Seattle and thence to Dawson City, Canada. A vivid and truthful portrayal of scenes In the Far North Is offered, made possible by the. ingenious use of plastic representa tions and the scenepainter's art. Sitting In a comfortable opera chair, the trailer seeaj the City of Portland with Its sky piercing office structures and public build ings; its river front and docks. Rising to dizzy heights In the distance Is seen the majestic and Immaculately clad Mount Hood. Night approaches. The sun slow ly sets and darkness falls over the thriv ing city. Lights gleam in thousands of windows and the moon casts its reflection upon the smooth surface of the Willam ette River. Dawn approaches and the scene changes. Before the visitor lies the City of Seattle, picturesque with Its many buildings, docks and precipitous streets. Once more night approaches, the city is aglow with lights, and the moon rises slowly from behind the Washington me tropolis. Suddenly the visitor feels the throb of a propeller. He has embarked. Leaving Elliott Bay. the city recedes and the steamer passes through the Strait of Juan dc Fuca Into the tumultuous waters of the Pacific. The trailer sees beautiful mellow moonlight upon the animated OF BUILDINGS ON THE TRAIL. waters. Then the sky becomes overcast. Wind howls with relentless fury. Light ning flashes and thunder roars. Great waves lash themselves Into foamy white and the trailer holds his breath In antici pation of disaster. The fury of the storm subsides, and the glorious, iridescent, scin tillating aurora borealls In all Its prismat ic beauty, spraying Its marvelous colora over the little town of Skaguay, is seen and holds the trailer in wondering admi ration. As the "ooat glides down the Yu kon River there passes In review a snow storm, the white, filmy flakes In blinding volume and piling high on tho mountains. There are also endless stretches of snow fields, snow-capped peaks, glaciers and avalanches, all standing out against the lurid heavens as tangible and real as life Itself; and so on. until the destination is reached, wnen the destruction of Dawson City by fire Is the culminating event o the trip. In . this scene the . rays of the midnight sun appearing from behind the Moosekin Mountains, the, romantic, in teresting and famous town is wiped out of existence by a disastrous conflagration. The flames arc seen to leap from one I building to another through the suffocat- j Ing smoke till Dawson City 13 laid low. Just as It actually occurred on Jarfuary 10, 1900. Eeauty and realism are the pre dominating features of this attraction. So natural are all the scenes and so vivid ly Is the story told as they pass In review that the whole ensemble gives the effect of actual experience. The "Land of the Midnight Sun" gives the trailer an Intel ligent Idea of the Far North, the Klon c -.e gold fields. White Pass. Chilcoot and various other places of interest. Up in the Klondike. Many trailers have exhibited at various times much interest In the Klondike, par ticularly during the rush for that north ern center. The Klondike mining exhibit shows a comprehensive and instructive display of mining methods in vogue In the Klondike and characterizes the mode of living. Climbing a long stairway, the Trailer finds himself In the center of tne building. Before him lies a beautiful val ley. In the Immediate foreground is a miner's cabin, so constructed as to show its Interior. A lively creek surges through the valley. Upon the bank of this creek is seen a hoary old man with a rocker. I He is termed in the Klondike a "country 1 sniper," a man who Is given permission to obtain what gold he may from dumps. Aside from this, the rocker illustrates one method of gathering gold, which is ex tensively used in the Far North. To exemplify the more modern methods, full sized slulceboxes. with real gravel, rock and sand are utilized. T"he gravel is windlassed from below the surface by la borers, and dumped Into the sluices. In the Interior of the cabin the method of drying and sacking the golddust 13 lllus- t rated, as ' well as the manner In which Klondike miners live. The "Seeing Telephone." One attraction on the Trail which easily affords the visitor ample food for thought and wonderment is that of the tellevue, a telephone through which the speaker may see the party he is addressing. This Is the most remarkable Invention of the age, and one that should prove of unusual Interest to the Trailer. In appearance the tellevue is not unlike the usual telephone. The receiver and transmitter of the teller vue are precisely the same as those of the ordinary Instrument. In fact, the only noticeable difference between the two Js that a lense projects from the tellevue. Entering a booth the Trailer takes the receiver and places It to his ear. Glancing through the lense he easily distingulBnes the features of the persons at tne rar end or tne line, une teuevuo is the contrivance of a Portland man. Meanderers along the amusement streets of various expositions have seen all kinds of animal prodigies. The Trailer may see diving elks and a horse possessed of remarkable - calculating proclivities. Seating himself in a spacious auditorium, the Trailer sees a picturesque plastic rep resentation of mountain scenery. A pre cipitous cliff rises from the Immediate foreground, and beyond are seen cragged peaks and great mountains. The picture carries Into the distance, where the indi viduality of the mountain range Is lost in the azure skies. At the foot of the cllft stretches a peaceful lake. Trails arc seenjj winding their way up the cliffside, ardund treacherous points where the brinks fall away Into forbidding gorges, and upon this beautiful scenic offering elks appear. They climb the trails until they have reached the highest point on the cliff. The larger of the herd, with his four feet slowly slides down an Incline. Suddenly he leaps and plunges Into the lake many feet below. The balance, of the herd fol low. The trailer's attention Is then called to Princess Trlxie. the beautiful horse, well up In mathematics and busi ness methods. On request this remark able equine adds, subtracts, divides and multiplies numbers of small denomina tions. She spells the name of any well known city. Her feats are conceded to be the most marvelous performed by an animal. Guild's Lake, the largest body of water ever contained within an exposition grounds, and the natural basin of the Centennial, is the scene o one of the greatest water pageants ever offered the public. In a beautiful gondola of purest Venetian design, propelled by some swarthy son of Italy, the Trailer may M glide over the placid surface of tho lake as he comfortably reclines upon well up holstered cushions. Before him rise the Imposing Government buildings on the peninsula and beyond he sees five great snow-capped mountains. To his left a fir-studded spur of the Cascades drop? abruptly to the water's edge. South of him the Lakevlew terrace slopes gently to the Grand Esplanade, and upon Its summit the Trailer sees the magnificent Exposition palaces. If he prefers mors modem means of conveyance he may press an electric launch Into service. WEEK FOR WESTERN AUTHORS - Exposition May Set Apart Dates for "Well-Known Authors. A Western authors' day or week at tha LevIs and Clark Exposition has been sug gested by Robertus Love, editor of the Exposition press bureau. The idea has been taKen up by the Exposition manage ment, with the result that favorable ac tion Is to be taken on it at an early date. There are several widely known authors who claim Oregon as their native state, and many prominent writers belong to the West. Among the Oregonlans are Joaquin Miller and Edwin Markham. and It la suggested that Mr. Miller, at least, should be honored with a special day, at which he be Invited to appear In tho Auditorium as the guest of the Exposi tion. The following communication bear ing on the subject has been forwarded by Mr. Love to headquarters: We are to have special days In honor of various Individuals, societies and institutions. I propose a Western Authors' day, or. still better, a Western Authors week, with a Joaquin Miller day In the middle of It. Joaquin Miller, as you know, was one of the early settlers of Oregon. He grew up In this state when It was a territory; fought In dians in Oregon, dug gold In Oregon, wrote poetry In Oregon, and his first book of an7 consequence was published in Portland. No writer so fitly and fully represents the New West the Oregon country and California as does the Poet of the Sierras. His works vi brate with the vastness of the mountains- and the plains. He is the interpreter of the sreat solitudes' of our wildernesses no less than otf tho heroic builders of our cities. Miller U the dean of Western auYhorp. a picturctque character, a personality of International In terest. It occurs to me that the Exposition could not do a more fitting thing than to honor Joaquin Miller In this wise. From the sentimental viewpoint it would be a mere matter of po etic Justice. There are in the states west ot the Mis sissippi River many writers who have won more- or less prominence. California has a score or more, Oregon haa several, and "Wash ington la not lacking. Mrs. Eva Emery Dye, for instance, by her works, han contributed largely to the success of the Exposition; and in any arrangements for an authors week. It appears to me that she should have a place of honor. If your department could st&rt the movement by giving It official sanction, the publicity, .department,. I am sure, would use its- facilities in promoting the success of the gathering. I therefore suggest a Western Authors' week. Invitations to be sent personally to all auth ors living west of. the Mississippi River who may be deemed worthy of such recognition, with a Joaquin Miller day about the middle of the week, or on Saturday. It preferable, committees of authors residing in or near Portland to arrange a programme of exerctaeg In the Auditorium, etc. - Magistrate Ah! they have caught you drunk again, eh? Hobo No, Yer Honor. Imperson ate'' an officer dls time. I guess dey caught me asleep- In a. doorway. Philadelphia Press.