Democratic Sentinel, Volume 17, Number 13, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 April 1893 — SUNSHINE A BIG BOON. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

SUNSHINE A BIG BOON.

HELPS WORK AT THE WORLD’S FAIR GREATLY. -- I Clear Weather Has Enabled a Largely Increased Force of Men to Prepare Roadways and Hurry the Buildings Along to Completion. Notes of the Big Show. Chicago correspondence: A week of sunshine and a mud-drying wind from the north has put fresh' energy into thousands of men who are getting the Fair in readiness for the opening day. An immense amount of , progress was made during a fortnight (if snow, rain and slush; but the things accomplished since the clouds rolled away go a long way toward justifying the calm, confident statement of Director General Davis and his department chiefs that with good weather the Exposition will be practically finished when the big engine begins to throb on May 1. With the appearance of the sun orders were issued to press work all along the line, and by noon 10,000 men were toiling in the grounds. The efforts of the workmen were not concentrated on any

one building or along the roadways, which have been in an execrable condition ever since the snow disappeared'. Every contractor felt the prod from the Administration Building. Not one of them was spared. In nearly every des- - the force of men was increased, and in some instances doubled and trebled. The painters and decorators are making the most of the sunshine. Heretofore they have been kept under cover or prevented from working altogether. Ali day on Monday they clung upon domes, scampered over the facades of big buildings and threw their colors and

tints upon arches and pillars. The planked roads which were laid when the mud defied the movement of building material are now being ripped up and an extra force of workmen’is grading and scraping the avenues about the buildings. South of machinery hall another foice is making roads with the assistance of steam crushers. Off in one corner of the grounds a half hundred men are burning the debris of the Fair. Fires have been burning there for two months or more, and all day Monday wagons were hauling

refuse to the flames. The fuel comes from all parts of the grounds. It comes from Germany with Its blue painted crates, from Alaska with the heavy cases plastered with “old glory” labels and from all the Government and State buildings where workmen have -feveied their scaffolding with the ground, Qyer at agricultural hall a hundred men are at work raising and placing in position the animal groups wrought in staff. The work of construction and landscape, gardening must soon be finished, and every effort toward this end is being put forth. * JuU Half a Dollar. It costs just half a dollar now to get into the grounds. The original intention to close the gates March 15 in order that work might not be hindered by visitors was reconsidered because the revenue was becoming quite an item in replenishing Treasurer Seeberger’s rather 6lim balance. To increase the revenue without greatly increasing the number of visitors it was suggested that the entrance fee be increased to to cents. Somebody made the suggestion that $1 admission be charged, but the exhibition authorities thought such a tax would De prohibitive. At a meeting of the board of admissions a resolution was unanimously adopted fixing the price of admission at 50 cents, beginning April 1. The first Sunday following this decision 8,000 admission tickets were sold, and the number who seek to gain entrance increases daily. American HI ile Society KxMbit. The American Bible Society has prepared a curious exhibit for the fair. It will show a number of historic bibles, plates from which the largest editions of bibles ever struck were printed, and long rows of bibles in foreign tongues. The latter are designed to give some idea of the stupendous difficulties the society has overcome in translating the scriptures into languages that are seldom mastered by English-speaking people. In a general way the purpose of the society is to show what it has done since it was organized seventy-six years ago. Copies of each of the annual reports and bound files of the Bible Society Record will occupy shelves in one of the eight cases in which the exhibit will be contained. In the same case will appear specimens of the electrotype plates used in printing the Scriptures. Two of these plates are

especially noteworthy, one of them having been employed in the set used in printing 980,000 copies of the 5-cent edition of the New Testament, a total edition numbering 3.300,000 having been issued since 1878. The other plate is one of those used in supplying 876,000 copies of the 2,054,000 20-cent Bibles which have come from the society’s presses in the same period. The World’s Fair model Sunday-school building, which is to be erected on Stony Island avenue, opposite the 47th street entrance of Jackson Park, seems to be an assured fact. Nearly $20,000 out of the $30,000 needed to begin the work of construction has been subscribed. Since the first admission tickets to the World’s Fair have been placed on sale tn Chicago, the managers have been besieged with applications for the tickets from persons in all parts of the country as wed as Europe, who desire them not so much for actual use as for souvenirs, and it is to meet this demand that the managers decided to begin the sale thus early. They' are season tickets, good for admission to the Fair at any time between May 1 and Oct 30. The first issue is six millions, in four different designs. They have been made by the American Bank Note Company, with special reference to the prevention

of counterfeiting. White paper of special manufacture is used for the tickets. In genera] texture it resembles the paper on which national bank notes are printed. Instead of the silk cords in the bank-note paper there are small particles of different colored linen paper, which, being cut up very fine, were dropped into the pulp while it was being run through the rollers in course of manufacture, and in this way became a part of the sheet itself. The process by which this paper is manufactured is entirely hew and patented. In this way alone it is thought the possibility of successful counterfeiting of the tickets has been removed. In general design the tickets resemble somewhat the old 25-cent piece of fractional currency. They measure 3 3-5 inches in length by 2j inches in width. On the face of the tickets appears, In scroll wprk at the top, “World’s Columbian Exposition.” Below is the line “Admit the bearer,” and still lower are the dates for which the tickets are good. In the left hand end is the engraving of the head of either Columbus, Lincoln, Washington, or an Indian chief in full war dress. At the bottom of the tickets is what seems at first glance a fine lined border three-quarters of an inch wide. It is really the words, “World’s Columbian Exposition, Chicago," in very small letters. There are seventeen separate lines of lettering in the narrow border. On this border are the engraved signatures of A. F. Seeberger, Treasurer, and H. IV. Higinbotham, President. Through the signatures of the officers is a punched perforation and in the middle of the ticket is u colored scroll work design a little larger than a silver quarter, the color varying on the different designs and being either purple, pink, green, or blue. The back of the ticket is what seems to be scroll work, but which is fine lettering, the Words "Columbian Exposition” and “Chicago, 1893,” appearing. In a little darker shade of the same color of the background is “Good for one admissioh at pay gates.” ’ The demand from persons who wanted to purchase tickets as souvenirs was so large the management thought if

they were so anxious to buy a ticket of the first issue they would be equally anxious to purchase a complete set if the design was varied, and so the tickets are issued in four designs. Besides the second ticket there wili be tickets of much cheaper design and material, in-

tended for sale only at the gates tc visitors going right into the exposition. v *\ College Hill Sanitarium^Burned. A careless tinner upon the roof of the College Hill Sanitarium at Cincinnati. Ohio, caused a loss of from SIOO,OOO tc $150,000 of property and imperiled the lives of 200 patients. A hot soldering iron was permitted to ignite the rooi and the flames quickly'got beyond the control of the waterworks of the institution, as well as that of the village of College Hill. The superintendent, Dr. O. Everetts, directed the attendants tc give every effort to the task of safely removing the sick, the insane, and the ailing patients. In this they were faithfully assisted by the villagers, whe flocked to the place. The seenes within the great structure, four stories in height and filled with 200 patients, were exciting. The insane shrieked and tore their clothing, the less unfortunate were distracted by fear, and begged U be helped away from the flames.

ADMISSION TICKET.

LIGHTHOUSE NEAN LIFE-BAVING STATION.

LOOKING EAST FROM THE ADMINISTRATION BUILDING.

POSTOFFICE IN THE GOVERNMENT BUILDING.