Democratic Sentinel, Volume 21, Number 37, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 September 1897 — LABOR'S OWN DAY. [ARTICLE]

LABOR'S OWN DAY.

Workingmen in Many Cities Ob*erv* Their Annual Holiday. Latest born of the anniversary days which in the United State* are deemed worthy of special observance, Labor Day this year again proved good it* claim to an endearing place in the calendar. Throughout the year* of it* existence its purpose and it* significance have gained favor and appreciation more and more. In Chicago the public participated generously in the celebration. Member* of workingmen’s organizations, for whom the occasion is the most momentous of the year, because it reflects their strength and their progress, forsook the bench and forge and in peaceful mood checked for the day the industrial life of the city. When they gathered along the broad pavement in Michigan avenue to form the parade that was the main event of the day they made a pageant whose like has seldom been witnessed on the continent. Thirty thousand bread winners were in line and thrice that number looked on and applauded. " At Toronto the Labor Day procession combined to make the industrial exhibition the greatest success in its history. A procession two miles long paraded the streets all morning, and in the afternoon the workingmen went to the show. The jubilee procession of Victorian era tableaux was witnessed by tens of thousands, lhe railroad traffic, owing to the great crowds attracted here by the fair, was the heaviest in the history of the railroads. lhe . Labor Day demonstration, in Springfield, 111, was the most pretentious for years. The number of workingmen in the procession was about 2,000. It was reviewed by the Governor and State officials from a decorated stand. The tenth annual celebration of Labor Day in Dubuque was more generally observed than ever before. Addresses were delivered by Mayor Duffy and William E. Burns of Chicago. The feature of Labor Day celebration in St. Louis was an address by W. J. Bryan at Concordia Park. The biggest crowd ever seen in the park greeted the speaker. His speech throughout was enthusiastically applauded. Previous to the meeting Mr. Bryan reviewed a parade of 15,000 laboring men. Ex-Gov. Altgeld of Illinois delivered an address at Philadelphia, where thousands of persons had assembled to assist the United Labor League in the celebration of Labor Day. The noted jurist and politician from the Prairie State was introduced to the large audience by President Ernest Kreft and received a flattering welcome. His speech was listened to with keen interest throughout and frequently provoked outbursts of enthusiastic demonstration. r.