The Adventures of Uncle Jeremiah and Family at the Great Fair | Page 7

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steam and by electricity and gay sailboats of every description. In the
far end of the basin was to be seen the Statue of the Republic sixty-five
feet tall and standing forty feet above the water on its great stone
foundation. The MacMonnies fountain was roaring with the fall of
water and the heroic figures of Columbia enthroned in her triumphal

barge guided by Time and heralded by Fame was outlined against the
Agricultural building. From the dome of that massive structure,
exhibiting the produce of our land, Diana with her drawn bow seemed
to be aiming directly at them.
"Let us sit down," said Aunt, as the first wave of the wonderful vision
passed over them.
"I feel more like saying, let us kneel down," said Uncle.
Fanny read from the front of the Administration building the
inscriptions there about Columbus and his work.
High over the north entrance were the words:
"Columbus received from Ferdinand and Isabel, Sovereigns of Spain, a
commission as Admiral of an exploring fleet, April 30, 1492."
Over the east entrance she read:
"Columbus sailed from Palos with three small vessels, Aug. 3, and
landed on one of the Bahama Islands."
What common-place facts so simply stated! But they brought forth
thoughts and emotions greater and greater of the wonderful
consequences to mankind.
"Grandpa, you see how we have come here to learn of the world and its
progress to this greatness."
"Do not speak to me now, child; I want to think," and Uncle bowed his
head in his hands.
No one said anything for a few minutes, when Johnny startled them by
yelling "Gorgeous! gorgeous!"
"Of course it's gorgeous," said Fanny; "but you needn't yell that way.
You must not forget that you are not in our barnyard now."

Johnny subsided. He had expressed his opinion, and he was ready to
move on.
Uncle arose and said: "I guess we are able to go to the next scene now,
and I warn you all that the word gorgeous is as high as we will be
allowed to go in expressing ourselves, no matter what we see. There
has got to be a limit somewhere, and I judge that gorgeous is far
enough."
"Is that the statyure of Mrs. Columbus?" asked Johnny.
"No, it's the Statue of the Republic."
"I declare I've been watching them things on that Statue of the Republic,
and I really believe they're men instead of being pigeons."
"They are men," said Fanny. "No wonder that they look so little, for the
book here says her forefinger is four feet long. Look at that figure on
the top of the big building yonder. That Is Diana, the huntress. How tall
do you think she is?"
"Nine feet," said Johnny, promptly.
"Life-size," said Uncle.
"Both wrong. The book says she is eighteen feet tall."
"Well, well, my girl, this looks like a dream, but it ain't, is it?"
There was a band-stand in front of them, and beyond that was a
massive building, which Fanny found was Machinery hall. As they
went on to it, Fanny read to them that it covered over twenty acres of
ground and cost nearly a million and a half dollars. As they entered the
door they saw one awful mass of moving machinery.
Uncle said he thought they had better sit down again and think awhile
before venturing further, but Johnny urged them to come on so they
could see something and do their thinking afterward.

They came to one of the doors of the power house, and Uncle sat down.
"I can't stand this pressure," he said, "I tell you I've got to sit down and
look at this thing." At his left he could see into the power house nearly
five hundred feet long and full from one end to the other of great
boilers with the red fires glowing underneath.
On the right he looked across the hall where the great power wheel was
flying and saw five hundred feet of whirling wheels, while before him
there was an unobstructed view of machines but little short of a
thousand feet.
They went over to the middle aisle and on past the larger machinery.
"Why Grandma, you are walking by me with your eyes shut. What's the
matter?"
"Well you see, Fanny, it's too much to look at so many millions of
things so I just shut my eyes and think. What's the difference if I do
miss a few thousand sights."
"That's so, Fanny, we aint got used to looking yet. It looks like they had
everything a working here but my old shaving horse. I wouldn't be
surprised any minute to see that it had walked away from the woodshed
and come over to show itself off in this here exposition. I