A GREAT DISAPPOINTMENT
Probably many of you will go, or have already gone, to the
Panama-Pacific International Exposition, which is the official name for
what is commonly called the Panama Fair, and I shall often refer to it
that way myself. Those of you who have seen the fair will, therefore,
recognize much of what is described in this book.
"Say, this certainly is great!" cried Pep, with sparkling eyes, as he
glanced about, once they were inside the exposition grounds. They had
to obtain a pass, as the place was not yet open to the public, but as
possible concessionnaires in the Zone they found no trouble in being
admitted. "It's great--immense--stupendous--wonderful! It's--it's----"
"Hold on, Pep!" cried Frank. "Save a few of those big words."
"Yes," agreed Randy with a smile. "You haven't begun to see it yet,
Pep."
"That's right!" chimed in Hank Strapp. "This is the biggest thing of
its kind that ever happened. It's like the West--it's big--we have to
have room to spread ourselves out here, boys. It sure is great!"
To hear him talk, and look at his honest, enthusiastic face, you would
have thought that Strapp himself had had a great deal to do with the
success of the venture. But that was only his way.
The boys, with Strapp and Ben, had gone in through the Fillmore Street
entrance. Directly to their left began that part of the grounds given
over to amusement enterprises, with the broad highway, called the Zone,
which gave its name to the active division, running through it. The
structure for the great scenic railway was the first object that met
the eyes of the boys, but they were not greatly interested in that,
having seen a number, though this was destined to excel most of them.
But it was not yet finished.
On the left was Festival Hall, with its beautiful grounds, on which
men were still working, and then before the boys and their friends
stretched out the Avenue of Progress, with the Machinery Palace on the
right, and the group of buildings about the Court of the Universe as a
center, on their left. Those latter buildings would, later, house the
exhibits of varied industries, mines and metallurgy, transportation,
manufactures, liberal arts, agriculture, food products and education
and economy.
"I wonder if they'll have any motion picture machines on exhibition?"
spoke Randy, for he was much interested in the mechanical end of their
business.
"Oh, there'll be sure to be plenty of those," Frank said. "Now what
shall we do?"
"Look about a bit," proposed Pep. "This is the greatest place I ever
struck!"
"But don't linger too long," advised Hank. "If we're going to get a
concession we'd better look lively. A whole lot depends on getting a
good place, especially for motion pictures. We don't want to get left."
"No, indeed," agreed Frank, "not after the way we hustled out here."
"But we can look about a little," suggested Ben Jolly. "I want to see
if they have any small pipe organs we can arrange to install. A pipe
organ is what we want to bring out the full effect of our pictures."
"A pipe organ it shall be!" promised Frank, laughing.
A brief description of the Panama Fair may not be out of place here.
The grounds are along the north side of the city, extending for over
two miles, facing Alcatraz Island, the harbor and Golden Gate channel,
and they are from a quarter to half a mile wide, the entire exhibit
being within the corporate limits of the city. I will not weary you
with details and dull figures, but I might say that the Zone, or
amusement concession, covers sixty-three acres, and when you consider
that a ten-acre field is quite a stretch of land, you can imagine what
one six times as large would be. In all, the fair covers 635 acres, and
adjoining it is the Presido government reservation of over 1,500 acres,
which Uncle Sam generously opens to the visitors to the great fair, so
that they have an almost unlimited "playground."
All about them the boys saw beautiful buildings, arches of triumph and
progress, groups of statuary, fountains, and gardens in which grew
flowers of all the rainbow hues. The place was a riot of color by day,
and would be more so by night, for great electric lights and colored
fountains would add their beauty to the splendid scene.
The boys were greatly interested in the ten-acre tract of the United
States Government exhibit, and drill ground.
"Oh, would you look at that!" cried Pep, when they had drawn near.
"Isn't that great!"
"It certainly is!" agreed his chums. What Pep referred to was a
500-foot model, perfect in every detail, of the Panama Canal. On the
miniature waterway floated vessels which gave a perfect representation
of crossing from ocean to ocean, Gatun Dam, Culebra Cut, the locks and
all their complicated machinery being shown perfectly, and with all the
electrical and lighting effects that go to make the Panama Canal the
most wonderful piece of engineering work in the world.
"Say, I could stay here all day!" cried Pep, as he watched workmen
putting the finishing touches on the miniature waterway.
"But we can't," declared Frank. "We have no end of things to attend to,
and not a great deal of time to do it in."
"That's right," chimed in Hank Strapp. "We don't want to get left."
Leaving, rather reluctantly it must be confessed, the wonderful model
of the canal, our friends made their way to the Zone once more. They
had made inquiries, and learned that the manager who had charge of
allotting the concessions would be in his office in about an hour.
The Van Ness Avenue entrance, nearest the city proper, was made on
an exact plan of the Gatun Spillway at Panama, and from there the
Zone extended over half a mile to the Avenue of Progress, into which
Frank and his chums turned again. At night the plaza would be aglow
with a myriad of brilliantly colored lights, but now the colors of the
various amusement buildings gave a wonderful effect. And the variety of
amusements astounded the boys.
"I didn't think there could be so many ways of taking money from the
public," confessed Randy.
"Oh, we know how to do things out West!" broke in Hank Strapp. "We
don't have to be shown, whether it is taking money out of the ground,
or from strangers. Though I will allow," he said, with a faint smile,
"that we don't aim to do anything unfair, and we'll give a dollar in
value every time."
"I believe you," agreed Pep. Certainly Hank Strapp of Montana had
assayed true value every time.
From candy kitchens and quick-lunch restaurants, to great caverns and
caves, reproductions of some of the most famous in the United States;
from miniature mountains to geysers, waterfalls and canyons ran the
gamut of exhibitions. There was a "toyland grown up," castles, giants'
caves, a Mother Hubbard's cupboard big enough to hold a small village,
merry-go-'rounds of the most up-to-date type, nerve-racking devices--in
short, so much that the boys could only get a general idea of it.
"But I don't see any moving picture places starting," observed Frank
with some satisfaction, as they went on toward the office of the
manager. "And that sure pleases me, for I was afraid we'd be up against
competition."
"Maybe we will be--later," suggested Pep.
"Well, if we get in on the ground floor we can't complain," was Frank's
answer. "I wonder if that chap is in now?"
As they strolled along the Zone, Randy, who was walking a little in the
rear of Frank, called to his chum.
"What is it?" Frank asked.
"That man," replied Randy in a low tone. "Over there by that candy
kitchen. Isn't he the one we met on the train?"
"You mean the Secret----" began Frank, and then he stopped, for he
reflected that his chums did not know Mr. Bullard to be one of Uncle
Sam's secret agents.
"I don't think there's much secret about him!" broke in Randy, with a
laugh. "He blurts out everything he knows, or thinks of. I mean the
red-faced chap who----"
"Oh, him--Royston!" interrupted Frank, with an air of relief. He was
glad he had not spoken what was in his mind, and relieved to find that
the Secret Service man was not present, though it was not without a
feeling of uneasiness that Frank learned his uncouth acquaintance of
the train and bank was present on the grounds.
"Yes, that is he," Frank said, after a hasty look. "I suppose he is
looking after some amusement here."
Royston glanced up in time to observe the boys, but he did not come
toward them, greatly to Frank's relief. In fact, Royston seemed to have
other business, and to be in a hurry, for, with a wave of his hand to
our friends, he made off in an opposite direction.
Frank breathed in relief, and a little later he and his chums were
ushered into the office of the director of the Zone.
"Well, this is quite a delegation," was the greeting of the gentleman
in charge of the big amusement concession. "Is it a party of protest?"
he asked, as he directed that chairs be placed for Frank and his
friends.
"You must be used to receiving such," remarked Ben Jolly.
"I am--more to my sorrow. Everyone who comes in here lately seems to
have some objection to make. I declare it's a hard matter to please
so many. But what can I do for you? You don't look as though you had
trouble on your minds."
"We haven't," Frank said. "Our only trouble is to get a good concession
here."
"It depends on what sort you want," replied the director. "Of course
you know it is rather late to apply for big space."
"We're not looking for such a big place," went on Frank, who had been
selected to do the talking for the delegation. "We want to open a
motion picture theatre, and show some of the more important films--big
plays, you know, well-known actors and all that. Can we engage such
space here in the Zone?"
"Motion pictures, eh?" murmured the director. "Well now, that's too
bad."
"Too bad!" exclaimed Frank, scenting disappointment in the man's voice.
"Yes. You are just too late. The last available concession that could
have been used for motion pictures has been given out. I haven't a
place left that would suit. All the good spots are gone, and I know you
wouldn't want a second-rate one, for you'd fail inside of two weeks. I
am sorry, but you are too late!"