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CHARACTERS

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Hero worship: William Tecumseh Sherman, the Civil War general who laid waste to Georgia during his ``march to the sea,'' left admirers awestruck when he once passed through Colorado Springs. ``As the Midland suburban train which leaves Colorado Springs at 7:30 a.m. drew up in front of the station at Manitou on Thursday the passengers saw a well formed old man of soldierly bearing turn to a man beside him whose blue coat and brass buttons showed him to be a member of the Grand Army, grasp his hand then hurry to the steps of the car. Just as the old man was entering the car a fat woman grasped his arm and pulled him around so that he faced her. `General Sherman,' she said, `my husband was killed while serving under you in '62 and I wanted to shake hands with you because he thought so much of you.' The man thus addressed took the woman's hand, said he was glad to know her, and passed on to a seat nearby, leaving the woman standing at the open door intently watching him in silent admiration.'' (July 14, 1889)

Mad scientist: Nikola Tesla -- inventor of the car alternator, fluorescent light and many other devices -- came to Colorado Springs to conduct radio experiments, one of which shorted out the city's electrical system. Upon his arrival, he was treated like visiting royalty. ``Nikola Tesla, the wizard of electricity, arrived in the city at noon today. `I propose to send a message from Pike's Peak to Paris,' said Mr. Tesla. `I have come here to carry on a series of exhaustive experiments in regard to wireless telegraphy.' He refused to say anything concerning his theories of signaling to Mars or to some of the more distant planets. ...'' (May 17, 1899)

Doggone dogs: ``MISTUR EDITUR -- Smartin under injurys ocashened by laxity of the laws i raise my cry against the promiscus manner in which dogs of large size air now permitted to rome at large refering mopre pertickerlilly to a big yaller dog which while trying to expel from my yard nipped me in the caff of the leg and dodgin the brickbat i let fly at him on the impulse of the minnut and thereby allowing it to smash into my front winder and breakin three flower pots and buryin itself in a risin of bread for which i cry aloud for justis though the heavins do fall and ask whare is the town officers and whare is the dog man and let do thare duty. Yours indignently -- AN OLD LADY.'' (Feb. 21, 1874)

Killer's last words: During Colorado Springs' first and only legal hanging, W.H. Canty was executed -- twice -- for killing a Buena Vista police officer. The rope broke during the first attempt, so Canty's body had to hanged again to satisfy the coroner. ``(After a 19-minute speech, Canty) was placed upon the drop while the officers proceeded to bind his arms and feet. At 3:05 p.m., while they were binding him, he said, `Good-bye all; nothing can save me. I have faith in a Saviour and a hereafter and die innocent. I want to kneel down and pray some more.'' (June 18, 1881)

Teen orators: At Colorado Springs High School (now Palmer) commencement ceremonies, graduating seniors were required to read essays. In 1893, they addressed some weighty topics. ``The first essayist of the evening was Miss Myra Margaret Anderson, who chose for her topic, `The Setting Suns of Empire.' She said that a marked characteristic of all organised life was the want of permanency. The subject of Miss Maud Forshee's essay was `The Early States of Man.' The speaker first glanced at the theory of evolution, and drew the conclusion that man descended from a lower form of life. Miss Forshee traced the conditions of man through three epochs, savagery, barbarism, and civilization. She held in conclusion that the progress of the human race has not stopped but it is tended to a perfect civilization. Miss Ella Louise Taylor, who next spoke, had chosen as her topic, `Twilight of the Gods.' She declared that there is in man's nature something which powerfully attracts him to the mysterious and awful, that uncertain stage between the knowable and the unknown. Twilight is the most pleasurable part of the day, the transitory time. The `Twilight of the Gods' is the time when the `old orrder changeth, giving place to new.''' (June 10, 1893)

Trip to ``Beautiful'': Nearly 40 years after writing ``America the Beautiful,'' Katherine Lee Bates described the 1893 ascent of Pikes Peak that inspired its composition. ``The mules tugged our cumbrous chariot up and up thru a waste of dead white stems, a ghostly forest, until the awful abode of the ancient Manitou, the peak that young Lieutenant Pike had seen but never trod, was attained. An erect, decorous group, we stood at last on that Gate-of-Heaven summit, hallowed by the worship of perished races, and gazed in wordless rapture over the far expanse of mountain ranges and sea-like sweep of plain. It was then and there that the opening lines of `America the Beautiful' sprang into being.'' (December, 1928).

Democrat salutes Springs: Colorado Springs' rock-ribbed Republicans have voted Democratic in only two presidential elections: 1896 (William Jennings Bryan) and 1936 (Franklin Roosevelt). After losing the 1896 election, Bryan made a whistle-stop appearance in Colorado Springs to thank his supporters. The account: ``Mr. Bryan stepped forward but it was some time before he could get in a word for the cheering and yelling. At last he said: `Ladies and Gentlemen, I did not suppose one could find as many people in the United States who had not yet learned that the election is over. The people out this way act as if they had won a great victory. You are right, for we are reorganizing and will accomplish in 1900 what we failed to get in 1896.''' Note: Bryan lost again in 1900 and 1908. (Nov. 26, 1896)

Lowbrows: For entertainment, Colorado Springs' earliest residents had to rely on their own wits -- or lack thereof. The report: ``The first amusement in town in 1873 was an amateur performance. A small boy tied a tin can to a dog's tail. The next was an outdoor entertainment and of a religious nature, held on Cascade Ave. Mr. B. is reported to have made a `holy show' of himself. ... The people were always ready to be amused at anything. There used to be two men in town, whose names are lost to time, that used to cater to this taste in a most entertaining `free show.' Every Sunday afternoon they would get somewhat intoxicated, likewise two ponies, which they would run at full speed up and down Tejon St.'' (Feb. 6, 1887)

Highbrows: Culture-starved residents flocked to see Maud Granger star in the play ``Camille'' during the grand opening of the Colorado Springs Opera House. The account: ``A buzz of flattering commendation was heard until the play began, and it was easily to be seen that the people were delightedly surprised at the extreme beauty and convenience of the theatre. The entrance upon Tejon street is spacious and imposing, being constructed of polished white live oak arches heavily groined and ornamented. The lobby is wide and in a handsome style. Under the grand stairway to the left is the ladies' toilette and retiring room furnished with every convenience. ... The brilliant audience, the handsome theatre, the elegant scenery, the beautiful star and the able company all contributed last night to make the occasion one of triumph.'' (April 19, 1881)

Quick-draw artist: Many famous lecturers appeared at the Colorado Springs Opera House, among them Thomas Nast, the nation's pre-eminent political cartoonist, who showed he was as quick with his tongue as he was with his pen. ```Since Darwin solved the problem of our progenitors,' said Mr. Nast, `I have watched with a great deal of interest the actions and expressions of the illustrious ancestor of the human race, the monkey.' The speaker thus rapidly drew a faithful likeness of the modern monkey, throwing into its face the inimitable monkey expression.'' (Nov. 12, 1887)

Play ball: Early Colorado Springs residents loved baseball, but this account of an amateur contest shows they didn't take the game too seriously. ``There was a lively game of baseball at the Country Club yesterday afternoon in which the bankers and those who sometimes visit those useful institutions and the Country Club teams crossed bats and twirled the sphere in a semi-professional manner. The game was an interesting one, first because it had a genuine minister as an umpire and consequently his decisions must be just and impartial, and second because there was absent the usual adjunct of baseball phraseology. ... The sensation of the game was furnished by Mr. F.O. Wood who fainted at a two-base hit. Owing to the uncertainty of the light and the fact that the Country Club was to be the scene of a dinner party, the game was called off in the fifth inning with the score 15 to 7 (in favor of the bankers).'' (Aug. 5, 1894)

Toro, toro: America's only ``legitimate'' bullfight was staged near Cripple Creek with bulls and matadors imported from Mexico. The spectacle ended when a wounded bull was euthanized on orders of the sheriff and the promoter was arrested for cruelty to animals. The report: ``A long rapier was handed the toreador. He walked up and plunged his sword into the side of its neck. The next thrust penetrated almost to the hilt and the bull fell over instantly, quivering and struggling. Then the toreador mercifully severed the spinal cord just back of the horns and, at a blast of the bugle, a team of mules rushed in, were hitched to the heels of the carcass and it was dragged out, while the band played crashy music and (the toreador) saluted with his dripping sword.'' (Aug. 25, 1895)

Everybody's a star: When Lae's Music Store advertised its ``closing out'' sale, even those of modest means could afford to buy a musical instrument. ``Violins, $2 to $5. Guitars, $4 to $10. Accordeons, $2 to $10.'' (May 14, 1878)

Baa-baa: Ranching has always been big business in the countryside surrounding Colorado Springs. This account tells of a visit to a prosperous sheep ranch 25 miles from town owned by ``Messrs. A McIntrye and C. Thurlow'' -- ``After supper we cornered Mr. Thurlow, and from him learned that they owned and shared between 11,000 and 12,000 head of sheep. To run these properly they must have an immense range, and to that end have been buying up land for some time past, until now the land they control is thirty miles long and between five and fifteen miles wide. ... They sheared the past season 8,000 head, with an average of 51/2 pounds per head. They have been unusually fortunate in that their sheep have never been troubled with scab. They have not had to dip the sheep for six years past.'' (Oct. 4, 1878)

Horse power: When the city built its first trolley line in 1887, heavy draft horses supplied the muscle. But the horses were retired three years later to make room for electric-powered streetcars. The report: ``This morning the Colorado Springs and Manitou Street Railway company will open their line for public travel. That the operation of the street railway will have an important influence upon the development and growth of the city there can be no question. With a well equipped street railway, a perfect system of water works, and well conducted electric light and gas plants, there are very few public conveniences which Colorado Springs does not now enjoy. ... Three turn-outs have been put in at convenient points, and a stable has been erected at the corner of Tejon and Cimarron streets. Eighteen heavy draft horses were purchased by the company in the east, and the cars were ordered through a firm of Denver manufacturers. The equipment of the road is first class in every respect. In fact, it was built exactly after the pattern of the Denver system.'' (Nov. 2, 1887)

Gold fever: The Gazette initially kept quiet about the 1890 gold discovery in Cripple Creek. The newspaper finally mentioned it in 1891, at the end of a story -- later proved false -- about a gold discovery in Florissant. ``The talk about the find at Florissant brought to light a matter that the Gazette had promised to keep quiet until better developments gave it a foundation. This is the fact that a vein of gold ore has been found in the mountains and not a great way from Florissant. The story as told is as follows: About one month ago a young ranchman rather well known in the city came here with the statement that he had found a vein of rich ore. Very little attention was paid to it, but one citizen determined to look into the case. He prepared to outfit the fellow, but the latter decided to put his find into other hands. This he did, and a company was formed with Dr. J.P. Grannis, of this city, at the head. Claims were staked, properly surveyed and are now recorded. A Gazette representative was yesterday shown rock that it is claimed was taken from the vein and that it is alleged assays over $2,000 to the ton. This find is about thirteen miles south of Florissant and not far from Mt. Pisgah, but is not in the old salted district. Developments will be awaited with interest.'' (Feb. 12, 1891)

Kitchen of tomorrow: Cooking with electricity was still a distant dream when audiences flocked to the Antlers Hotel pavilion to see this futuristic demonstration. The account: ``The cooking is so simple that it can hardly be described. To each of the cooking utensils is attached a disc of metal. Into this runs a wire, which heats it and it in turn heats the dish. ... On the cooking table a fine piece of tenderloin was broiling, coffee was boiling, eggs frying and a young lady stood by camly turning hot cakes. They were dispensed to all who desired to sample them, and few could resist the temptation to try something cooked by electricity. ... Perhaps the most interest centered in the oven. A big fat turkey was roasting in a square glass and on the inside is an incandescent light so that one can look in and see the cooking process. The box is of wood and lined inside with asbestos and tin, and on the inside are three of the metal plates.'' (April 8, 1893)

Horseless power: The first horseless carriage arrived in Colorado Springs after a tortuous trip from Denver. Little did anyone suspect the contraption would soon usher in a golden age of tourism in the Pikes Peak region. The paper's report: ``When the party reached a point six miles north of Palmer Lake, which was on Friday afternoon, the machine exhausted its supply of gasoline, the oil used to generate motive power, and was compelled to suspend operations until a fresh supply could be procured. For this it was necessary to send to Colorado Springs, and it was late Saturday evening before the fresh supply of gasoline reached the scene of the delay. Accordingly, it was Sunday or yesterday morning before the carriage started again for Colorado Springs, and it reached this city in the middle of the afternoon. The automobile is a heavy vehicle, weighing about 1,800 pounds, but its appearance would not indicate that it was of so much weight. It is handsomely finished in dark and bright colors, runs on solid rubber tires and is noiseless save for a slight buzzing to which the rider readily becomes accustomed.'' (July 24, 1899)

Home, sweet home: The dedication of the Union Printers Home -- a rest home for ill and retired printers -- prompted a citywide celebration. The paper's account: ``Yesterday was the most auspicious day in the annals of the printing craft. The dedication of the Child-Drexel Home for Union Printers occurred in this city without a hitch in the program. ... At 10 o'clock the marching bodies were arranged about The Antlers hotel awaiting the arrival of Governor Routt's special train. ... It is estimated that there were 10,000 people in the streets, a big, good-natured crowd who laughed and cheered and yelled to their heart's content. The parade was a great success, a moving panorama of colors. ... A general holiday was declared throughout the city, and all business houses suspended. Many of the business houses were handsomely decorated with flags and bunting, especially along the line of march. Places on Pike's Peak Avenue that especially deserve mention for their decorations are the Durkee block, the Gazette building and D.E. Aikens' music store.'' (May 13, 1892)

Professional firefighters: For more than two decades, Colorado Springs relied on volunteer firefighters. But in a secret session of the city council, lawmakers decided it was time the fire department turned pro. ``The scheme is as follows: The three companies in the central part of the city will be disbanded and also the Hook and Ladder company,'' the paper reported. ``The paid department will consist of the chief and probably four men. All of these will be selected from the volunteers, except the chief. The apparatus will consist of a Champion combination wagon. It is a hose cart, chemical engine and hook and ladder wagon combined. On the front of the wagon is carried a 50-gallon tank, and on the sides two portable tanks. In the back part will be 1,200 feet of hydrant hose and there will also be 50 feet of chemical hose. The wagon also carries two extension ladders and the necessary axes, bars, torches, clothing and tools. ... The horses will be bought right away and put into training.'' (Jan. 31, 1894)

Ball of fire: When five runaway freight cars -- one loaded with blasting powder, another with naphtha -- collided with a passenger train, the resulting explosion killed four people and leveled the town of Fountain. The paper's report: ``Fountain village, situated twelve miles southeast of the city, was the scene of a terrible catastrophe early yesterday morning. ... Buildings were collapsed, windows completely shattered and the interior of every home badly demolished. On the streets in the village were the prostrate forms of men, women and children who had been knocked senseless by the shock. Some were moaning piteously and others were crying loudly for help. ... The only remains of the freight cars is a small pile of trucks, wheels and twisted iron. The crew of the freight train ascribe the accident to tramps.'' (May 15, 1888)