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Show . e. COMMEMORATING COLUMBUS. The Great Navigator Who Found America Remembered at Home. Palos, Aug. 3. This is the four hun-- hun-- drvdth "anniversary of the day on which Columbus set sail from Palos westward on his voyage of discovery. The festivities arranged here for celebrating the. day were tarried out with great eclat. The view from town, however, was obscured by a thick mist which hung over the river and ren-kered ren-kered it impossible to see more than a dim outline of the hulls of the vessels lying at anchor. At 6 o'clock, the hour at which Columbus began his voyage, voy-age, the Paravel Santa Maria, constructed in imitation of the vessel of that name belonging belong-ing to ihe Columbus expedition, which had been lying off the shore all night, set her sails for her passage through the lines of warships anchored outside the bar, but, or. ing to the prevalence of a dead calm, a line was run to her from one of the gunboats. gun-boats. She was towed down the stream, followed by the Spanish flotilla, in sinirle file. Minister of Marine Montigo w as on board the warship Legaspio. The voyage down the river to the bar past the monastery of Laribida, on which buildings and flags of all American 6tates were living, occupied about an hour. Outside the" bar were moored the vessels of foreign squadrons squad-rons which had come to take part in the celebration. These vessels formed in lines between which the Caravel passed nmid thundering salutes and deafening cheers. The mist and smoke from the guns made it impossible to watch the manoeuvers and the Caravel which followed for some distance the route taken by Columbus 400 years ago. At 9 o'clock the little vessel returned re-turned and re-entered the river. ' The town of Huelva is crowded with visitors, visit-ors, and all buildings both private and public, pub-lic, are gaily decorated. The day was opened with a salute at sunrise from the twei ty-four war ships lying in the harbor, representing the navies of the United States, England, France, Spain, Italy. Holland, Portugal, Austria' Greece, Mexico, Brazil and the Argentine Republic. The naval evolutions were of an unusually brilliant order and occupied the entire morning. Later in the day there was a great historical procession, pro-cession, illustrating four events of the time of Columbus. The first was the conquest of Oranada, in which Boabdil, the last king of Granada, was represented. The second was the departure of Columbus whose three vessels, Nina, Pinto and Santa Maria, were reproduced exactly as they were 40J years ago, and were drawn on cars. The third tableau was the court of King Ferdinand Ferdin-and and Queen Isabella, and the fourth the reception of Columbus on his return from iiis first voyage cf discovery. A still more imposing celebration will take place in Madrid Mad-rid mi the 12th of September, w hen the great xpositiou w ill be opened, and will continue i:n:il tire end of the year. |