1885 - Cigar Makers' Picnic

“There will be plenty of sport at the cigar-makers’ picnic at Dundurn today. The ball match between the Clippers and Primroses is sure to attract a big crowd if the day turns out fine.”

                                       Hamilton Spectator. June 8, 1885.

The event had all kinds of promise to be an enjoyable experience at Dundurn Park.

Even though on strike against the cigar makers of Hamilton, the cigar makers’ union had planned the picnic long before and decided that it would go ahead.

The union had hired Dundurn Park, which at the time was still in private hands. Except for members of union, anyone else wishing to enter the park would have to pay admission, and the admission would also allow entrants to watch the baseball game scheduled to take place.

The union hired a band for dancing and other events to entertain the union members were arranged.

The baseball game was an important tilt between the Hamilton Primroses and the Hamilton Clippers of the five team professional Canadian Baseball League. Baseball was so popular in Hamilton at the time that two teams could be supported, and for the game of June 8, 1885, both Hamilton teams were tied for the league lead.

As the Spectator reporter said to introduce his account of the game, “everybody expected it wold be a great game, and it was a great game:

“The large audience (approx.. 1600 in attendance) was an intensely Primrose one. Probably ninety-nine of every hundred men present gave their sympathies to the boys in blue. In the first two innings everything the Primroses did was applauded vociferously, while the Clippers’ performance was looked upon coldly and in silence. If the Clippers had made the most astonishing play ever witnessed, it wouldn’t have raised a cheer.”¹

¹ “The World of Sport : Items of Interest to the Noble Fraternity.”

          Hamilton Spectator. June 9, 1885

After two innings, the game was tied 1-1, but after that the Primrose fans had nothing to cheer and much to regret with their team’s performance.

The Primroses gave up three runs in the top of the third inning:

“The Prims began to lose confidence in themselves. From that out things went from bad to worse for the blue boys. They grew disheartened and disgusted, and the usual ‘rattle’ that has invariably attacked whenever they have attacked the Clippers, was upon them strong. The audience grew as silent as the grave, and the play went on in funereal quietness. ¹

The game ended up as a 12-1 victory for the Clippers.

In his short observations on the game, published in the ‘Notes’ portion of his account of the game, the Spectator reporter wrote :

“Once more the Clippers lead the league.

 Blue was a becoming color for the Prims after the third inning.

 Pretty even game that at Dundurn – the sympathy of the audience was all on one side and the score all on the other.

 The greatest consolation that can be extracted from the game is found in the fact that it was a Hamilton team that downed the Prims so unmercifully. No outside team can do it.

 Baseball is a funny game, isn’t it? The Maple Leafs beat the Clippers; the Primroses shut the Leafs completely out; and yet the Clippers can beat the Prims 12 to 1. It is a very funny game.

 The London Free press, which excellent journal is of opinion that the Primroses play better ball than ‘the much-vaunted Clippers,’ is respectfully invited to study the score of the game at Dundurn.

There were two picnics at Dundurn. The cigar makers had one and the Clippers had the other.”¹

There was a mixture of baseball fanatics and attendees of the cigarmakers’ picnic at Dundurn.

As an unnamed Spectator reporter pointed out in the introduction to his article on the picnic, Monday June 8, 1885 became one of the most unruly days in the history of Dundurn park:

“The cigar makers picnic, held at Dundurn yesterday, was the most disorderly and disgraceful affair of the kind that has been held in Hamilton for years. It was numerously attended by members of various labor organizations in the city who sympathize with the striking cigar makers union, and too many of these allowed their enthusiasm to get the better of their discretion.

“Young men who are ordinarily sober and respectable and well-behaved, were to be seen and heard toward evening, in every part of the ground, in various stages of intoxication, and misbehaving themselves in a variety of ways.

“Several small fights occurred during the afternoon, and in the evening some serious encounters took place. The most serious was a stabbing affray which happened a little while after the baseball match was finished.”²

² “A Disorderly Picnic : A Stabbing Affray and Several Fights at Dundurn Yesterday”

Hamilton Spectator. June 9, 1885

A man named John Dillon, a moulder by trade, had arrived at the park already under the influence of alcohol, and proceeded to be quarrelsome and threatening with several people at the picnic.

There was a bar set up in the rear of the grandstand of the baseball area. Dillon and a friend, Robert Tindill, a well-known local baseball player were at the bar together when the following was witnessed by a bystander:

“Dillon wantonly and without provocation addressed Tindill in insulting language. Tindill resented the insult, and words were quickly followed by blows. Dillon was knocked down; but, springing to his feet, he drew his pocket-knife and made a thrust at Tindill. The blade passed through Tindill’s cheek, inflicting a painful wound.

“A young man named Thos. Wood, in attempting to separate the combatants was also stabbed by Dillon. His nose was pierced through and he got a gash in the right side of his face near the mouth. Another young man named Penfold, who attempted to quell the row, was also stabbed by Dillon in the hand, and still a fourth party whose name could not be learned had a taste of the knife.”²

The police were hurriedly summoned. Detective Campbell and Constable Limin managed to subdue and arrest Dillon, who was taken away to the police cells downtown.

As evening arrived, it was decided that extra policemen would be required at Dundurn. In total, there were 14 constables on the grounds, but still many fights broke out before the police could intervene:

“A few non-union cigar makers foolishly attended the picnic, and inflamed the passions of the union men by their presence. They were chased, and at least two of them were badly beaten. Emile Smith managed to escape from his assailants, but John Minkler was less fortunate. He was found between 7 and 8 o’clock, by Chief Stewart and a constable, lying insensible alongside the road, near the toll-gate, literally bathed in blood, his head and face cut and swollen, and his body covered with bruises. The poor fellow was resuscitated and carried to his boarding house. He could give little information as to his assailants, but was certain that union cigar makers were among them.”²

As part of the evening arrangements for the cigar makers’ picnic, the Independent band was hired to provide a concert, and the Nelligan’s string band was hired to provide music for dancing later. Given the atmosphere of the picnic in the evening, very few listened to the concert or patronized the dancing platform.

1885 - Hamilton Clippers

On December 5, 1884, an announcement appeared in the Hamilton Spectator, concerning the construction of a new baseball diamond and grandstand in Dundurn Park.

        With the aim of establishing “the most desirable ball ground in the Dominion,” the advertisement went on to specify more about the nature of the  baseball facility to be completed by the spring in time for the 1885 baseball season:

        “The ground will be located upon that level spot now occupied as a garden, from which all trees and shrubbery will be removed. Turf will be put down, grand stands, high catchers' fence, scorers' stand, etc. will be put up, and the ground will be entirely surrounded by a railing to restrain the eager crowd.”

        “A Baseball Ground : The Best in the Dominion to Be Created at Dundurn”

           Spectator. December 5, 1884.

        The work on the ball diamond at Dundurn Park was proceeded with over the winter and early spring months in anticipation of the upcoming season.

        As the month of April, 1885 began, a letter appeared in the Spectator, which advocated that a new league be formed which would reflect the rising popularity of the game of baseball in Ontario :

         “As an introduction to the whole question, I would propose the formation of an Ontario baseball league to be composed of six or eight clubs representing the principal baseball centers in the Dominion, such as Hamilton, Toronto, Guelph, London, St. Thomas, St. Catharines, etc. The initiative in the matter should be taken by Hamilton as being a central point, not only geographically, but the center of baseball enterprise in Ontario.”

        “Sporting News : Baseball”

           Spectator. April 2, 1885.

        The letter writer, using the pen name Short Stop, suggested a number of rules which the new league should institute and concluded with the following observation:

         “ Baseball has been dormant in Canada for some years past. It is beginning to revive again, and its future success depends largely on the way it should be handled this season.”

        On April 15, 1885, a meeting was held at Hamilton's Royal Hotel to discuss the formation of a new baseball league. It was decided that the old Ontario league would be disbanded and that an entirely new league would be set up.

        It was moved by James Henigan of Hamilton's Primrose team and seconded by James Lynch that a baseball association was to be formed with the name, The Canadian Baseball League.

        After some discussion and voting, the following five teams were selected to be included in the new league: the Primroses of Hamilton, the Torontos of Toronto, the Clippers of Hamilton, the Maple Leafs of Guelph, and the Woodstocks of Woodstock. As the Londons had some outstanding financial obligations to the old Ontario League, the question of their admission was deferred.

        A constitution for the new league was drawn up. The prize for the league championship, to be awarded at the end of each season, was a silk pennant, not to cost more than fifty dollars. The pennant was to be purchased and presented by the league itself as being emblematic of the season's championship. The Toronto News company donated a silver-mounted, ebony bat, which was to be awarded to the player having the highest batting average over the course of each season.

        The opening of the new baseball ground in Dundurn Park was scheduled for Saturday, May 16, 1886, with a game between the Clippers of Hamilton and the Maple Leafs of Guelph.

        The Spectator strongly encouraged as many baseball followers to attend the game as possible:

        “Visitors are expected from Buffalo, Toronto, Guelph and London, and with good weather, the attendance should be large. The grounds and grandstand will be complete. A portion of the latter on the east end is divided off for ladies who will be admitted to the grounds on the usual admittance fee of 5 cents, and the managers of the team hope to see a good turn out of their lady friends.”

        “The World of Sport : Items of Interest to the Noble Fraternity”

           Spectator. May 15, 1885

        On Monday, May 18, 1885, the Spectator carried an extensive report on the opening game of the 1885 Canadian Baseball League season in Hamilton's new baseball round:

        “Level as the floor, roomy, well-marked out, and perfect in every way, the new ball grounds at Dundurn were a revelation, Saturday, to people who, last season, watched the games played in the rough and well-timbered country embraced in the old ball grounds. The grandstand is a great convenience, and the ladies of Hamilton will not be slow in showing their appreciation of it. The catcher's fence puts a stop to the tedious waits of last season, when an intermission of fifteen minutes was held every time the ball passed the catcher. The whole arrangement was perfect, and Hamilton has now as good a ball ground as there is anywhere. Every convenience has been provided, and if the public shows not show that it admires these things, and appreciates the efforts of the managers to please, it is not thr public it is generally taken for.”

        “The Clippers Downed : By Guelph Maple Leafs – Score 4 to 3”

          Spectator. May 18, 1885.

        The Spectator reporter used superlative after superlative in order to describe the opening game of the first Canadian Baseball League Season, a game which he thought was “the finest ever played in Canada:”

        “Both teams played ball from the word 'play' and a more intensely, hotly contested, and brilliantly played game never was seen on the diamond since baseball was invented. For three solid hours, the game held the attention of a thousand people, and as brilliant play succeeded brilliant play, storm after storm of applause startled the budding trees of the park into greater buddism. Baseball cranks rushed about in the crowd waving their hands and hats, small bets were plentiful, and every motion on the diamond was watched as keenly as if the fate of Europe depended upon it.”

        A close call at home plate by umpire Thompson caused considerable controversy. Clipper left-fielder   Pfann made a dash for home from third base. Guelph catcher Purvis in attempting to tag Pfann  missed by several inches :

        “The umpire stood behind stood behind Purvis and declared Pfann out. There was a kick. Thompson, of course, thought the man was out, or he would not have said so. Having said 'out' he stuck to do it like a brick, as he should have done; but that little error on the part of the umpire turned the fate of the game … it ought to clearly understood that the umpire was not to blame. An umpire is not infallible – he cannot see everything. Thompson's judgment – usually a clear, sound judgment – told that Pfann was out. It was an unfortunate error of judgment – nothing more. It came in precisely at the wrong place – that was the great trouble with it.”

        After nine innings were up, the game was tied at 3-3, and for the first time in league competition in Hamilton, a baseball game went into extra innings. Finally in the bottom of the fourteenth inning, the Maple Leafs put a string of hits together and scored the score-breaking run:

        “Downey, of the Guelph Herald, let out a war whoop that he had learned on the shores of Puslinch lake, the grandstand was visibly shaken by the cyclone of applause, and a stampede was made for the gate, everybody saying to everybody 'What a glorious game!' 'That was a rattler!' 'The best game of ball I ever saw' and things innumerable of that sort.”

        In assessing the talent that the Hamilton Clippers possessed for the 1885 season, pitcher Pete Wood was considered to be among the best in the league although in the home opener against the Maple Leafs, he had some trouble with his control :

         “Pete hit a good many of the Leafs pretty, Saturday, but he didn't mean it. He was pitching with a round ball, and it slipped. Some people thought because he didn't run out of the box and console with the victim every time an accident happened that he was indifferent and cold-hearted; that's not true. Pete suffers severely every time he hits a man, and prefers to suffer alone in his box. Besides it would have taken up a great deal of time, Saturday, for him to offer profuse apology every time a Maple Leafer couldn't dodge the ball.”

        The Baseball Crank

        (appeared in Spectator May 19, 1885 – Write Anonymous)

       

        Of all the wretched tribe of cranks

             Who cause life's sweets to pull,

        There's one that all the rest outranks -

             The fiend who talks baseball.

        His hand in very glee he rubs

              While talking of the game;

        Unconscious of my chilling snubs,

          His theme is still the same.

        He tells of how Smith “flew out to first”

            And how Jones “pounded air” -

        For in the lingo he is versed,

            And talks it everywhere

        He goes to every game, of course,

             And should his club “get left”

        He'll hoot the umpire till he's hoarse,

             Like one of sense bereft.

        No wonder that I'm growing thin,

            And look so lean and lank,

        Since I must listen to the “chin'

              Of this wild baseball crank.

        On October 19, 1885, the $50 banner of silk representing the championship of the Canadian Baseball League was formally presented to the Clippers team in numerously attended ceremony held in Hamilton's drill shed.

        After a musical concert by the Thirteenth Battalion Band, a group of local dignitaries took their places on a temporary platform for the presentation of the banner and to hear some speeches.

        Keynote speaker Hamilton Mayor J. J.    Mason displayed the silk pennant to the audience, and then began his address :

        “Gentlemen of the Clippers Baseball Club, ladies and gentlemen, it is a pleasing duty, and a very honorable one, for me to present to the Clipper baseball club this emblem of the championship. The duty is more pleasing to me because I have always been an ardent admirer of baseball and all manly sports, and especially because, in my younger days, I have been an active participant in the game. I think the members of the club may be especially congratulated because this is the second season the Clippers have won the championship. It is true that the individual members of the club have been changed so much that there is only one member, Charley Wilson, of those who composed last year's club, now in the club. Yet the club has existed under the same name and has won. I am proud because I know that the club has won the pennant honorably and honestly. The members have been honest and straightforward, and to such, to a certain extent, must be attributed their success. People who patronize baseball games, and I have missed but few this season, go to see honest ball playing. They do not want to see games won by technicalities. They want to see every man play to win the championship for his club and for his city. I have, and I know you all have, been pleased with the gentlemanly behavior of the players. We are proud to know that the championship has been won by men whom we can shake hands with as gentlemen. I can only hope that during next season the club may be as successful as in the past. We cannot always expect to win, but we hope to hold the championship yet another season. I hope that the next person who presents the pennant may be able to say as I do know, that the Clippers have won it honorably. At any rate the players may come forward and say, “We have done our best to win.”

        Mayor Mason then presented the pennant to “Billy” Hunter who started to reply, saying, “Mr. Mayor, ladies and gentlemen...” But the applause that swelled as he stood to speak, drowned out his remarks and the newspaper reporters in attendance were unable to record who he eventually said.

        The Championship pennant was freely displayed to the crowd and an announcement was made that it would be on display later that day in the Columbia hotel for all to admire.

        “The Pennant : The Championship Trophy Presented to the Baseball Champions”

        Spectator. October 20, 1885

1885 - Weekend in June

“Good weather, good grounds, good attendance, and two good nines – all the conditions were favorable for a good game of ball at Dundurn Saturday, and a good game of ball was had”

                                                                   Hamilton Spectator. June 8, 1885

          A weekend in the latter part of the season of spring in 1885 was memorable, maybe not for any spectacular occurrences, but for a series of lesser events which when put together give a taste of what life was like in the city at the time.

          The baseball game at Dundurn Park attracted 1900 of Hamilton’s most enthusiastic fans to a game which lasted two hours.

The Hamilton Clippers were well ahead of the Guelph Maple Leafs, 4-1.

As described by the Hamilton Spectator reporter on the scene, it looked like the result of the game was already decided at that point:

“The Clippers did nothing in their half of the ninth inning, and the crowd began to move to the gate when the Maple Leafs went to bat, satisfied that the game was over. But it wasn’t.

“The Leafs had got (pitcher) Pete Wood’s range, as it were, and began pounding him so lively that three of them skipped over the home plate.

“ ‘How’s the score?’ demanded Pete Wood.

“ “A tie,’ cheerfully responded the scorer.

“Off went Peter’s cap, and the trouble began.”

The game went into the tenth inning :

“In the Clipper half of the tenth inning, (2nd baseman) McGra, who had sprained an ankle in the previous inning and now limped painfully, brought in two runs with a big hit, and the Clippers’ sympathizers breathed a trifle easier.”

In the bottom half of the 10^th inning, Clipper pitcher Wood helped his cause with some nifty defensive efforts:

“For the Leafs, Jimmy Hower started off with a two-bagger. In this inning, Pete Wood did some capital play. Twice the ball was struck to him, and twice did he menace the base runners, making them hug their bags, and allowing himself just sufficient time to get the ball to first before the striker reached that bag. It was well and cooly done.

The injured Clipper 2^nd baseman, Pat McGra, took the field despite his sprained ankle and made a key play:

“McGra closed the inning by sharply fielding a ball that he had to run nearly to first base to secure. Pat was the hero of the hour.

“The game was most interesting, and at times intensely exciting. There was little heavy hitting, but there was plenty of brilliant fielding, and just errors enough to give it variety.”

The Spectator coverage of baseball games in 1885 was very detailed as to the narrative of the game’s progress, plus a full scoreboard with all the appropriate statistics.

At the end of each games coverage was a section simply called “Notes.”

Here are just a few of the many notes which followed the coverage of the Clippers’ 6-4 extra inning victory over the Guelph Maple Leafs:

“The game of baseball seems to be understood, to some extent, in the place called Hamilton.

“The best batters do not make the best batting when the pitcher gives them their bases on ball.

“Chamberlain (Clippers’ 3^rd baseman) was the ladies’ favorite in the Clipper-Leaf game. Charley Maddock (Maple Leafs’ 2^nd baseman) was jealous of him.

“(regarding Clippers left fielder Pfann) Pfann plays a pfine game in the pfield.

“Baseball in Canada has now reached a high degree of excellence, and the league teams make games that are exceedingly interesting for the spectators.

“Charley Maddock tore around the St. Nicholas (a downtown Hamilton hotel), after the game, as if his name was spelled mad-ox. His temper was slightly ruffled by recent baseball events.

“The Maple Leafs and Clippers are bound to give Hamilton audiences the worth of their money. A 14 innings game and a 10 innings game so far, and both close and exciting.

“Wouldn’t it be a good policy for oitcher Wood to trust more to his fielders and not give so many strikers bases on balls? Those fellows who go to first on balls occasionally get around.

“The most exited man at Dundurn on Saturday was the man who in the sixth inning put up $15 to $2 on the Clippers. When the Leafs tied the Clippers in the ninth inning, the man who had backed the home team went behind the grandstand and lay down.

“Baseball has become fashionable in Hamilton as well as popular. The ladies’ side of the grandstand at Dundurn was crowded, and many handsome toilets were displayed. Not a few of the ladies had never seen a ball game before, and they voted it ‘ever so much nice than cricket.’ ”

It should be noted that the Clippers were not the only Hamilton team in professional Canadian Baseball league. On June 8, 1885, the second Hamilton team, the Primroses was tied with the Clippers for first place in the league.

In the Notes of the Spectator for June 8, 1885, it was noted that the tie for first place would be over by the end of the afternoon as the Primroses and Clippers had a scheduled league game at Dundurn:

“There’ll be wigs on the green this afternoon at Dundurn. Somebody is going to get beaten.

“There won’t be any monkeying this afternoon at Dundurn, when the Primroses and Clippers wrestle for the lead in the league race.

“You need not be at all astonished, if you see the Primroses coming down from Dundurn in hacks this evening, with brooms displayed.

“The Primroses are entitled to very great credit. They are all Hamilton boys, and have got together a rattling nine without the heavy financial backing enjoyed by some other clubs in the league.

“The Clippers and Primroses still stand even in the lead for the championship, with three won games each. The Maple Leafs are third with one game won; the Londons fourth with an unbroken goose egg, and the Torontos are to be heard from.

“Today, one must lose, either the Clippers or the Primroses, if there is a game. Each of the clubs lost bits first and won the three following games and now stand even in the race for the championship. The strongest eams that can be put on the field will be the ones for today’s match, and if it is not the best match yet there will be many surprised people in Hamilton.”

Market day conditions, especially prices and supply, were usually commented on in the press, and the Spectator on Monday June 8, 1885 noted that “the local markets were abundantly supplied on Saturday, and the demand good. There was very little change in prices. Meats and dairy products were a shade lower.”

A case at the Saturday morning Police court drew interest as the day before (Friday) a very large funeral took place. Captain Henery, the head man at the Barton Street Jail, had passed away and there was an unusually large procession of his friends, family and associates accompanying the hearse to the Hamilton Cemetery.

The procession was probably too long for the patience of Henry McLaren’s coachman, William Dillon who decided to drive through the procession. Dillon did not appear in the Police Court but police constable Limin told the magistrate that Dillon did indeed commit the offense. Magistrate Cahill found Dillon guilty and imposed a fine of $2 or10 days in jail.

In June 1885, a prolonged and bitter strike by unionised cigarmakers was still in progress. The cigar makers had brought in non-union into their premises to continue production.

An incident, involving the strikers and non-union workers was reported as follows :

“Several non-union cigar makers were assailed on Saturday evening near the corner of King and James streets by a crowd of union men, who shocked their sensibilities by calling them ‘scabs,’ ‘rats,’ and other names expressive of the intense scorn in which the non-union men are held by the union men. So terrible were the threats of the assailing party that the frightened non-union men sought refuge in a neighboring store, and would not come out until a couple of policemen were sent for to escort them home. They were also accompanied by two cigar manufacturers, one of whom, Mr. J. Schwartz, was struck in the leg by a stone.”

Saturday evening proved to be an eventful time on Stuart street as a notorious pair of brothers tangled with a Hamilton policeman :

“Two brothers, John and William Collins, were behaving themselves unseemingly, and Constable Cruickshank undertook to arrest them. They resisted, and a hard struggle took place. Both the Collins are powerful men, John being an iron moulder and William, a blacksmith, and they fought desperately. They got Cruickshank down on the road, and pounded him, and sat on him, and rolled over him. But Cruickshank is a plucky young fellow, and as sturdy as he is stout-hearted. He caught on to John Collins and never let him go until constables Nixon and Robinson arrived on the scene. William got away when he saw reinforcements arriving, but was shortly afterwards arrested in his own house, Queen street. A man named Craig was also arrested for interfering with the police. Cruickshank was considerably bruised and shaken, but is not much the worse for his struggle. Many absorbers of mixed drinks have suffered far more than he from their little encounters with John Collinses.”

Sunday June 7, 1885 proved to be a very hot, humid day, with an occasional outburst of rain through into the mix. But neither heat not rain could curb the weekly outdoor demonstrations of the Salvation Army in downtown Hamilton:

“Notwithstanding the very hot weather, the services all yesterday were conducted with more than exuberant fervor, and crowds of people were present at the three meetings on the market square; though here the little English captain complained of “Canada’s broiling hot sun.” In the barracks during the day, several sensations occurred arising, as usual from the presence of visiting female officers. Capt. Miss Lee, an American officer from Rochester, wielded the sceptre, and called for a “hallelujah sing-song,” that is, demanding the each soldier give his or her experience in the verse of a hymn, which had to be sung. Some of these pieces were very well given. Miss Lee has a remarkably clear, loud, ringing voice, and her singing and address told well; but the decided impression was made by a cadet, Miss Commbs, of Oakville. This officer displayed most remarkable power and a wonderful flow of words. She will doubtless make a distinct mark as an army orator. Another officer, Miss Bowman, also spoke well and produced a decided effect by her supplications during a very fervent prayer meeting, during which five persons professed conversion. Capt. Dyer stood aside during all these proceeddings, but his quiet, earnet exhortations during the holiness meeting made such an impression that erring soldiers were drawn from their seats to the penitent form. There is now every possibility that the new barracks will be immediately proceeded with.”

The last major event of the weekend of June 6^th and 7^th 1885 was a near tragedy on the bay:

“Several boats were on the bay when a squall arose. One of them – a small lugger with five young men of the city in it – was struck and capsized 300 yards out from Browne’s wharf. Fortunately all the young men were swimmers and also sober, and they clung to the boat until they were taken off by the crew of the sailboat Neptune, which put out from Browne’s wharf. They were in the water about 20 minutes, and were pretty well exhausted when rescued. Daniel Phillips especially distinguished himself in rescuing the party, and after they were safely on board the Neptune, he swam about for some time recovering their stray articles of clothing.”

In 1885, every article of the Spectator contained a column headlined as follows :

“The Diurnal Epitome: What Goeth On In and About the City : Items of Local News Gathered by Spectator Reporters and Presented in Attractive Form for the Interested Reader.”

The column under that headline on Monday afternoon June  8, 1885 contained many items, a few of which looked back at the weekend:

“- The new street sweeper has arrived. It looks as if it ought to do its work well. It will be put into operation as speedily as possible.

-      A lad named Mars fell from a swing at Ainslie wood yesterday afternoon and received some pretty severe bruises about his body.

-      There will be plenty of sport at the cigar-makers’ picnic at Dundurn today. The ball match between the Clippers and Primroses is sure to attract a big crowd if the day turns out fine.

-      The Bayview band and a portion of the Independent gave a concert at the corner of King and James streets. The playing was not for the championship.

-      A warrant has been issued for the arrest of Fred Kane and Edward McCullough for the larceny of a bouquet of flowers from Walter Holt, at the James street market Saturday morning.

-      The hailstones that fell yesterday afternoon were remarkably large. One, picked up on James street south, measured nearly four inches in circumference, and many were as large as ordinary-sized walnuts.

-      The rain yesterday caused a cave-in in the gravel path in front of the court. A circular hole, several feet in diameter, sank. There was a cave in at the same sport a couple of weeks ago. There was probably a well there at one time which was never properly filled up. The matter will be attended to now.

-      The hot spell yesterday afternoon sent sweltering citizens in droves to the water. The Beach, Bayview and Landsdowne park were liberally patronized, and the bay was dotted with yachts, luggers and smaller boats all day. It was cool on the water, and a steady sou’westerly breeze made sailing good.