Army and Navy Review 1915 Panama-California Edition - Balboa Park

Fair Pays Tribute to Admiral Howard
Great Military Pageant Opens Day’s Events
“ It would require a far more fluent speaker and writer than I am to express
my appreciation of my entertainm ent today. The scene here before me will long
live in my memory. .. It is beautiful and inspiring.”— Admiral Thomas Benton
Howard's compliment to the Exposition as he sat on the steps of the Sacramento
Valley building last night during the great outdoor ball for the enlisting men.
Beginning with a military and naval parade and ending with a brilliant dinner party
last night at. the Cristobal cafe and later a dance for the enlisted men at the Plaza de
Panama, the Panama-California Exposition, Admiral Thomas Benton Howard Day was
a great success.
June 8th was named in his honor by the Exposition directors as a mark of respect
to the commanding officer of the Pacific fleet and in appreciation of the help he has
given the Exposition in assisting to make it a success. The special events planned for
the day’s entertainment brought out one of the largest week-day crowds of the year.
The military and naval parade was one of the best ever held in the city, more than
1500 men being in line. Colonel J. H. Pendleton was grand marshal of the day and he
started the parade from the lower end of Broadway promptly at 1:30. First came mounted
police, then the grand marshal and staff. officers and men of the First cavalry, officers
and men of the coast artillery, marines from the Colorado and from marine barracks at
the Exposition and sailors from the Colorado. Three bands, the coast artillery band,
the marine corps band and the band from the Colorado were in line.
Big Parade Reviewed
W ith officers of both the army and navy and President G. A. Davidson, Admiral
Howard reviewed the parade from the steps of the Sacramento building. The parade
was at its best at this point and hundreds of others viewed it from this point of vantage.
The crowd went, directly to the tractor field afer the parade, where the troops of
the First cavalry showed their proficiency in executing fancy drills, their expert horsemanship
and something of what would be expected of them in case the United States
were suddenly drawn into war. Each of the four troops which comprise the squadron
of First cavalry at the Exposition gave individual exhibitions, all of them bringing
applause from the large crowd which lined the Alameda. After the drills Captain George
Van Horn Moseley was congratulated on the exhibition by Admiral Howard.
Horsemanship Displayed
The cavalry comprises a division of the government service which is seldom seen by
the public in action and that there is a renewed interest in events of this kind was evidenced
by the crowd and the enthusiasm it displayed. All sorts of maneuvers were ac
complished and the men displayed horsemanship not often seen outside a wild west
show. The horses were so full of life that it was with difficulty they were restrained
and they seemed to enjoy the charges at full speed quite as much as did their riders.
A cover of quail so tame that they at the crumbs thrown to them by the crowd were
reluctant to give up the tractor field to the cavalrymen. They held possession until it
proved hopeless to retain the ground underneath the hoofs of the horses.
While the cavalrymen were astonishing the crowd with their feats of skill and
daring, an army aviator flew over the field, circling again and again over the entire Exposition,
The crowd was given, therefore, an exhibition of nearly all branches of Uncle
Sam's fighting forces. They saw the cavalrymen, the aviators, the artillerymen, the
marines, the sailors. To the tourists the sight of the army aviator proved a treat long
to be remembered.
Airman Flies High
It was Joseph C. Morrow, First aero corps, in signal corps machine No. 30 who flew
over the Exposition at an altitude of 4000 feet. This was given as a compliment to
Admiral Howard.
Capt. A. S. Cowan, commanding the First aero corps, North Island, requested Lieut.
Morrow to do this and he readily consented, being with other officers, anxious to extend
honors to Admiral Howard.
Lieut. A. R. Christie, in machine No. 32, and Lieut. Leslie MacDill, in machine No.
3S, also intended to fly over the Exposition in the same stunt, but owing to engine
trouble these two could not get up high enough to make the flight over the Exposition