Banquet Sure

Advent of the Falls Power Will be Celebrated on January 12th.

AT THE ELLICOTT CLUB.

Messrs. Urban and Huntley Went to Canton to Invite Maj. McKinley to the Feast.

THOMAS C. PLATT, SENATORS HILL AND MURPHY, ELECTRICIANS EDISON AND TESLA, PIERPONT MORGAN AND A HOST OF OTHER CELEBRITIES ARE EXPECTED TO BE IN ATTENDANCE — IT WILL BE ONE OF BUFFALO’S GREATEST ADVERTISEMENTS AND A SPLENDID INTRODUCTION TO THE WHOLE WORLD.

At last a worthy celebration of the advent of power to Buffalo seems assured. On Monday night George Urban, Jr., and Charles R. Huntley, of the committee having the celebration in charge, went to Cleveland. From Cleveland they were to go to Canton. The purpose of their visit is formally to invite William McKinley to attend a grand banquet to be given at the Ellicott Club on the evening of Tuesday, January 12th. Mr. Urban and Mr. Huntley hope to secure the acceptance of the invitation by the President-elect. In addition to Maj. McKinley, no less noted a personage than the Hon. Thomas C. Platt has been invited to be present, and it is understood Mr. Platt has conditionally accepted the invitation. Aside from these two guests, it is expected that Nikola Tesla and Thomas A. Edison, the greatest magicians in the world, will be guests of honor. Other men of world-wide fame, together with men prominently known throughout the country, will be present. It will be a grand banquet, indeed, worthy to celebrate a grand event.

The preliminaries which have resulted in this plan began in earnest on October 7th last. A meeting was held at the Merchant’s Exchange on that date to discuss the desirability of a public celebration. Previous to that time there had been much public discussion of the project. All favored a grand celebration. At the meeting in October, R. R. Hefford, president of the Merchants’ Exchange; Spencer S. Kingsley, president of the Real-estate Exchange, and Charles R. Huntley of the Buffalo General Electric Company were appointed as a committee to investigate the situation, including the transmission of the power, which was accomplished at 1 o’clock on the morning of November 18th. Later the Board of Aldermen and the Board of Councilmen appointed committees to confer with the citizens’ committee appointed by Mayor Jewett. R. R. Hefford was chosen chairman of the joint committee. In response to his call the committee met at the Merchants’ Exchange on the afternoon of Thursday, December 3d. Those present were Mayor Jewett, George Urban, Jr., R. R. Hefford, S. S. Kingsley, J. N. Adam, James Ash, C. H. Utley and William Summers.

There was considerable unimportant discussion. Then George Urban, Jr., announced that the Cataract Power and Conduit Company contemplated giving an elaborate banquet at the Ellicott Club some time in January. Many prominent people would be invited, including city officials, representatives of local enterprises and industries, prominent statesmen and politicians, high dignitaries in railroading, commerce, finance and the liberal arts, and above all the President-elect of the United States. The conduit company, he said, would defray the expense of this banquet, and the people of Buffalo themselves should say what further should be done in the way of a celebration. Later in the meeting Mr. Urban said it was very likely that the wire carrying the electric current in some manner would be connected from Niagara Falls direct to one of the dining tables at the banquet, and that Maj. McKinley would have the opportunity of touching the button that would set the current at the Falls direct to Buffalo. Mr. Urban’s proposition was formally approved by the committee.

The committee discussed the question of an outside illumination. One suggested illuminating the Circle. Another proposed a grand display at Lafayette Square. Another mentioned Ellicott Square. The question of expense was the rock on which all these plans went aground. Finally the banquet proposed by Mr. Urban was discussed again, and Mr. Huntley was appointed as a committee of one to report at a subsequent meeting, to be called by Chairman Hefford, as to what illuminations and electrical attractions could be added to the other features of the banquet. A meeting of the committee may be held within a few days in the event of Mr. Urban and Mr. Huntley wishing to meet with them.

According to the present plans there will be a rare gathering of famous men at the banquet. In addition to Maj. McKinley and Thomas C. Platt, United-States Senators David B. Hill and Edward Murphy will be invited. All the members of the Cataract Construction Company will be invited and, with the exception of John Jacob Astor, who will not be in this country then, all are expected to be present. These men are J. Pierpont Morgan, Francis Lynde Stetson, Hamilton McK. Twombly, Edward A. Wickes, William B. Rankine, Morris K. Jessup, D. Ogden Mills, Charles Lanier, A. J. Forbes-Leith, Walter Howe, John Crosby Brown, Frederick W. Whitbridge, Joseph Larocque and Charles A. Sweet of Buffalo. The Cataract Power and Construction Company, which receives the power at the city limits and controls it in Buffalo, and which will give the banquet, has George Urban, Jr., for its president. Charles R. Huntley is vice president and general manager. William B. Rankine is secretary and treasurer. D. O. Mills, John Jacob Astor, E. D. Adams, Daniel O’Day and E. A. Wickes are the directors.

Mr. Urban and Mr. Huntley are expected here today. When they return the details for the banquet will soon be known. If even a small percentage of these invited should gather to celebrate anything anywhere the event would attract national attention on account of the prominence of the participants. The banquet will be the greatest and grandest Buffalo ever has known.

From the pure business viewpoint of advertising Buffalo it is pointed out that the mere fact of the gathering of such a galaxy of personages will boom the city, but beyond that the speeches that are made will be heard throughout the country and throughout the world. Indeed, and There will be a record of the proceedings and the speeches made, and these will be printed and given to the daily press for wide publicity. It will be an important and far-reaching document. Already many newspapers and technical journals are keenly interested in the coming event, and some are already making extended preparations to give it full prominence. There is every reason to believe that the details of the banquet will be telegraphed throughout the country and will attract to Buffalo an amount of favorable publicity that money can hardly buy. Wherever there is a money center, the complete utterances of the Buffalo banquet will have some special significance.