March 24: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
ON THIS DAY IN 1864, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “The infant son of the Prince and Princess of Wales was christened on the 10th, at Buckingham Palace. Vast numbers of persons assembled in the Park early in the morning, for the purpose of catching a glimpse of the Queen, who was expected to arrive shortly after eleven o’clock, and also the Prince and Princess of Wales, who were expected to leave Marlborough House about the same time for Buckingham Palace. The King of the Belgians was the first to arrive, and was greeted by loud cheers. Her Majesty arrived shortly before twelve o’clock, and was loudly cheered. The crowd then moved toward Marlborough House; and when the Prince and Princess left in their carriage they were greeted with the heartiest applause.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1912, the Eagle reported, “PORTLAND, ME., MARCH 23 — The collapse of the speakers’ platform in the auditorium where Colonel [Theodore] Roosevelt spoke tonight created some excitement, although Colonel Roosevelt was uninjured. The platform, which was elevated about three feet from the floor, was crowded with about thirty persons. As Colonel Roosevelt ascended the platform on entering the hall, it gave way with a crash. The middle portion sank to the floor. Colonel Roosevelt stepped quickly to the front of the structure which did not give way, and waved his hand at the crowd to show that he was uninjured. A chair was placed on the edge of the platform, and during the remainder of the evening Colonel Roosevelt remained placidly at the very front of the weakened stage. As Colonel Roosevelt entered the hall the people rose to their feet with a cheer. For two minutes the applause continued. When Walter H. Brown, president of the Roosevelt committee of Maine, introduced the Colonel, there was another outburst of handclapping. Colonel Roosevelt’s opening remarks, in which he referred to the collapse of the platform, brought a laugh from his hearers. ‘The platform broke down,’ he said, ‘but it wasn’t our platform. Our platform won’t break down. In the end the servants of the people will have to stand on that platform or the American democracy will be a confessed failure.’”