"Those were the days, my friend, we thought they'd never end!"

.....It's time to continue with Robin's interviews with the family about their observations and remembrances about the olden days.  This one from Robin's step-granddad is about the Williamsburg Bridge in New York and how news got around about elections in those days before 1911--a 100 years ago.

.....1903 the Williamsburg Bridge was built...and they had a celebration on opening night.  And President Teddy Roosevelt was president then, and they shown pictures of him on the water; there's a reflection from these cameras, which was beautiful.  I haven't remembered seeing anything like it.  And that was a celebration of the Williamsburg Bridge.

.....They had a different way of reporting the election those days.  They didn't have any radio and they didn't have any television, so the only way they could bring back the results which took plenty o' time, they didn't have any of the methods to bring results like they do now, in wonderland, y'know, world o' wonders now with all the equipment .  And they'd have a big screen at a popular location in the city--several places.  And to celebrate the election, they would burn big bon-fires, and they'd put , anybody that had an old couch or an old chair, and they'd heap it high.  And you could see blazes all over the city.  And then when the election returns came in, if you was interested in a certain man that was running for mayor and all those offices, you found out what it was, see, and that's how they used to celebrate an election.

.....And even the transportation in those days was different; for 3 cents you could ride from one side of the East River to the other, by ferry--3 cents.  And the horses and wagons and trucks, y'know, sugar trucks, they had a section down by the river, refineries and all.  It was a busy, real busy thing.  And I can even hear the horses, when they docked, and the horses would, heavy horses, y'know, like the Anheuser Busch you'd see on television.  And they would go clok, clok, clok, clok and then when the cobblestones, there were cobblestones then, and they would make a different sound, it was really a sight t' see.  And something t' hear, those trucks coming off and all that.

.....Well, Baron hopes you have all learned a little history right from the horse's ...er...Mike Kallman's mouth.  It's a little weird knowing that he was there when Teddy Roosevelt was President, and I was there when Franklin Roosevelt was President.  Would they were here now--as a tandem.  And what would they both do about the Middle East, about the budget, about the recession, about Sarah Palin?  Gee, I hope she runs for president.  What fun!