noon
Chief Wambold kept watch and ward over the grounds , assisted by his entire force of uniformed men . He evidently did not intend that any boy , with a mind that turned to practical joking , should have a chance to exercise his evil propensities unchecked . Should such a thing be attempted the joker would find himself up against a snag immediately ; and , as those posters announced , he was going to be harshly dealt with up to the `` extreme penalty of the law . '' There were hundreds of people on the grounds at noon , which was a pretty good marker for the immense crowds that would soon be heading that way from every point of the compass . Most of these `` early birds '' were , of course , out-of-town folks , farmers ' families that had come in , to market , perhaps , and they stayed over to see the great show , because everybody living for many miles around Scranton had heard about the meet , and and what a wonderful sight it would be , well worth going miles to gaze upon . These thrifty and sensible folks had , in many cases , brought their lunch along with them . Perhaps they disliked the idea of eating in small restaurants , such as Scranton , like most towns , boasted ; but , no doubt , the main thing was economy in these times of scanty cash and inflated war prices .