New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1859-12-24
NUMBER 249
METAIR1E rHACK
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ITS INPRovEp ooNpInInN

| 4
We took trip on /. the sIraiIn yesterday-our
ues''aeioh, the Aetairie track object to note
| the Improvements which have been in progress
curing the faii, under the superintendent Of
Messrs.J. K. Duncan Co., architects and civil
engineers. We found "2:40 on the shell was en-.
livening, if not altogether agreeable; the sharp
December air was hearty victuals for the sluggish
lungs of a sedentarY; the canal looked blue as
Boston Bay in northeast Storm or as the nose 81
Nova Scotisn in January; blue looking gunner
or two wandered forlornly on the banks Of the
canal, with light game bags and countenances and
gait which indicated that their sporting enthusi.
asm for the murder Of feathered innocents was
quite srnothered by oyerpowering meteorological
Influences; the wheels ratified with sharp, crisp
sound over the coldcemented track and our gallant
dapple-gray, stimulated with the laudable desire
to keep his horse blood in circulation handled his
hoofs with an energy if to indicate that he had
no thou ght for the futare and was quite willing to
wear them out if he could only keep warm and
acquit himself with credit on that one occasion
SO that admirable animal though not thorough
bred by ffteensixteenths, laid himself down
TO his work, and we really believe achieved at
| least $50, though we are not prepared to aback
our judgment" on the point So we dashed
rne Hospital which is to be finished some Of those
aays-past the recently erected /" 2:4O Hotel; Hot
Coffee; by Tom Clark + Sam Johnson,'' which
consists of a two-sided shanty stuck down in the
mud, and built at cost Of at least % IS for refuse
Lumber, not to speak Of the outlay for the above
sign, done with rude but graphic art in chalk on
one OF the two sides, the other two being open to
adult the weather and emit the smoke of roaring
fire of drift-wOod which blazed upou tho oartba,,
| fioor Rejecting that the she'll, would present
another sort of appearance from that impaired by
the melancholy transit of one solitary vehicle and
that one =" our'n," a week hence, when it will be
crowded with all the fast and fancy teams of the
city, we reached the Metairie Track, taking note
as we passed of the astonshed aspect of a dissip-
atedlooking barkeeper, whose occupation was
evidently as completely gone as othello's, and
who rushed to the window of the Halfway House
to gaze in speechless wonder at the appariton of
team and traveller which dared to brave the win
try blasts piped by the unrelenting bellows of
Boreas.
We arrived at the track, but hardly recognized
that fair expanse of fast turf in its altered guse
The numbering old stands had all disappeared, and
their place was supplied by lengthy range of
buildings, combining all the architectural condi-
effect The new erection is of substantial and
handsome brick work; the several doors opening
on the rear and front are arched as also are the
lower and upper tier OF windows, the intermediate
row in the rear wall being square to break the
monotony OF the long range of building. All the
windows are green latticed The front elevation
facing the track shows slender iron pillars SPRING
ing from the basement masonry to support the roof
tn n OF fha
finished with cast-iron work, and surmounted by a
delicate and airy tracery Of cast-iron balustrade
ornaments which rise in the center and on the
ends Of the building to elevations of fancy ginger
| bread work which relieve the solidity of the
| erection with very graceful effect An orna.
mental balustrade likewise adorns the rear caves
and rises in elevations like that of the front.
The building stretches its length along four
hundred and eighty-four feet that being its front
ground measurement. Two hundred and eighty
five feet of this length for the General Stand
and the remaining space of one hundred and eighty
nine feet length is assigned for the Members
Stand,' and the Ladies' Stand'' The terraced
floor of the stands rises at such an angle that every
person, no matter how great the crowd NAV be.
will have fair and unobstructed view of every
portion of the track over the heads of all who NAV
be in 'front.' The depth of the building il twenty
feet.
Below we found all the arrangements of a reru.
lar parlor race stand, for the building might he
readily turned into a comfortable hotel by getting
in bedroom furniture, The ground floor ia narti.
toned off into several spacious and well.fnisbed
apartments below the ladies' and members, stands.
which are supplied with closets, fire places. ctr.
and will be very pleasant rooms with their neces.
sary furniture in The extreme end is ladies, pri
vate dressing and retiring room; next comes the
ladies' and members general saloon; then the
members refreshment saloon with bar then the
club room; and yet another apartment q sort of
betting room, with bar in it. The whole space
below the general stand is public saloon, with
two bars in it, closets etc. All of the rooms have
numerous windows opening on the track and in the
rear and all are light and pleasant. Numerous
broad staircases run up from them to the stands
above, and outside stair cases preclude the
necessity of passing through the apartments if it
is not desired by the visitor. The many broad
stair-ways will enable the most numerous crowd
to rush up to the stands without delay or crush
ing at the tap of the bell. Large new cisterns
have been built new fences are being put up, and
the judges' stand is being fixed up as neatly as
porcelain pagoda The work is all of a solid, SUBJ
stantial expensive character, which will last for
too5 of shobb,, os n o,os o,d. t;1 !. Iii
I'll 80 ~ a., IA r,;1 ..I -: -
~ - ~ - ~ S ~ ' "i'ion law