The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1868-06-21
Opening Of the Watering Place Season.

opening OF the watering fAoco SURVIVES
In these days every inch of space in the
metropolis glows and quivers with torrid
heat. Fat men swelter up and down the
street and lean men wilt. Every one coasts
along the shady side and ventures the glazing
middle at the crossing only as the Arab might
the horrible wilderness Of the desert. Green
blinds are bowed at every house fitted with
the luxury, and that greater luxury yet the
dainty, picturesque red and white awning, il
tipped at others, that the owner may enjoy the
cool air in its shadow, as he might ''sub-
tegmine .faW." In watching the tagged horses
of the omnibuses-the omnibuses themselves
whose roofs crack and warp in the heat--ths
whole scene of the street, that blazes fairly
one can hardly realize that there is, perhaps,
gale blowing out on the fishing banks, that
wind is roaring in the tops of the trees only
over at Weehawken, and that 1t is merely the
surface of our city that seethes with this oven
heat.
But this is nearly true, as they know who
take the boats for our little suburban trips, or
who venture boat and cars together for the
annual pilgrimage to those Meccas of fashion,
folly, extravaganza, comfort, discomfort and
delight-the watering places. Now comes on
that momentous yearly discussion, whittier
shall we gop Once there were only Saratoga
for one set and Newport for another, and an
adventurous third, not fearful of jostling rustic
Philadelphia, tried Cape May. Such as could
not afford the fare of these greater centres Of
Akn @
boarding houses and the CLAIMS all around the
sandy edge of Long Island, or caught little
fnger-long trout in the backward slopes Of the
CatskiIls, or wandered away to the wintry
GOODNESS of the New Hampshire hills. In
these days we have changed all that. Water
no one knows the names Of all those that
may even be classed az good ones. One
may pack his valise and get on any
train, 60 quite at random in any
direction, and in few hours get out of the
cars opposite hotel, where he gets a good
dinner, and that he finds nestled in hand
some copse near some pretty river or the sea,
and whose balconies little later will be bril-
liant with the presence Of bevies Of beautiful
coquettes swimming in the mazes Of waltz and
redowa. All this magic change of scene from
blistering Broadway Is effected more easily
than in the Arabian Nights, when Aladdin rub
bed his greasy old lamp.
Other changes have been going on in regard
to watering places besides those that have de-
prived the few older centres of their ex-
elusive prominence The extravagant
charges Of fashionable watering places have
driven to Europe many who were formerly
regular visitors at the seaside or the springs;
for it is now possible to pay the fare to Eu-
rope and spend month at Baden or in Savoy
with a smaller outlay than would be induced
by month at Saratoga. Long Branch has
grown greatly in favor with our citizens, be-
cause it is so well situated on the Atlantic
edge Of the Continent and because 1t is 50 &C
cessible--by the sail across the bay and the
seaside rail. But there is tendency also
towards the great scenes Of our recent history.
II was not only the mineral spring that made
the fortune of Saratoga, but 1t was because
patriotic feeling by the battle waged there in
the Revolutionary war. The same combination
promises to make the fortune Of the quaint
little town of Gettysburg. So situated that the
great battle fought there in the recent war
ragged at different times on all sides of the
town, the place has the highest historic In
terest, aud near IL has been recently dis
covered a spring Of mineral water of rarer
healing virtue than any hitherto discovered on
this Continent. These together will make Get
tysburg the great centre of attraction in the
watering season for a century to come Other
aelds-other historic scenes of the war-drav