The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-07-29

NevsbeSs eed heeteiacks nissusted-The
Foo, No. ,scp, yer puisefauss s"o "e'"i' OIL
Half an Hours Reflection.
Perhaps no phrase in the En,1slish language
has been worn more threadbare than tue trfte
old saying that Cleanliness is next to godli-
ness" As a subject for pulpit eloquence, 1t has
served when scriptural texts of all meanings
have failed, and as O motto for laundries aud
laundresses it ranks "a No. l." We have not
as yet met a bathing establishment where the
sentence has been conspicuously displayed, but
just here we would suggest that our city fathers
have IL emblaZoned In letters of gold upon the
new public bathing-houses that are already COM
pleted and upon those that are yet to be.
After having read SO much about the cele-
brated institutions yclept public baths, we de-
termined 20 obtain an optical demonstration of
their availability and success, aud accordingly
Yesterday we paid q visit 10 the one at Otis
street wharf for said purpose. We had been led
20 believe that the patrons of this, to us, novel
establishment were composed principally of the
1enizens of the immediate neighborhood In
which it is situated. Imagine our surprise,
however, when we discovered among the crowd
assembled the faces of bootblacks and news
boys whom we have met In places. as various as
the occasions have been frequent. Accosting
one of the vendors of knowledge, who is fami-
liarly known amongst his comrades as "Reddy,"'
we entered into a conversation, the principal
features of which we append;-
Q. Well, Reddy, what do you think of the
new wrinkle?
A. Oh! its good enough for women.
.. Why don't they allow you chaps to lin
a. oh, yes, but we're not takln' any!
q. Why not?
A. Cause we don't swim one foot on bottom.
@. Why, what vos mean by that?
A. The darned place amt deep enough of1oat
a ''caddie."
Q. Then You don't intend to become u regular
With an eye to business our laxative friend
quickly replied mo; can't you get us a pass for
It- ~. 49,. Dola., r,o. c.o1,;o. ,b;no, lou..
80 fine points, we answered that we had no inlu-
ence with the owners of the ocean steamers
John and Tom Smith, and, to avoid any further
suggestions, moved of.
The interview evidently warmed Reddy up,
since the next glimpse we caught of him was
his diving off a pier near by into the clear,
cooling waves of ye noble Delaware. Turning,
we took o calm survey of the scene before us.
The hour was one of those allotted to members
of the male sex, many of whom had taken adj
vantage thereof. The numerous closets, or
rather shameless, that line the four sides of the
frame structure were all filed with clothing,
the owners of which were disporting in the
pool. And now q word as to said pool. One
viewing the establishment from the outside
would suppose that the interior was none
other than capaclOus. But, as in many
other instances, appearances prove deceptive.
The baths have been badly constructed, yet
we ARE thankful for them such as they are, and
hope that present mistakes may lead to future
successful improvements. The principal por-
ton of the interior space has been taken up
with the closets named above. SO far as male
bipeds are concerned, they are almost useless,
since pegs or nails would answer every purpose.
Nevertheless, for females they are very SER
Viceable. The mistake, we think, has been in
not building separate lighthouses for the oppo-
site sex. Our city fathers, however, surmount
our argument by the fact that these institu
tions are but mere experiments, and that the
amount of money appropriated was entirely too
email to provide for separate houses for the
separate sexes. But we are DEPRESSING, aud
nust raturn tn orr text. In the DOOl. which
was but four feet deep, we noticed about a
dozen adults and as many more minors. To
the former the luxury of q five minutes
wash seemed the acme of terrestrial delights,
and their temperance after their ablution
showed that the douse was as beneficial as it
was enjoyable. Finding ourselves rudely
a big, brawny coal-heaver, but lately arrived
from the Richmond whisky district. The
Hibernian had evidently been tasting of the
''crayther," since his legs were anything but
parallel and his articulation somewhat indis-
tinct. suspecting that a rich scene would fol-
low, WI stepped a pace or tive off and quietly
awaited developments. Approaching the edge
of the pool, the Milesian was about tumbling in
when the officer In charge grasped MIN by the
shoulder and commenced treating him to a first
class temperance lecture. With the tact natural
to his countrymen, the exile of Erin replied,
$50 yer a could wather man, are yer" YES" was
the answer.
"Win, thin, fly the divil do yez not lit me go
mp"
'Because your intoxicated"
'Fbat's that? is it drunk ye name! Be the
howly destroyer of snakes, St. Patrick by name,
I was niver more soberin my life"
ooh, well; you had better come around again"
mot q bit of it. It's clane / want to be, and
it's q duck I'll have. Sure, ye talk about could
water, but when a man wants it you forbid him
taking it. Och! but yere a hypocrite."
Finding that he had met a tough customer,
se keeper concluded to let him have a bath
and get rid of him. Accordingly, the Milesian
Invested himself of his corduroys and check
shirt, and plunged ill.,: With earnest gaze we
watched the effect. Reader, it was instanta-
neous! Around about for a space of four feet
the water became darkened In hue, and the ac-
cumulated eXudatioDs of months and the
almost solidifed dust of the coal wharves being
washed from the pores made of the laborer
almost a new man. AT this ~juncture our atten-
ton was attracted to a party of four or five
boys who appeared to be deeply engaged in
conversing upon some important sub
ject. Surprising that 1t was 'Prus-
sia," we drew near, when our
"Dutcby, this amt a patch to Smithy's, is it?'
. Dutchy-No.
No. Lets go over.
Dutchy-I amt got no ducats.
No. Lets play it.
ing it, meant their going to the street, setting
up a howl over lost money, and closing up the
eyes of susceptible humanltarians Suddenly
we heard a splashing, and directing our atten'
tion to the end of the pool, we saw our Celtic
friend hOundering about like q ~porpoise. Tue
cause we soon ascertained: the water and thu
whisky did not mix, and, losing his equilibrium
our character made a narrow escape from
drowning. Turning, we asked the keeper If ht
was well patronized, when he answered, "Yes
the crowd keeps pouring In and GU
houses, l believe they would be all filled"
ID you admit many boys !"