Wilmington daily commercial., 1872-12-19
THE BOSTON COFFEE HOUSES.


THEY ARE, AND HOW COhDbOIEDs
fCorrespondence Of the N. Y Evening Post ]
BOSTON, December, 1879.
The "Holy Tree Cohfee-Rooms " are small
and unobtrusive eating houses, established
here and there in the lowest and most popu lous
parts Of the city, and which design to furnish to
moor men and women the largest quantity OF
good food that can be Afforded after the bare
exnenaes of the places are considered. 1t is not
intended that profit shall be made. The wages
Of the walters, the rent OF the apartments, and
tho cost of the various articles OF food consume
the entire income and as there is no proprietor
who vearns to extract wealth out Of the enter
| prise the prices of food are made lower by two
| hundred per cent. than those of many ordinary
| restaurants. ,,.
one to satisfy his hunger for the smallest possl-
/ ble sum. the institution has secondary object
| which is scarcely Inferior Indeed do not think
it ia subordinate to the first, by intent, but IN
| practice think more achieved, more as satis-
| bar of bunqer than as a preventive for intoxica-
| ting liuuor 1t has been the object OF lts
designers to open their rooms when practlcaoe
| in the very centre of community OF Dat-roohs
| and saloons within the intention OF attracting
wonld-be drinkers from their pernicious haunts
The result has been very gratifying. FFhe Holly
Tree-people ran tilt with the seductive tree-
lunch system, and in every case their enemies
have been Obliged 10 Gloss tiieii ohuVeoi 90 80
| lock their doors For ten cents the bar-rooms
| gave a glass of inferior beer and handful OF
broken pilot bread or sandwich, but ther rlNals
gave pot OF coffee, dish of ham or corned
beef. bread and butter dd hbttum. 1t ls clear
who must win in such competition.
As fair working example of such enterprh :
es one might describe a room" which is situat-
ed upon Cambridge street, in the northwestern
part OF the city. on a bleak, cheeress ana power
ty-stricken spot the very centre Vi hee' VI ni
4 Ron
Upon the street floor are two front apart
ments fifteen by thirty feet In wldth ana uepIIn pI
! and in the rear of these are two otner smaiiei
> rooms which serve for wash-room and htchen
respectively In the main apartments are a
number of small tables, each OF which ID tor the
use OF four persons ranged close against elthe
wall aud covered with a neat oll-coth' Whlch
oapable of quick aud thorough cleansing
0 The floors are daily covered with thick sward
. of Hawdust. and particular pains are taken u
, | present to the visitor cheerful and pleasant ac
+ commodaton. One OF these rooms ID ulhlhB
& room for males and the other for females.
o The superintendent il a. man who works COZ
aDlore His two daughters assist him. ana ths
with their father labor as missionaries ahu WIZ
, out profit. There are one OF two asslstsnG wail i
= ers, whose wages are lncpnslderaple si -.
n The business Of the Groom" begins at earl
70 dawn. in time to accommodate thosei who wor
o in large shops, and continues until late al nj
I'd with the intent of furnishing better resort 10
lt hungry and thirsty wayfarers than the neighOoi
III ing bar-roOms. - -.
re fnthe thick of the days business the speotl
| cle in one of these dining-rooms ID extremel
III interesting 1t is safe to believe that two thlro
n | of the diners here are, in no very geherou
Q. SENSE hard=up. The remaining thlrd are arls
p tooratic in being mechanics, mllliners, shop-SH
40 and under-clerks who, from commehuaple Il N
tyes of economy, pay one-thlru-o -oi WhA1 tn, ,
would have to pay elsewhere for their meal
selves by expending fifteen cents, but the larl
majority content themselves amply with WIN
ten cents will purchase. Baked Deahs' cal
taI nea soup excellent boiled ham and corn
- beef, brown and white bread, TEA anu ooit !
and one or two kinds of pie comprise =
k usual bill of fare, and for twenty,h
cents per diem a laborer or pa
,ed smith can live very well Indeed and Tor tAlr
cents he may gorge himself for uVe oohs9 S V a,
- | NAV have a slice of cold beef or nam ana u
nio neeessary condiments, tea or coifee with sue
and al much bread and butter AZ he desires.
4 il AT the usual meal hours, morning, noon a
night, the apartments are throngeu wltn WIZ li nIls
We peaple who are exceptionally polite ana orueI
They are all obliged to wait their turns az
Or, nonnlar hours and this aggravating experler
is borne with great grace and gravity, A.,
When these rooms were hrst openeu, tn
an years ago they were looked upon with suspic
by the class tley were intended to beneht' 10
ltc- | was not sufficiently clear that " charity
md. not lurking under their absurdly small pr
nlsr and their generous dishes, and the imagl!
se fault actually prevented their rapid admission
it's puuilS Noo ,a no :, riff and that for ten
per- tnaS a, E "ents one eond purchase generC
clean and substantial meal, then the pro
nor achieved its purpose. -. =,
lean / believe that in several other cities than
ton similar coffeerooms have been opened,
itro in all cases with the most signlhoaan' anu r. ~
hem fying results. The expense at the openlns
very inconsderable, and these are anlols ~ !,
- few self-sustaining benefces that can be dew
i,ai They do not entail constant drain upon
'uoA' purses and patience of their projectors, and
perform their allotted tasks quietly ana
1ismt isst roughly.