National Republican., 1873-10-02
LETTER FROM LONDON.
CONTINUED from First Pdge.)


bar.rooms. In these the lady attendants arc ex-
ceedlngly intelligent, and the majority OF them
are o. prepossessng appearancc, thls latter
qnallncaton being almost Indispensable for those
seeking the best places, and it is an admitted
fact that the characters Of those girls especially
those employed IN the better class OF bar.rooms,
S,n rI bear the strctsst Investigation, and say
dismissal 1t Is on these terms they are always
il Is not surprising, therefore, that a bar.mald
only among the regular class Of pleasure seek
ers, but Also among strangers and those who de-
light IN the novelty OF this kind Of an exhibi-
rather business, requires my presence al any. y.
thing which savors OF su.icient interest TO en-
tcrtain your readers, took tho train at Charing
SToss station Las, Monday evening ioI the North
the proprietor, Mr.. VIM. Holland. This gentle
man, who Is famillariy known hero as the "Peo-
PIES Cs,eIer,s per.onally conducted your COZ.
grounds and gardens, and finally 70 the "grand
dlvan,' 10 which was assembled the beyy Of
beauty on their trial for the championship. I
cort, and am, therefore, able TO give you the full
description and ,nodus opcrdndi OF this somewhat
peculiar exhibition.
ouB BAR-NAIDs.
There were thirty-two OF these Hcbes who had
dared TO go behind these counters TO be stared
at for period Of two weeks, and I consider that
each one OF them Is entitled to some kind OF re-
ward or prize for their bravery, for the amount
OF scrutiny they have 10 undergo is something
tauces around the hall, and each one had her
number hung from the looking glass In the CEN
tire OF her section OF counter. never before
saw saw number OF yoang ladies' so ben. on doing
selves agreeable and In their "attention TO busi.
ness.r TO have selected the handsomest girl be-
hind those counters would have been risk that
an old connosseur would not dared to have un-
dertaken. One might have q preference or q
favorite, but shall not attempt to describe any
particular one, for should be doing injustice TO
scription OF two dozen and q half pretty women
Ia beyond the powers OF your correspondent.
Sufrlce II TO say, there were some tall some
fully thin; some We're Srune,tes, bright and viva.
cio1s, others pale and with bewitchingly ro-
mantle expressions. There were blue eyes and
brown eyes and lustrous dark eyes, there were
eyes that laughed and eyes that held seeming
power In their depths. There were, In fact, all
types OF English w0manho0d. They were all
pretty, some beautiful, aud most Of their toilets
were models OF neatness, benttng their position
The crowds appeared TO collect most In front
Of numbers four, 1ve and six, and also between
nnnh anu ~ hns, S' sns sy est mese uon
they were all experts in waiting on their custom
ers. II must be borne 10 mind that although any
Of the competitors may receive the greatest mum
Der OF "votlng tickets, yet this does not wholly
insure her the prize. TIE amount OF cash taken
by each Is a considerable item In their favor. Tho
nnAl awards are made BY a Jury especially select
bar.maid Is one Of the best proofs OF her capa-
bility and popularity. The competitors arc re-
quircd TO observe certain rules for Instance,
o ne 70
with vote, or to engage In any frivolous or un-
necessary conversation, but TO attend strictly to
business, which they do TO the letter; and us q
certainty that during the two weeks Of this con-
test these thirty-two young ladies will not lose
their temper. They ali looked 30 obllging and
hopeful, and made themselves so charming and
should Se diss spponted. what fotune for some
enterprisng American TO engage all these girls,
take them to any OF our large cities, aud open
attendance. Imagine It would be 4 hard job to
nnd thirty.two such profitable and expert bar
maids In any one city OF the United States. They
certainly would draw custom, and are honest,
ence. Butwe have not yet been educated up to
this standard for the employment Of class Of
respectable working glrls, but there Is no know
Ing what Is In the future.
THE PRIZES.
The salary OF these bar-maids during tho con-
test is ci per week and board Tin the hotel con-
here excellent pay OF itself, Independent Of their
chances In the prizes. The fortunate one who
shall be selected, on account OF combining all
the qualities mentioned, will receive massive
gold lever watch, lmade by one OF the best Lon
don makers,) a gold chain aud gold medal. There
are also three other prizes-one for the second
one for the greatest number o. votes for
"beauty," and one for "toilette.n Tho young
lady who Is successful In winning the frst prize
month @ o9 so sn3 perssps % ' permsuency % Al M one
Of the best bars In London. The winner OF the
1871 prize has the principal stand in the Alham-
bra theatre. and tns successful ,s competitor OF Of
music hall. Now, at both Of these places men,
toned there are several drinking and refresh
ment counters, and In each case the prize bar
largest portion Of the money spent In these places
Of amusement. Independent of tho novelty Of 0
number Of pretty girls on exhibition, u s .
music and other attractions In the gardens
always "draw" during the season: and at any
time II will certainly repay one for visit 70
North Woolwich. Unquestionably a. this part
attraction. The "swells" turn out In great num-
bers. On the evening was present only about
one nth OF the company were ladies; but as they
they do not attend In very large numbers.
Some time since, however, when the 'moustache
and beard show" was on, they were out to WOOL
MT. Holland assured me that his average re-
ceipts, during the ''bar-maid shows" has been
over GOO nightly, Independent OF the money at
the box.oiIice. Viewed, then, as a speculation it
Is paying one. Viewed morally, as an exhibi-
tion OF young women who are compelled, through
circumstances, to work for their living, it gives
to the foreigner o good idea Of the average
working girl OF the middle class OF society; and
IL Is considered quite proper here for young
lady In this sphere OF life 10 be thus employed In
Q respectable public-house. The exhibition.
therefore, Is not one OF mere pretentlons to good
looks on the part OF the competitors, but IL has
for its object q wholesome bene1t, and more
particularly to the bar-malds themselves.
The whole affair Is conducted In most admir-
able manner, and Ia supported by an Intelligent
audience, who, for the most part, regard the ex-
hibltion from purely business point OF view,
for the seeing of O pretty bar-mald behind the
counter Is no novelty In London, and Is only
made such by the contest alluded To. That 1t 10
popular, however, can be judged from the fact
that although the season for visitors to the gar
dens IL virtually over yet upwards Of six thou
sand people attend the "bar-maid exhibition"
every day. Before leaving this subject would
lust mention that from actual statistics recently
published ind there are over IS, 900 lady attend
ants employed In the bar-rooms and various re-
freshment counters In and around London.
ADJUSTMENTS, ETC.
shakspcarcs "Antony and Cleopatra will bc
revived In grand style and with magnificent ap-
polntInsnts tonight at the Drnry Lane theatre.
Mr.. James Anderson and Miss Wallis sustain the
title roles.
Madame Rlstori will commence an engage
ment, October |, at the Opera Comiquc, In the
Strand.
ChIvalry,"a q new high-class drama, by Mr..
Richard Lee, has met with decided success at
the Globe theatre.