The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1874-08-10
OUR sARATSsA LETTER.

70
The City-The HOtels-Dissipation
ana ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS -
Editors OF the Register. ~ X 4
SARATOGA, MY July q lS74N
The season, at Saratoga is now at its
best August iscthe great month here.
The wealth and culture fand much that
is neither) of the whole country congre-
gate here when the dog star RACES
First, let me say, Saratoga is hand
SOME, unostentatious (leaving out the
hotels loking place of about 5000 in
habitants. 1t is beautifully located on
rolling, and in some places broken,
ground; and is surrounded by rather
indifferent looking tanning country. 1t
ha. fine, broad and well-paved streets,
and it has several exceeding ~ fine drives,
chief among which is that to Saratoga
Lake, which lies about three miles south
of the city. Out this drive short dis
lance they have an elegant race track;
and the races which take place during
the Summer season constitute leading
and popular feature in Saratoga life.
The lake is a beautiful sheet of water,
nine miles in length and nearly five
wide. abounding in fish and fine boating.
At the south end of the lake are the
White Sulpher Sprsngs. which furnish II
water similar to that OF Greenbrier White
Sulphur, except this is almost as cold MS
ice water as it comes from the ground,
and has something of IA seltzer taste.
Saratoga has Justly worldwide fame
for the excellence and magniticence of its
hotels. 1t has as many hotels as Brook
lvn has Catholic churches, which latter is
stated to bcthrty-ninc. Nothwithstand-
ing the large number of hotels here they
are all good ones in every respect. There
is not mean looking nor mcanly kept
one in the city But the lavish scale upon
which many of them are built and furn-
iShcd. is what most surprises one. Take
the United States, for instance. with its
front of over fourteen hundred feet, it,
six high stories. its thousand lincal feet of
wood piaZZas. its more than eleven hun
dred rooms. its immense parl0rS and
halls. it, capaciouS offices and store and
ball rooms it, frcscOings of Oriental Gle
gance. its carpets and furniture of Pari-
sian mxurancc. its highly cultivated
grounds. and its capacity to illuminate
itself with three thousand gas burners Of
its own. Or, look into the Grand Union
Hotel, which is almost equal i'll size, and
fully equal in elegance, to the United
States. and with II Dining Room even
Surprising it-a room i'll which twelve
hundred people are comfortably seated
and served at one time. Or Congress
Hall, with its seven high stories tower
inc toward the clouds and its truly UNI
surpassed magnifccncc in style, finish
and management. And SO on, one may
90 through long catalogue. These
hotels are capable of entertaining fifteen
thousand guests ut II timc-and, indeed,
did accommodate twenty-five thousand
strangers during the College Regatta
week in July.
The oJnuSen,cHtS here, So far aS an out
slider can see mainly consist of drinking
AN inordimate quantity Of Congress or
other rrgcnerating water in the morning,
fast driving behind sparkling teams in
luxurious carriages offnc afternoons, and
dancing at night The djS%pGtionS may
be. imagined to include betting on the
numcrou. horse and ,cull races, fighting
the tiger in John Morris>cy'S 5000
"ildcd hell or some other Of the great
club rooms, immoderatc drinking and
not innocent flirting. And pleasure is
found in the fine eating furnished by the
hotels; in the beautiful shaded lounges
about the cool parks: i'm the good fishing;
in the agreeable boating; in the social
converse. and in the fine music.
While many devotees of the tyrant
fashion are undoubtedly here, fashion
does not rule 1t is matter of congrat
ulatiun and frequent remark among the
uIanv ladies here, that every one seems
to dres. in accordance with her own taste
and means. utterly regardless of what
Mrs. Grundy may say. There are many
superb toilets to be seen on tn" prom
cnadc and in the ball room; vet there
are more plain and simple ones. ="
far rs one uninitiated into the mysteries,
trivoltc> and designations Of watering
place-lifc can soc, the most of the people
at Saratoga are ENJOYING themselves in
rational. sensible and Notwithstanding
manner. The majority Of the people So
iourning here have passed the prime of
life. and have come for recreation and
rest.
Saratoga is charming place a. well
a a CAV one. and there Is no wonder that
it is popular with those VIII" frequent it.