Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1874-04-21
LETTER FROM NEW YORK.
d Sleigh Rias-0n 1cs-Smtkes.

1t is quite interesting to watch persons falling
on the frozen snow; they curse with such
ease; growl with emphasis; and fight with
any person that enquiries where they hurt
themselves. candidly believe. that if we
had less slippery snow, many of us would be
strangers to the vice of swearing. / know a
young man, who had been recently converted.
The other night he was coming home from
church, with fair creature swinging on his
arm; his devotion to the awakened spirit
within him found vent in language like the
following:
ooh! Matilda; THAT was the gals name
Matilda; feel like new man since have
seen the hideousness of my profanity"
he had hardly spoken of the inward Joy
at peaceful conscience, when he struck the
pavement with the force of a battering>ram
q forgot to say the pavement was very slip>
nery). This fall managed to crush the young
mans beaver. break his reed walkiug>stick in
twain. crack his eyeglasses. and dampen his
religious ardor. for on rising-which took
him some minutes to do--he said:
Matilda, my dear, would that were not
yet converted. because l could express my
wrath in language fit for the OCCASION Ma
tilda, would you mind it if I'd just say one
strong word ?"
This morning the ground was frozen hard
(who ever saw it frozen soft y Tho snow
| and ice were frozen harder, when Smikes
came to take me sleigh-ridiug. While clans
beriug from the sleigh, Smikes fell to the
pavement with heavy thud. IIe made faces,
rubbed the tail of his coat and essayed to
speak strong English. Perhaps the misfor>
tunes of Smikes have little or no interest for
the readers Of the Spirit; but let them bear
in mind that this particular fall of Smikes'
interested him during the sleigh ride, and I
am positive he would have been willing to
minutes after this little incident. Smikes and
l were riding at good rate behind fine
trotter. We rode through Central Park aud
burst out on the Boulsyard, we'll, faster than
snail would.
What number of sleichsl I did not
think that there so many in the United
or Id any other States. They were iammed
together for miles along our route. The fans
cy cnttcr. containing the lover and his-what
do yOu call her ?-ah sweetheart; the gild
cd hnrOuche-like sleigh, occupied by a bevy
of laughing ladies from Fifth Avenue the
Russian slcdee, with the driver sitting be-
hind the solitary occupant; finally. the huge
family sleigh with pair of ten thousand dol
lar horses. gliding along, bearing half dozen
couples, including the !verisd "sleigh man"
aud footman-all passed US determined on a
long ride and plenty of social fun. Smikes
urged his "critter" as lie called ito his ut
most, and that wasn't very fast either, COM
pared with our neighbors.
We were not long in leaving the city, and
even the suburbs. Having driven ten or
twelve miles, We halted at a hotel, whero
several hostlers ran to rub and blanket our
steed. To the par!ors Of this hotel we saw
70 ,hor Of tIo "a,
perhaps. injuStice-to several plates of
oysters, stewed and cd the half she'll One
fair creature, who sat opposite Smikes, quoted
poetry, drank wine, and eat oysters with ex-
quiSite taste. Plate after plate disappeared
and reappeared before this young lady
Finally, she ceased to quote poetry and gave
her whole soul to the annihilatiOn of oysters.
WhiIe the young lady was wsgng war on
the innocent bivalves, young man with
blonde hair-her escort, l unprecedented
unmistakable evidences of a well-trained
beau. l really pitied the young man, par
ticularly his pocket>hook k-es he sat there
gnawing the ivory handle of his cane
Enough of this melancholy scene.
On our return to the city, asked Smikes'
opinion of the womans' crusade against whis>
key. 1 asked Smikes, because l knew him
to be an old resident of New York and one
who is we'll posted in any question pertaining
to gin. Smikes sent a stream of tobacco
juice over the CRITTERS" head ere lie replied:
"WelI, young feller, as you knows, / wos
born and dug up in this here city. and
knows every crib from Harry Hills to Harlem
bridge, and specks l knows little about
gin too [then Smikes winked at me but
tell you one thing surcr than Keno; them
wimmin folks can't do nuthip' by prayiu' an
singin' around the doors of the bar-rooms in
this city. There amt no religion in the bar
keepers; what in thunder do they keer for
wimmin, when a roliceman's club won't
bulge them! l tell you what tits, the wim>
min of this city is passel of fine dressed
humbugs; they spends twice as much money
on corsets, toilet powders and other tom
fooleries than all the men does on whiskey put
together"
Smikes' opinion is very similar to that of
the bar>keepers of New York with regard to
the "woman's movement" They will have
to reform their own abuses of fashions first.
Furthermore, the bar-rooms are SO numerous
that it would require one fourth of the women
of New York to eradicate them. Judging
from what have seen of New York, say
that if the women suppress the sale of whiskey
here it will be one of the most remarkable
achievements of the nineteenth century.
wish they would succeed, but they won't
After our return home. Smikes put up
his horse and we took walk ever to the
skating ponds in Central Park. There are
four ponds for skating and one for curling.
Before we got near the ponds several boys
wearing brass badges on their breasts and
holding gimlets in their hands, met US and
asked the privilege of putting on our skates
for the pecuniary trife of FIVE cents. AS we
had no skates we were obliged to go into the
skate-ro"m and hire two pairs at the rate of
twenty-five cents an hour, having first left