, 1874-05-09

Tho Individuality Of n Great City,

1ho AAle'AVtAtlnllty oil n Great CitYt
Olirer n. Ho'n!a,,d in Hearth and FIou,A
No city tn tho United StatoB las moro. .indiyid-
1ialIty, or IA individuality morostronrly unrko1
than Chicago. It nay 1,o difficult to character
izo or describe, but tito Individuality is there all
tho ,sano. Tho stranger rcolB 1t, Hcos it, and IL
influenced byit. Ho mny not like 1t, he raay
oyon dialilto It, but still llo is ready to admit Ito
power to Influence, md will raroly mike to at-
tolnpt to ignore its prcaonco.
TIE TYPICAL CHICAGO nlAN
Inns tho disposition to take hold OF or grapple
With possIbilitioa developed to 'an extraordinary
,dcgreo. Thero Is considerable Of what tho
.conntry-boys dosignnto grip about tho follow,
too: 1Io not only takes hold Of thing with q
,naual tcnneitY. I1o may not bo wiso
in tnking hold, or .wiso in holding bus;
ho may not stop to cals,,1ato rs to tho fr-
turo (ahy should he 2 anything .cnn bo dono in
Chlcago); but ho Inns abundant faith. Ho be-
Aoyos In himself, in oyory oAloago man, aud III
Chicago. For o timo. ho kept his index-lngor
pointing etoadily to- tho lessons Of tho GroatFiro,
nnt hc dialains to n,onhon that now. 1t WIS . big
t!ngs bat hsg had is ay \ put him IN tigh'
cra'ion. 1to grappled with this and ovorcamo it.
'5t. Louis nan couldn't do such thing. but it
y .s a more triie for Chicago man. This typi-
! mi man likos to welcome others to Chicago. ..Ho
yice amounts TO about this: )" Glad to SEQ you.
| You will do woll horo. Everybody docs. .Thieia
tho only place for n live man, sir. You ouEht to
hs9 her. ton 9o, y nn ri"
The Tiro, tic droat Fire, unsettled things aud
shook pooplo together. Thore wau all upheava
Ct Bocial strata and settling back to new lines
The city, as d city became moro o1ninently West
hnf nt1df
.MonE cnAnaorEntsr ,t,Iii,; ou,oAoo1su.
People became Interested in ono another, md
tntonaoly loyal to their city. This loyalty tom
Rors eGgeerythng thoy do. t. t. first sef, and
structure; thinks ,,of himself, :, and puts his
name on it; thinks OF the city and spends fifty
thousand dollars moro than he ought tospcnd.
The Great Fire naudo rosdents Of Ohicago men
1oomB, pictures, libraries, as we'll as homes. 1T
left little for tho affections to cling to. There
wore no precious articles, OF furniture, no rare
old books, no little menontoos.. Mon furnished
! three families into little houses; established d
oloHor communion. aa 1t we're; left the little
housea and sold everything; f1rniahed larger
houses anow collected property and were dis
! LIVED ono year at the top OF tho wave; won't
next ycnr to the bottom wlthout;a murmor. paid
full prtco for rare articles, md in six months
kopt, ,doiug it; OF changed tho programme and
bought at quarter ratoa This developed q rock
loas don t-caratye spirit In regard to transactions
that most people aim to conduct secretly. Any.
man did without ahamofacodnosB. Ho made tho
lowing OF watch or diamonds in pawn
. matter, Of, business. g, Ho broke
up housekeeping. and sold everything
stopped ut tribes. Ho would lcnne house for
! d year. and 1enve wlon it WIS expoliont aud
convenient. II landlords persocuto tenants, tho
latter waited for opportunity mud thcn re.
the situation md nude tho best Of It. 1t waa
considered . sort Of n.tuty to ltoop up tho ohcor-
ful whistle that cmblenod Chicago
=. .uEqogoEaN ANT. .rLuoR.
Aud the ousoome ia aehoerful, pluoly, reckless.
Rarely dooea strauEor come to Chicago without
saylng ~ like Chicago; + Hike the people,"
4 when, beforetho Fire, ha would not have malo
eeifhor by tho Gfeat Fire learned t. know one an-
other we'll land talked much about ono another.
This became characteristic, Tho Chicago
papers arc tho best local gossips mud news-tlis
seminatoss in tho world. Ihoy rolentlcssiy tell
everything, and oxposo family aecrots and gricfe.
mud Eoustp about tho cases iu polioe.cours, with
o4nal :indihcgonce. The faos that . rnan is
resident Of Chicago mnloa: bis affairs common
property. It is assumed that his neighbors hava
right to know oil about him, aud. with wonder.
| ful skill and enterprise, mud roontless impair.
tiniity tho city papers proceed to tell tho nolgh.
4 bors In. any given caRe. And; In nearly anl
Il given case tho man accepts tho exposure or g0s'
| Tint Chicago people arc recilcss md enter.
prisng is solfogident. This spirits carried into
| everything, and yet this docs not make them
( aharpegB to proy upon each other. Thero Ia m0ro
! honeat, straightforward, old-fashioued trading
done III Chicago, perhaps, than III any othor city
| Of its sizo Tho 1nau is reckless. in carrying d
| poiut, but: tho recklessness 1B Of the boomerang
order. Your, butcher will take extraordinary
paIns to spit you. ny will your grocer, Flo viii
do lhiebY al effort to do better jthan auy butcher
or grpGer. His raoklossncaa and enterprise do
| not retloct on his customers. No uooa his level
best, aud, If ho fails. goes down without a word.
Tho whole progress Of this doyeopmont.in tho
| natural order is in a business way. Tho man does
hA duty with. .all his strength mud spirit, ana ho
l means buanesa., And this is tho .,y.
I :, QIIAnAoTEnIsr1Q BrIltT OF NEW CHICAGO :;
! / Just noY the average man is hoMaa-huntng.
! Ho docs not want, to movo particularly, but lo
n,ay move, and therefore ho looks at all tho
houseR for ront. 30 will 60 to forenoon -seryico
at church on Sunday, and, aftor, service, will
send the juveniles to. 6abbath-School, and 10
and Ills wife,. 1t may be, with Bibles or Prayer
Books in hard, will look at houses. Tho houses
arc lockcl, Of course; but docs tho aYerage Chi
widow That. bya little slillrul u,anenyerng.
can ba lot down or pushed up. He pulls
down or, puahes up. ag tho case may
bo, and ho and Ills wifo climb in and lnycati-
matter Of principle, toli al othors how to entor
Ard perhaps o hundred mon and women climb
ont, and in ut that window during tho day.
Ashamed Of III NO.. Ho makes it d business
transaction. It is Chicago style, and 80 tho
Sunday paper ia. the great favorite for ANNOUNCE
ing houses to reut, aud tho words, II Can DO seon
pu Sunday" although gratuitous in tl!is COM
munsy, are .ofton added from sheer force OF
habit.. A holiHo tint will turn a burglar stands
not for G moment proof against tho daring on
torpyiao of the Chicago .house-hunter. He
doeyn't mean +" trespasH," hc means business
| Tho house il to ront, and ho means to see it.
And ho doca >. e., : H..
Chicago people. the old-llnors, are now just
becoming - -
| =: FAIRLY BETTLED ~
In new homes Of their own. Tor two or three
yoars thoy l.ayo noon restless aud diBcontontcd.
After tic Fire they took such houaes aH they
could secure. Tho next spring they could do
pottor,. and moved again !; aud 50 on to tho