Middletown transcript., 1876-07-22
Our New York Letter.
New YoRK, July 18th, 1876,
CASTLE GARDEN.

CASTLE GARDEN.
In the destruction Of Castle Garden
last week was destroyed ESQ said all the
local papers) one Of the oldest land.
marks Of New York. On the contrary,
an old landmark was discovered; for
the fire, clearing away the growth Of
woodwork about it, laid bare the frown-
ing walls Of the old fort. which, reared
more than a century ago, has watched
almost the whole growth Of the city.
The old castle has quite history, too
much Of q one, in fact, to be fully re-
counted here. Originally intended fol
the defense Of the town, its guns were
FIRST trained upon the colonists them
selves in civil war. Then it became
haunt of the pirates who infested the
northern waters. Soon after the war
of 1912, its forti6cations were leveled
and the structure itself turned into a
huge pleasure ground, which character
it held for upward Of forty years Wash
ington and Lafayette have been well
coined by New York within its walls,
and here it was, in 1851, that Jenny
Lind, that most wonderful and most
lovely Of singers, under the manage
ment of Barnum. made her debut in the
New World. before an audience Of
nearly 10000 people. The remem-
brance Of those marvellous concerts and
of the unparalleled furore they created
is still fresh in the minds of all who
were fortunate enough to hear them
A few years later, Castle Garden was
transformed into an emigrant depot,
which dissertation, as the old inhab-
itants were pleased to term it, was
vigorously opposed and made the sub
ject Of many an indignation meeting
All such efforts availed nothing. how
ever, and for over twenty years, it is
safe to say, that over two-thirds Of all
immigrant foreigners have first trod our
free soil within it's precincts.
STREET sLEEpERs.
The fearful heat continues, though
somewhat modified by the two heavy
showers of a few days since. and the
Interchange of electrical compliments
by the clouds and earth on those occa-
soins. The thunder and lightning of
Tuesday night we're as severe as posi-
BILE. the fluid striking in dozen different
places in the city and immediate neigh
borhood.
The sufferings of the inmates of the
crowded tenement streets have been
terrible for these two weeks. No one
who has ever traversed Baxter and the
adjacent streets on the East side of
town can form any idea of how human
beings are packed in the four and five
story sardine boxes that line those mar
row passage ways. The uncleanness
and consequent stencil are sitting even
to the poor wretches who have hardly
ever breathed any different air. During
these hot nights it has been physical
imposibility, for them to sleep indoors
and thus all the sidewalks, docks and
open places have been nightly covered
with the sleeping forms Of all ages and
sexes, some on bed ticks, some on
blankets and many more on the hard
pavement. Under ordinary circum-
stances this would not be tolerated by
the police, but in the present excep-
tional time the latter refrain from dis
turbing the sleepers, picking their way
among the PROSTATE bodies as they 60
up and down their beats.
All the parks are transformed into
dormitories for the time being. Central
Park, Madison and Union Squares and
the Battery are nightly sought by
thousands Of suffocated sufferes, whose
narrow quarters indoors are simply un-
bearable. Taking it all in all we are
unanimously in favor Of petitioning Gen.
Myer for northeast snow-storm
1t is about time that something hap
pened for our relief as the mortality
from sunstroke is becoming alarming
among both men and animals. Not
less than 400 persons have died from
the heat thus far and the number may
largely exceed that figure. On the
street car lines most Of the horses that
are not absolutely sick are so exhausted
as to be hardly fit for use, and all sorts
of experiments have to be resorted to
in order to keep them up. One of the
largest lines has set steam engine to
blowing cool air through its stables,
thus keeping up constant draught.
which humane course proves to be also
a measure of economy. the horses thus
refreshed doing their work much better
and more easily than others.
THE IMPERIAL METEOR.
That imperial meteor, Dom Pedro,
disappeared in the eastern horizon on
the 18th, which is to say that he sailed
for Europe on the Cunard steamer
Russia The illustrious salamander
hasn't seemed to mind the weather, but
scooted around during the last two
weeks with undated energy. doing up
his sight seeing. presume that no
other Of the titled personages who have
visited this country, ever treated our
profferedi attentions SO oavalierly or
ingratiated himself with our people SO
thoroughly He has made us feel that
here was a monarch who was more than
a gorgeous dummy, and his rapid, COM
prehensive trip. paying bis own bills
and asking no favors Of any body. was
just the kind to enlist American SYM
pathy. His visit has done much to ex.
tend our relations with, and our friend
ship for the next largest country to our
own on the Western Hemisphere