Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1883-04-19
OUR NEW YORK LETTER.
From our owR Correspondent.

NRw YORK, April 6.
Barnum. the prince of showmen. has
been hauled up before the 60 lrts by "the
President OF the Society for the Proven
tion of Cruelty to Children becaue of
the performances on the bycicle shy the
Elliott children, which said society
claimed was cruel. Barnum, of course,
was only glad OF the opportunity to ad-
vertise himself, he more than any living
man has a keen eye to that, and hence
not only spread himself in Court, but al
so in the newspapers. The result has been
favorable to Barnum, the Court taking
his view of the case and declaring that
there was no cruelty. With all of his
natural goodness which eschews any
thing like injustic Of cruelty to children
on his part, it must remain an open
question whether these constant per-
formances on the bycicle are not physic-
ally injurious to the young ones.
All classes of our city join in honor
ing the memory of the dead philanthro-
pist. Peter Cooper. and his funeral to- NOR
row will be of about the same character
as that of Horace Greeley. The poor and
rich alike join in extolling the virtues of
this really good man. who has done so
much for the education of New York's
youth, and whose grand library is the
only real free one in this city. Efforts
are being made to suspend business
Throughout the city tomorrow while the
remains are being carried to the grave,
and the Common Council have offered
the Governors room in the City Hall, to
have the body lie in state for few hours
before the funeral. When the will
comes to be published it will be found
that the old gentlemans wealth was
not so large as is generally believed, as
he gave money away right and left al
most at every hour of the day. In fact,
it is reported that Congressman Hewitt,
his son-in-law, is by far the richer of the
two.
Pneumonia is still stalking abroad
among us, picking up its victims in con-
siderable numbers. The idea, however.
that it is epidemic has been fully ex-
ploded. There is always more or less of
it at this season of the year, and its great
increase this year must be attributed to
the long, tedious winter we have had,
and the extraordinary gay season. New
York's population, not only the rich, but
the masses are reckless in their amuse-
ments. They will 20 to the balls and
parties in light and thin clothing, ex-
pose themselves meanwhile to the damp
night, and without taking long rest
the next day, be once more at their bust.
nees early in the morning. Hence most
of those who fall victims to that disease
will be found among the active men and
women of our city.
Speaking of diseases, prominent ply
c.zH IE1G kN sEvr g. L
soundness of mind on the part of tesla
tor whose will is now being contested, has
coined q name for unsoundness of mind,
He calls it senile dementia, and in giving
a definition of the same says it is par
tial loss of memory, though the party
suffering from the same may actually
play good game of chess or whist. One
of our journals says that if the nature of
the disease becomes generally known in
this city. every fellow who owes
tailor's bill or board bill will claim that
he suffers from seniIe denentia.
One would imagine that by this time
the telephone is pretty well known all
over the land, and is no longer novelty
to any one; and yet the street vendors
have once more, and that, too, with con-
siderable success, begun to trot out their
long strings with tin box at each end,
and there they once more stand, talking
to one another from one end of the block
to the other, watched by crowds of men
and boys, the same as some few years
ago, when the world was first made &C.
quainted with the telephone. The sale
of these toy carriers of sound continues
even at this late date with an extraordi-
nary rapidity, and the steet peddlers
who are blocking up Wall, Broad street,
and Exchange Place are still reaping a
rich harvest therefrom.
Booths Theater, we'll known al! over
the country, and the best constructed in
the land, will, after all, not be torn down
after May 1, notwithstanding its sale to
capitalist who intends to make money
out of the building. Its massive walls
will remain, and only the lily constructed
Offices and stores underneath will be en-
larged and remodelled, somewhat on the
plan of the Grand Opera House, which is
an excellent theater, and at the same
time has underneath large and extensive
stores, and also well-regulated offices up
stairs. RADIx.