Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-08-11
LETTER FROM ATLANTIC CITY.
The Hanged Girl-PrOmenading Bath
ers-fhc Large CrOwds-Ihe Inlet
The Elephant, Etc
Correspondence CT TIE EVENING STAR.

ATLANTIC CITY, August 9, 1888.
1t is a particular and winsOme outburst OF
Girlish enthusiasm to drive and stroll on the
shore. and ride, and go sailing bareheaded
The hair is banged and singled, you know has
Just little rakish look, and, per consequence
the effect is decided and wide-spreading. Note
one of these 1.-THE and happy creatures in an
elastic jersey, doing the season with great conf
dence. bathing, dancing smashing pericardiums
reckiessly. driving her young man around i'm a
village cart, leading him along in the mazes of
the beach, and you can understand how rosy and
otherwise beautiful life is in one of these cities
BY the sea.
One OF the diversions il to
PROMENADE IN BATHING COSTUME
on the sand, or where the water rises to the
Knee. for instance. Unless you've been there
you don't know how nice it is. 1t is picturesque
and variable, especially when there is a we'll
defined procession through the crowds of bath
ers coming and going The fair partners are
barc-hea,!cd. bare armed, and SO forth FLASHING
i'm tine water when the swells come I'D and trim
ping LIGHTLY on the tinted slope when they re-
cede- Then stopping to burrOw in the hot sand,
burying the neither eXtremeties by mutual and
long continued effort. It's NICE and no mistake
sort OF thing that those who like that sort
OF thing like very much.
SALT WATER DEyOTEES.
There is vast population of pleasure-seekers
down here ut this time; the air is full of music.
and the hum of human voices, in all of which
the never-ceasing roar Of the ocean mingles not
unmuscally. Now and then some one is
drowned, occasionally there is fatal illness In
spite of the healing water, but the waves roll on
as ever. the music continues. tine hum of voices
awakens and subsidies with the day and night,
THE ISLAND,
"a the original sand knobs on which Atlantic
City was erected are called. is lively. Last Sun
day there were so. 600 people here for tine day
alone. brought from Philadelphia and elsewhere
on excursion trains. 1t was a curious and mot
ley crowd, and 1000 of it were in bathing at one
time, and the rest looking at 'em. There was
fascination in looking. too. From tine supple
pretty, neatly-rObed forms to the fat old dow
ayers who were rolled about in the waves like
barrels and persuaded themselves into believing
they were having q good time, there was
wonderful variety of human beings 1t was
watching and studying and laughing at these
that contributed to the fascination 1t was
good to see some of both sexes leaping and div
Ing and swimming gracefully, with confident
abandon. while scores. timid and awkward and
ugly, were tumbled about by the On-coming bill
lows and made to contribute to the amuse-
ment of the throng on shore.
Bathing is not of itself the grand desire; still
1t IL part of the program essential and good
and adds to the cleanliness Of the people A
wicked writer in LOngnndn's says that persons
who are not cleanly are usually modest Re-
verse the figure with some malice and one may
say that the people now here cannot be excelled
In Cleanliness. Still, one can excuse something
of the appearance of these long stockings and
short sleeves, and this lack of concern in regard
to those who are looking on, when we know
that some good comes of it. And yet one sees
30 much that Is avoidable and unnecessary
However. it is cold day when you don't feel
Inclined to see all that is going on when you are
at the seaside.
THE ELEPHANT.
One of the easiest things in the world Is to
become vagabOnd. not tramp. and that is
easy enough for some, but a vagabOnd such as
Alexander Smith wrote about. To-day forgot
there is place like Washington that there are
Treasury clerks, all Of whom ought to be here,
or anything serious in life and followed crowd
To see the elephant. one that out JumbOs Jumbo.
He Is sixty-hve feet high, and lots Of feet long
and wide. and stands demurely at the beach.
You 90 up through his right hind leg into his
interior. roam around among the viscera and
come up through the vertebr& into the hOudah
on top, where you can see long way on the
ocean toward Liverpool He is made of wood
and iron. and is about as good an investment to
the ingenious designer and owner as Jumbo was
to Barnum.
Stroling back along the shore had the COM
pany of an immense school of porpOises in the
water near the funniest of solemn fishes awk-
ward, apparently, but graceful in fact and just
now following a school of menhaden, which
they soon overlook. A panic ensued and the
troubled water told too well what was going
On.
Further along. at the pier, a boy with stout
He was angling for shark. The agile fish
could be plainly seen. skirmShing about the
bait cautiously. hesitating whether to dismiss a
little fear of the consequences, and gather it IN,
or go away shark does not dine with the
deliberate satisfaction CT a goat chewing a cir
Gus poster: he grabs and leaves with the air of a
thief and villain that he is The hunger or Gu
riOsty of this particular shark was too much
for him; he took the bait with hereditary deter
mlnatiOn. and got into trouble In consequence
You ought to have seen the cummOtiOn on the
pier as well as In the water. Everybody told
the boy what to do; a hat and parasOl fell i'm:
some one called the police: some bathers near
NED up to the board walk; spectacle peddler
lost his outfit and the fish got away But a
nall hour afterit was told In town that several
FATHERS had been caught and eaten by shark,
which was still industriOusly engaged.
In the meantime a fleet of yachts was passing
~ q race as pretty sight as one wishes TO see
They were skillfully handled kept together like
racers on track. and passed and re-passed
evenly and steadily so many swans The
stake boat was rounded beautifully every adj
vantage being taken by the wide-awake sailors
anu eFiuPntly WIN little WARM
Ing. the wind fell. the sails began to flap and
then hang idly. and a calm was upon them
Soon light breeze followed. but the race was
all broke up. the interest was interrupted and
the hoinestretch was inglOriOus.
THE INLET
is marine and very profitable suburb OF Allan
Tic City. nice place for theoretical fishing.
where Jerseymen sell CLAIMS for bait and hire out
boats. and in many well-known ways cater to
the credulity of those who come here for q good
Time 1t is about two miles from the principal
part OF the town. easy of access by street car
ana passenger wagons. fare six cents and is the
IehdezVous OF fishing boats, sail boats and the
hhe without number. The water Is
covered oy different crafts, from a sharpe
that VIII carry three or four and 90
IKE the wind, to a three-masted schooner. and
all are employed in making excursions inside
anu outside, by which is meant canal-like estu-
aries toward the mainland and the omen sea be-
yond the breakers Outside the fishing il excel
lent, and vast numbers Of fishes. PRINCIPALLY
weak fish. are brought in every day by those who
know where to go, and who are able to MANAGE
the bOatmen. whO or many of whom. are IN
clined to render a minimum of service for a
maximum OF pay, and get back from trip as
soon as DOSSiblp