The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1883-04-19
miscellaneous. g
OUR NEW YORK LETTER.
Prom our own corresponde


BARNuM AND HIS so-CALLED "cRUEL.
| TY TO CHILDREN,"-WHAT CAUSES
| PNEUMONIA IN NEW YoRK.--A NEW
! DISEASE THAT SUITS THE SWELL
AND THE SPRING AT LAST.
NEW YORK OUT sHoPPING.-THE
TELEPHONE TOYS ONCE MORE.
BOOTHS THEATRE.
New YORK April 6.
| Barnum, the prince of showmen,
has been hauled up before the
courts by ''the President of the So
eiety for the Prevention of Cruelty
to Children" because of the per-
formances on the bycicle by the
Elliott children, which said society
claimed was cruel. Barnum, of
course, was only glad Of the oppor-
tunity to advertise himself; he
more than any living man has
keen eye to that, and hence not on
/ ly spread himself in Court, but also
in the newspapers. The result has
been favorable to Bs-num, the
Court taking his view Of the case
and declaring that there was no
cruelty. With all of his natural
goodness which eschews anything
like injustice or cruelty to children
on his part, it must remain an open
question whether these constant
performances on the bycicle are not
physically injurious to the young
ones.
Pneumonia is still stalking abroad
among us, picking up its victims in
considerable numbers. The idea,
however, that tits epidemic has been
fully exploded. 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 reckles in
their amusements. They will 90 to
the balls and parties in light and
thin clothing, expose themselves
meanwhile to the damp night air,
and without taking long rest the
next day, be once more at their
business 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, a promi-
nent physician called upon to testify
as to the soundness Of mind on
| the part of testator whose will is
now being contested, has coined a
new name for unsoundness of mind,
He calls it senile demaentia, and in
| giving a definition of same says it
is a partial loss of memory, though
the party suffering from the same
may actually play a good game of
chess or whist. One of our jour
nails says that if the nature of the
disease becomes generally known
in this city, every fellow who owes a
tailor's bill or a board bill will
claim that he suffers from seaile
dementia.
Yesterday we had the first bal
my spring day of the year. Fires
were neglected, windows were open
ed, overcoats carried over the arm,
and our avenues and business
| streets crowded with ladies bent on
shopping. 1t is such day like
this, perfect in all its respects,
| that makes the New York. shop
keeper happy and causes pater
famiNas to scratch his ear when he
sees the drygoods bundles come
home at supper time. But then
| the good women of New York have
had a dreary long winter oft, when
outdoor exercise was anything but
pleasant, and hence shopping" a
popularity of their good nature,
was greatly neglected. Now they
are making up for it, and the lead
ing retail stores are being assaulted
by regular phalanx of The best
looking, best-dressed women in the
world.
One would imagine that by this
time the telephone is pretty well
known all over the land, and is no
longer a novelty to any one; and
yet the street yenders have once
more, and that, too, with consid-
erable success, begun to trot out
their long strings with a tin box at
: each end, and there they once more
, stand, taking to one another from
one end of the block to the other,
watched by crowds of men and