Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-12-27

LADY-THE COASTERS on CAPITOL. HILL-DIF-
yEREST WAYS OF CoAsTISG-How THE YOUNG
WOMAN SLIDES. &C.
The small boy who is without sled at this
season thinks he has reached the lowest level of
human misery. If he has a cbum who has a
sled the deep gloom Of his Indebtedness may be
broken by feeble ray or two OF happiness. Still
what Is sled to boy If he can't steer it and be
Its sole and absolute commander on every occa-
sionl Such small boy is ready to take the
most perverse view of affairs, and even to revile
Kriss Kringle as person of very bad Judgment
In the distribution of his gifts There was not
= sled in the city or anything that bore the sem
blance Of the sled that not out last night.
The owner Of sled was boy OF great conse-
quence among his fellows. He suddenly dis
covered that he had many warm friends among
boys whom he never before suspected of ami
able feelings towards him. These new-found
friends We're invariably sledess urchins. Every
inclined plane on the streets of the city where
the descent was steep enough to give the
slightest momentum to a sled had its crowd of
small boys. In some quarters there was Sc
riOus difference of opinion between
THE SMALL BOYS AND THE POLICE
As to the desirability of giving up the streets TO
cOasting. This attitude of the police was due
partly to their firm conviction that boy on a
sled is utterly regardless of the legs of anv way
farer who happens to cross his route, and partly
20 the fact that the police felt justified by their
experience in assuming that the natural pro-
pensity Of an elderly lady, who sees sled COM
Ing down hill towards her. is to scream little
aud then ru sh frantically right into the path of
the sled, the result generally being more disas-
trous to the elderly lady than to the sled. In
stead Of forming front and charging valianty
with their clubs upon the elderly ladies and
keeping them back from the slides :" tine police
In moment of weakness, permitted them to
60 where they pleased. and turned upon the
small boy, who was thus made victim of the
strange fatuty of elderly females. Still, now
and then some yenturesOme lad. trusting to the
oft-tried nimbleness of his legs would skim
down forbidden hill so swiftly as to make cap
ture in transit out of the question. and at the
bottom catch up the rope of his sled and go
suddenly down some alley. in the familiar re-
cesses Of which he could defy pursuit.
The coAsTING LAST NIGHT.
But it was not the small boy alone who was
engaged last night in amusing himself by spend
Ing ten minutes in hauling sled up hill in
order to enjoy an eXhilarating minutei u Siding
down again. The hills in the parts of the city
where the travel was SO light as 20 make coast
ing safe were thronged with people many of
whom had good round sum of years between
them and boyhood. The slopes leading down
from Capitol nill were the favorite resorts OF the
coasters. North B street from Delaware avenue
almost 70 I'd street weST was given up to the
sleds and their owners. This was splendid
Slide. LIST street east. from the brow of the hill
at street south to the bottom of the slope at f.
street. was also surrendered to the coasters and
was the scene OF a perfect carnival. Every
variety OF sled, from the rudimentary form con-
sfsting OF three boards hastily knocked together
Tor the occasion. to the long. slender steel-bOund
coaster OF the most approved type, was repre-
sented in the gathering. There was equal
variety In the persons who rode on the sleds and
In the manner of sliding. The little boy with
square foot of sled got his first impetus by run
ming rod or two, holding his sled before him
In his hands. and then violently finging the sled
and himself upon the ground, without regard to
the damage done to his internal arrangements
30 long as he got good start. He rode after
the fashion which the boys call ''bellv-fopper,''
phrase which. il not elegant is loaded to the
muZzle with descriptive truth. Lying prone
upon his face, clutching the front part of the
sled tightly with his hands the boy used his
legs. which dragged behind. as a rndder That
there Is much delight in this style of sliding is
evidenced by the tenacitv with which boys with
very short sleds and very long legs cling to It
notwithstanding the difficulties which one can
easily see attends the efforts OF such boy to keep
up with the procession.
Then there are boys, who ride ''side-sadde ~
that is sitting upon their sled in such manner
as to have their face turned forward and one
leg dangling behind, as q rudder Other boys
sit squarely face forward with their legs sticking
straight out in front. and guide their sleds by
digging their heels into the snow on one side or
the other, as the case may be. One discomfort
OF this style Of riding, comes from the SNOW
which shoots up the boys trowser-leg when he
makes a tack.
THE COMBINATION SLEDS.
But the big combination sleds are the sleds
for speed and fun. These are made bv fasten-
Ing two or more sleds together, tandem style.
By laying board over them. or splicing them
together. Sometimes as many as four sleds are
combined In this way, and as many as a dozen
people ride upon the structure thus obtained
You see. the more weight you get on one, the
faster it goes" said an enthusiastic coaster
explaining the beauties of coasting TO STAR
reporter. Generally short sled is put in front,
and ptVoted so that the navigating officer can
steer By ternng the nose of this sled He may
SIT on II, having his feet braced In such a way
that the pressure of his foot will turn the sled
sometimes the steersman Is a small boy who
Hes at null length in front ana turns the sled
with his hands. Other devices are used One
OF the finest rigs" of the kind that appeared on
E ~ OIL. nil III, Yesterday ., had a wheel
hook and ladder truck. and the steersman
guided the shebang by turning the wheel. This
was 'twenty-fOoter" as The STAR reporters
enthusiastic coaster called II. 1t was made by
laying two twenty-fOot ioists upon three sleds
Then plank was placed upon the ioists and the
whole was made firm, excepting the front sled.
which swung upon the pivot and could be
turned by the wheel. This accommodated
easily about fifteen persons, and when sliding
down bill, well loaded, made roaring grind
ing noise. like q small avalanche Small sleds
were left far behind Then there We're several
"douole-deckers." These were combinations in
which the plank on which the coasters were
seated. was elevated twelve or fifteen inches
above the tops of the sleds. They were devised
especially for the comfort of ladies' whose
dresses are serious embarrassrnents in coasting
And there were scores of young ladies' and some
not so very young, among the coasters last even
Ing They declared that it was perfectly
lovely"
How THE YOUNG LADY SLIDES"
When called upon to describe young lady
coasting, the reporters pencil falters, conscious
OF the immensely Of the task. Owing to the
size and shape OF the sled, aud the objections
that the young men who manage the affair hare
to her dragging her feet upon the ground the
young lady has TO seat herself in the manner
which might Vulgariy be called straddlng But
she does this with such grace and catches I'D
her dress with such pretty art as to make ii
appear one OF the most natural and easy atti-
tudes. Then, when the sled is showed off and
begins TO gather momentum I'm its descent she
cllngs trustingly to the coat of the Young gen
tleman In front OF her When il begins TO dash
along and strike fire out OF the ground she
ltters little scream and throws her arm about