, 1885-05-13
s1ess1 oAa srlausrre,


the Lrc4ctut MY.
lBlakeiy Hall In Philadelphia Press.l
Street car etiquette here is very strict.
The men are extremely polite, and I
have not yet seen a woman S anding in
a car while a seat was occupied by a
man What struck me rs being most
remarkable was the universal politeness
with which all women are treated. If
an old, awkward and ragged negress
climbs into a car, three or four men are
on their feet at once, Offering her their
seats, and the fare is passed up to the
box with rs much courtesy as a duchess
could desire. 1t Is n fact that young
women are not one whit more politely
treated than their older and palmer sis
tiers. But the graciousness shown to
negresses is very striking to visitors.
BY the way, you never hear Of a negro
or negress nere-eyerything is niger,
nigger-man or niger woman, w by
the most punctilious Of takers.
Two bells will stop n car at nee and
one bell indicates that the passenger
wishes to alight at the next corner.
Nothing could more plainly illustrate
the great leisure that everybody enjoys
than the in which women leave
a car. As her corner approaches she
half raises her hand 10 pull the bell.
Several masculine hands clutch it at
once and when the car comes TO the cor.
ner it is gently and Thoroughly stopped
by the driver, who turns around in his
seat-they drive seated-nnd looks back
with lazy curiosity into the car. The
woman sits TRANQUILITY there o long
after the car has come TO a full stop
that the strangers in the car look around
TO see what Is the cause Of the delay.
The driver yawns and leans over the
dashboard, lazily dangling his whip
over the rail Then the woman rises
sedately, shakes herself gently to-
gether, and walks placidly out Of the
ear. some one cries, "All right, Gal
lagher, and the driver wakes from his
lethargy and starts tho melancholy
mule upon his blithsome way.
have not been able thus far TO find
out why every driver is Familiarity ad-
dressed as Gallagher, - though | have
been told that it is founded upon n
legend of ancient date. II would seem
thai in tho early days OF the city an
Irish poiiceman-eyen at that early date
the nation had a penchant for getting
on the force-named Gallagher arrested
n and dragged her off to Jail.
She enjoyed a large degree Of popularity
and her neighbors followed the minion
Of the law and chanted: Let her go
Gallagher" oven TO the doors of the
prison. How 1t came TO be applied to
the drivers OF the street cars is easy
enough to understand.
The manner in which a New Orleans
manor an O%rleanian, ms he sometimes
calls himself himself alights from a
car differs radically from that of n wo-
man. He never stops the car, either to
get on or of, aud the driver does not
make even a pretense of putting down
the brake. The passenger simply walks
out of the car and upon the ground
without turning around. lie keeps his
back to the horses and walks off with
out looking back. Visitors watch this
really difficult feat with the utmost in
t%erest, expecting the man to take up a
sitting posture the instant he leaves the
car. But he never does. On the con-
trary, he walks off with an air that is
eminently blase, and somewhat bored at
exeitable temporaments OF these people
from the north.