Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1885-02-11
rnn ROLLER RrNk cRAzE.
The spread aud Growth and characteristics
u National Movement


u National Movement
From the New York Tribune.
Roller skating Is becoming the national
vice. The craze ovor " Is spreading rapidly,
and Is SELLING on every Glass of the cominun
ity. A great army OF shrewd men are coming
money by providing facilities for II (; while a
goodly percentage of the public have for
sworn all other forms of amusement and
cleave to roller skating only. A literature,
ephemernl but voluminous, has sprung up To
give voice To the paSttime; and the funny
tnen of the comic papers have stopped Joking
about spring poets aud mothers in-law while
they illustrate In prose and poetry the
humors of "rnking." The use of the last
word reminds us that the craze has evolved
q vocabulary as well as a literature and no
reader of the news of the ,iay can uiss seeing
frequent references to "grWctul riukcrS
"skatoriai ability "a good roller Town,
ga rink ulating public" DC.
Roller skating has many Objectionable ica-
lures, as the Tribune has already shown but
Its growth into "A sudden popularity has a
humorous and grotcSquc side ~ we'll The
clergy have properly enough called attention
To the evils Incident to II; though unfortu-
natcly their zeal has sometimes been greater
than their discretion, rs when one Of them IA
few months ago informed his Mortified con
grcgation that had IL not been for skating
Kinks thousands OF young people would
never have fallen, He had heard casually
that young people frequently fell in these
places, and supposed that a fall into sin was
meant IL Is also n well attCstcd fact that the
b clergy have unwittngly done much To nd-
vertiso the pastime by preaching against II !;
and many rinks IN country towns have at
tanned their popularity largely IN this way.
Woroad OF an old man IN Michigan eighty
years of age learning to skate, and thus got
ting rid Of numerous diseases that had threat
ened to shorten his days. The teachers and
pupils ofa large school IN Illinois adjourned
in body the other day, aud went to one of
the ruks of the town, where they found the
trustees already on rollers " rinkulating " TO
the inspiring strains of local brass band.
The citizens of Milwaukee arc said to have
forgotten the taste of beer In thoir cagerness
TO learn roller skating and the latest details
about fresh dynamite outrage or Mr.. Clevc-
lands cabinet do not excite ~ much atton-
ton Us the record of some star of the rink.
An Arizona editor dcCrios the al vance of the
popular craze into that peaceful territory,
and calls upon all loyal citizens To oppose the
epidemic We can fall, no adds, easily
enough now, without getting on those
burned tcnderioot machines"
out i'll Ohio we hear Of brieiless lawyer
developing marvellous skill in roller
skating, and now he Is not only famous but
rolling in wealth. lie Is generally supposed
to have the most eloquent pair of legs in the
Western Reserve. Another state has AN
Infant Phenomenon on skates who (Or IL
ii which p earns "A weekly salary that would
make the best freak in a dime museum turn
green with envy. Another state boasts an
international rollcr-skatcr, whatever that
may mean and still another peripatetic
genius caters To the piuus trade by giving
exhibitions in aid of adebt-burdcned church,
or of aparsou who would like Ia see the color
Of his salary. Still again the news il flashed
over the wires that Michigan young woman
has threatened to commit suicide unless her
father allows her Ia go rOllcr-skating She
rejects with scorn her sire's offer to ComprO-
mise by letting her go to all the minstrel
shows that come into the town. and declares
that the issue Is ruller-skating or death. With
this spirit abroad in the country 1t * not
wonderful that the travelling theatrical com
panies are doing a poor business, and that
many ambitious actors have been obliged to
come back to the " Rialto in this city on
their uppers."
In the midst Of all this hubbub the verdict
of the physician and the mOralist on the evil
results of rOllcr-skatiug is unhecdcd, and the
fun goes merrily on. All this is not particular
ly crediublc to the good sense of the Ameri-
can people; but the reaction will probably
come some day. The rinks with their high
sounding and bizarre names will be turned
into theatres, churches, or cheap museums /;
several millions of rOler-skatcs will be cast
aside In garrets or woOdshcds and the shifting
mercurial people who now patronizo the Sc
ductive rink will throw all their aOounding
enthusiasm into some newer craze