Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-09-02
THE PICNIC SEASON.
now the Manager Makes a Cool
Thing Out of Them.

Thing Out of Them,
NEW YORK, Aug. GA feature of New
ork lite is the picnics, several of which
every day in the week take place in some
suburban grove or place of resort and at
which there are good deal Of fun and
very often considerable fighting. There
are many people in this city who regular
ly make good living by getting up and
running these picnics. Most Of them are
politicians in small way, bright young
fellows, with mighty little moral sense
VINO go for dollar every day in the week
theY see 1t and grab it only to "bloW it
M tue next minute. The way they work
ID about as follows: Themanager gathers
together half dozen of his chums in
some lager beer saloon and the gang asso-
olate themselves together as the 'Gentle.
mems Sons of the Fourth Ward," 1.-The
BelVeCia Guards" or goodness knows
what. Sometimes they take the name of
some solid man Of the district who likes
to be advertised, and very often they
chrlsten themselves after some leading
ward politician. Next in order is selec-
ton of the committee of arrangements
who are named by the origInators
without asking their leave. Then
meeting is called and committees are
appointed to make arrangements
the manager begins to get in his
fine work. he puts himself on every COM
mlttee which will have the spending OF
any money, and couple Of SELLERS he
can stand by" keep him company. The
tickets are ordered TO be printed and the
meeting adjourns for week to tackle
key OF beer set UP by the manager. In the
meantime he goes and sees the steam boat
man, makes conditional contract with
m q nd hrpn hi fnr or
he is an old friend. Then he goes to three
or four of the saloon keepers and talks up
the bar privileges to them. He also gets
glorious set OF sample badges, all SILK
and yard wide, every color in the rain
bow, with gold and silver into the bar
gain. These he displays at the adjourned
meeting, brags about the figures he has
made with the boatman and hoOrays gen.
orally over another key of beer. Then the
tickets are produced. Some of the lambs
present are induced to pay cash for
few of the tickets. This the printer
gets and departs happy with
the manager at his heels
claiming divYy around the corner. The
tickets are all supposed to be counter
signed by the Secretary and Treasurer
and then they are told off in patches OF
ten and twenty to be lett at the stores and
houses of all the prominent citizens Of
that he and his own particular friends
will pay personal attention to the solid
men VINO are sure to come down with the
| dust, and it is a curious fact that the
tickets purchased by these solid men and
subsequently used by their friends have
never been countersigned by the proper
officials. Next in order comes the market
ing OF the bar privileges. If there are
! half a dozen saloon keepers all compel
Wi "a a
OF bills don't slip into the managers
| pocket from each of them, and even after
! the contract mas been signed with one
| party sometimes another contract will be
| signed with another one. There have
! been various adjourned meetings, each
more largely attended than the other,
some rising citizen with more wealth
than brains has been liberal with beer
and when he is asked after an evenings
jollifcation to sign the contract for the
steamboat and Darges, just as matter
| OF form, be does what he is told, and the
| next day deposit IS made and the man
! ager gets ''anOthe: whack." at last the
day of the picnic arrives. The musicians
toOt three tunes, and then sit III grim
silence guarding the mouths of their in
struments until they are paid in full,
| when once more the sounds of melody
welcome the guests. The manager can't
beat them. Now the committeeman come
along splendid ia Sunday clothes. There
is kick when the unsigned tickets come
| in, but they are in good hands and no!h-
ing can be done. Hurry, scurry, the
| gang-way is crowded, until at last the
| whistle t0ots, the boats meve away, and
the last man left behind is the manager,
who skips the whole show, leaving it to
shift for itself. The picnic proceeds.
| There is trouble at the bar; there is
trouble with the music. The captain says
he will only go SO far and no further, and
every time there is trouble some of the
well-to-do victims have to help things
out, and when the next adjourned meet
ing comes and the treasurer presents a
statement there is a tremendous row,
which ends in a free fight. But the man.
ager is all right and repeats the game
| again within a month.