Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1890-08-08
NEW. YORK LETTER.
NEW YORK,

August 4, 1871.
DEAR REGIsTER-Doubtle all your
readers have read of New York's great
resort, Coney Island, but
a description of it OH Sunday would
doubtlessly prove interesting. Sun
day is the day at the Island-the work
ing man, the shop girl and all the
poor people who work hard through
the week, take advantage of this, the
ONLY day of the week that they can
get a breath OF fresh air or enjoy
themselves. The fare is very moder-
ate, being only so cents on the Iron
Steamboat Line, and is q most enjoy
able sail of about an hours length.
OF course, on Sundays the boats are
crowded, but it is a good-natured
crowd and no one minds it. The first
things that appear at Coney Island
are the Elephant and the Observation
Tower. This elephant could easily
contain several hundred Jumbos and
not be crowded. 1t was originally
built for hotel, but is now used more
for booths and sight seeing than any
thing else. 1t is an immense struc.
ture, built exactly as an elephant, and
can be seen far off from the Island.
The Observation Tower is apt to make
one giddy and is of an immense height.
Two elevators are run in it, and q
grand view can be had from the top.
On arriving at the Island the landing
is made at one of the finest piers in
the country, extending a great dis
lance out into the water, and is most
handsomely built Here the fun COM
mences, for everybody goes to Coney
Island for fun on Sunday and they
have it. Each side Of the piers and
nearly all the beach is filled with bath
ers. Girls of all ages are swimming
about, or trying to, ranging from lit
tie tots of four to frisky old DANES OF
forty, all having good time and
neatly dressed in the regulation clue
suit. OF course the boys are there
too, as they are necessity. AS soon
as you leave the pier and reach the
Island you strike the crowd, and If it
is a good "Coney Island Sunday"
there are around $4,000 people scat
tered over the Island. The Merry
go-round" or "Carousal," as it is
called, ia heard above everything.
There are over dozen immense ones
here, all worked by steam and having
immense music organs playing at the
same time. The hew invention called
the "razzle- dazzle" is the rage now.
1t is a round seat suspended from a
pole, like a 'merry-go-round," but is
pulled by ropes in every direction and
is said to have a motion combining
the composite action of a see-saw, a
hammock, a ship in a storm, an ele-
vator, an express train and top.
The revolving swing is also novelty,
as are the Switch backs" and tobog
gan slides. They are immensely high
trestling works with little cars on
tracks that send you down and around
curves at lightning speed. Further
down the Island, towards the west
end, YOU strike the ''fakirs" and con-
cert halls of every description. or
course the "cane-boards" and knife
boards" of every kind are there, but
also every gambling scheme that was
ever invented. Such a conglomera-
ton of shows, sausage counters and
catch penny affairs, it is hard to i'm
agine. All the shows are wide open,
and walking along you can see every
variety of exhibition known-trage-
DIV, farce, variety, wrestling matches,
gymnastics, high kicking by faded
blondes and a small army of girls in
dresses cut extremely short at both
ends, with blackened men in song and
dance acts. In each of these places,
some of which are immensely large,
fine halls, you are supposed to go in
and drink. The quantity of beer sold
on Sunday is enormous. The dance
halls are free, and there are the places
to see the most artistic speeding" AT
one place is q cowboy band, at an
other is race track down the beach
where you can ride the ''bucking bron-
chos.n The price of nearly everything
is five cents, excepting champagne,
which comes at ten cents. There Is
an immense COW, about ten times nat
ural size, where girl presses the teat
and deals out cold, pure milk. This
is the tough" part of the Island. AT
Manhattan Beach, further down are
the great fireworks and Gilmore with
his incompatible band, but space
will not allow an account Of it. There
are large hotels and restaurants where
you can get excellent service. At
night the Island presents most beau
tiful appearance with its myriads of
vari-colored lights. And what a jam
going back on the boat Above all
the noise can be heard the cries Of the
hundreds Of babies. On the boat
every fellow has his arm around his
girl and her head nestles on his broad
cloth shoulder. The minstrels that
are on every boat at night enliven the
trip with Annie Rooney" "Razzle
Dazzle" and other popular airs. This
is a very limited account Of what
Coney Island is on Sunday-it must
be seen to be appreciated.
ID d