Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-07-12
MURRAY's MUSINGS.

Independence of Modern Hotels-Painted
Boards and White Dresses-Dogs al
the Doctors Oface-Reading Language
From the Lips-Gotham Stories.
rFRoM A STAFF CORRESPONDENT
New YORK. July 1.-THE best New York
hotels now have ice plants and electric light
| plants All the new hotels going up about
| town are thus provided. They depend
neither upon the uncertain humors of the
| iceman nor upon the uncertain light OF
metropolitan gas. This is but one of the
characteristics of modern hotel keeping.
The genteel boy in dress suit day and
night replaces the coatless young rufflan in
a woolen shirt, and his successor. the super.
animated waiter in black alpaca round
about. The ice and electric light plants,
however, are fin de steele, or, to use an
equally comprehensive American express
sion, "'wayu in G."
1t has always been difficult and trouble
some thing to get large quantities of clear,
pure ice for hotel purposes, and the specula-
tive tendencies of the ice market of recent
years have made it also expensive. Man.
ufaotured ice came much purer than the
natural product and in quantities to suit the
current demand. The cost of storage, waste
and handling is reduced to minimum. Ice
soothing to the aesthetic taste. The power.
full engines and machinery necessary to the
modern hostelry render that part of the ad-
ditional manufacturing expense of little
moment. During the speculative ice famine
of last summer the men with ice plants
smiled. Big schemes were then set on foot
to manufacture ice here in large quantities
for general delivery, but thus far they do
not appear to have materialiZed.
As for the private electric light plants
those hotels and restaurants that own them
had q practical illustration of the wisdom of
their investment when the city was reduced
to gas or darkness by reason of the chop
ping down of poles by the city authorities
last year. The business of gas-lighted re-
sorts fell off 25 per cent and a corresponding
increase of profit went to the lucky ones.
People now wonder how they ever stood
gas-lighted dining rooms theaters, restau-
rants, bedrooms, ETC., hot summer nights.
The Woman in White.
"sPEAKING retrospectively, said a fash
ionable widow, "when was girl in society
the white dress was considered one of the
sweetest things a young lady could wear.
Now one never sees them except at com
mencement or q wedding. Prints, prints,
prints! Even the sweet girl graduate in a
white dress is o rarity. As for Broadway,
the sight of a white dress on anybody but
an infant is q thing of general feminine COM
ment. l know 1t is rather daring to venture
now that young and pretty woman in pure
white is the lovelieSt vision in the world of
beauty. She need not be SO very young
women who could be called without offense
neither young nor pretty, who looked better
In white than anything they could have
put on"
And what man of 40 upward, pray, who
will not agree with her?
Painted Whiskers Have Gone.
nrry,- 1or inf for ha
or beard went out with the white dress. You
will see both occasionally but so exception
ally rare in New York as to excite remark.
The painted whisker deceived nobody but
its wearer. He alone deemed it a clever i'm
provement of his personal appearance.
Obstinacy and vanity invariably went with
red hair and a blue black moustache; but
have obstinacy and vanity departed from
superseded by common sense. There was q
time when the horrible work of the dyer
could be met on Broadway every dozen
PAGES. Coal black moustachios and sandy
eyebrows glared at you across the public
table. Dark whiskers with dense under
growth of red and growing stems were
Haunted to the idle wind on every corner.
The Bowery tough, the volunteer fireman,
the Hoboken butcher, the genteel gambler,
the ward heeler-all reveled in the paint-pot
of the tonsorial artist: Now men are proud
reasonably content with the handiwork of
nature and time.
At the Theatrical Exchanges.
THE scenes about the theatrical exchanges
are lively just at present. Swarms of country
managers are in town. Most of these have
q small cell in one of the big exchanges.
This cell contains a roll-top desk and two
chairs. The card of the manager, or the dis
play card of the combination whose man.
ager occupies the place, is carelessly tackled
mp on the door like a card on bathhouse.
Two rows of these box-like offices, repre-
senting as many real box offices, with a mar
rooms floor above floor. For the acoommo-
datlon they pay from $25 a month upward.
There is public room with desks, the privf-
lege of which costs So 3 year. Mail is hero
received and forwarded.
Hundreds of managers ofcountry theaters
and combinations - theaters and shows
never heard of by metropolitan public
meet daily about these resorts. They are
getting and giving dates for the coming
season, making up companies, fishing for
plays and hackers. Never ceasing currents
of actors, actresses, singers, would-bes
eagerness, satisfaction or anxiety on
their faces-and often considerable make
up on the feminine faces. 1t is alto
gether one of the most interesting studies
Of human nature to be found in the me-
tropolis.
The Wall of the Bootblack.
IT MAKA from two to tree dolla day." said
an Italian bootblack with two chairs under
the elevated stairs. ''Bisna no good. No
good lasta yeah. Foa 1 make tree, fo', f1va
and sometimes Ska dolla day."
whats the reason business is not 80 good
nou9U