The Sunday herald and weekly national intelligencer., 1891-01-11
NEW YoRK's CHEAP swELLs.

Youths and Men of Pretentious Leisure
Who Live Heaven Knows How.
New York Star.
There are probably very few New Workers
who have not experienced feeling of irrita-
tion in the presence of peculiarly exasperat-
ing element of the complex population of this
town. Literally, scores of men are familiar to
the public at large whose pretentions to swell
dom are SO transparently false that they almost
approach the grotesque. Yet as the years roll
by they continue to float about upon the sur
face of life, are always to be found in public
places, are on hand at all state occasions, and
at every notable theatrical or public event, and
apparently enjoy most of the privileges of the
elect of the earth. After time the feeling of
curiosity about them dies away and that of ex-
asperation takes its place. They pose as men
about town, ''rounders,'' gentlemen of leisure,
and the like. Everybody knows that they are
penniless, yet they live on luxuries. A famous
restaurant keeper said not long ago that the
difference between the real swells and the cheap
swells could always be judged at dinner time
MANY men hang around fashionable res
taurant," he said, ''and manage to build up
more or less Of a reputation by securing promi-
nent seats in the windows and having their let
ters addressed in care of the place. Once in a
great while they order glass of beer, but they
is cheaper. About O'clock they are seated
around the tables, but by $50 they invariably
plead dinner engagements and hurry away If
anybody invites them to dine they spread all
over the place, but these invitations are exceed
ingly scarce. The men whose position and
wealth are what their clothes indicate order
their dinners, as matter of course, wherever
they happen TO be. There are literally dozens
OF men hanging about here who are constantly
ON view, who wear good clothes and snowy
rings, but are nevertheless penniless. They do
not spend twenty cents day upon themselVesn
"Where do they all live ?''
"Ah, now you've struck a tremendous prob-
lem. The most prominent figure in the Hoff-
man House cafe IS man whose mother keeps a
clearinghouse in Fifty-eighth street. All
strangers and many natives set him down as a
man of prominence and wealth. Several habi-
tues OF Delmonico's are known to be in the
most desperate financial straits imaginable,
but somehow they manage to keep on the sur
lace. 1t is a peculiarly of the cheap swell that
he never permits himself to live according to his
means. III he is starving and has only fifty
cents In his pocket he never for an instant think
OF gong over TO restaurant on Sixth avenue,
Where he could buy a substantial meal for half
that sum. On the contrary, he goes hungry,
ana SITS IN Delmonico's slipping brandy and
soda which cost him forty-fVe cents and lets the
waiter 60 without tip.n
There are two general classes of the cheap
swell IN New York. One is composed of the
silly ana pretentious young men who pose to
gratity an Intense ambition and who fancy that
tthey deceive the world by their "society'' airs,
the other is the type of gaudy swell who uses
his fiashy attire and assurance as the means of
making a living. Men of the latter sort are
very often keenly watched by the police. The
former are more of a nuisance than a menace to
society.