The diamond drill., 1891-10-31
SCENES ON THE B0wERY.
DESCRIPTION OF a FAMOUS
NEW YORK STREET.
Dnrkencd by Koohng OF Elevated
Tracik,-The Home OF sharp Bar-
gains and tho Haunt of
swindiers.

At first view the Bowery imprcsscs
you "a place which ought 10 como up
10 the romance As you come up
Park Row itself a curious placc. you
find yourself getting into a deep shadow,
like the entrance to a cave. Tho air
smells close and musty. Tho sunlight
has taken the FIRE ,hne - with IT, There
are elevated tracks hanging low. and
so closely covering the street that
rain feldom falls upon IL This Is
! Chatham Square. tho entrance 10 the
Bowery. Leaving the deep twilight
OF Division street 20 the right says
Harper's Weekly you so straight up
into the broad yet dark highway OF
enst-side life. crowded both in street
and sidewalks. noisy with multitude
OF sounds. some OF which are TO be
heard nowhere else shadowed by tho
tracks OF the elevated. which hang
low over the entire width OF the street
from Chatham Square 20 Grand and
i'm these ten or fifteen blocks is con-
tanned the true Bowery. Here are
lumblcd together queer and varied
lot Of enterprises
In and around Chatham square the
chief business is tho lodging house.
On the outer walls are hung great
signs. bearing pretentious names, The
Windsor, The Grand Windsor The
Atlantic, The Pacific. The Grand.
Some OF these places, the most OF them
in fact have front rs inviting as the
names; there is a gaudy paint shining
brasswork, an air OF clcanncss. luxury
even. This splendor is entirely out OF
keeping with the price lists hung be-
meath the signs and over the sidewalks.
generally on cloth. through which
! light shines at night that he who
runs may read. The prices range
| from fifteen 10 fifty cents. Clean
| sheets are offered 10 some places as an
especial inducement. All this appears
| from the street.
After the lodging-houses you will
notice the dime museums. And here
again is that pretentious exterior
the gay paint tho big signs all the
promise Of good things within. There
are pictures OF curiosities that would
/ appeal 20 the most blase museum goer
! Inside IL is sad swindlc. Ladies'
and gen,lemcn this Is an image OF the
horned lady now living in Asia. This
is an image OF the two-headed calf
now exhibiting in England. y IL is all
! fraud. all fake; and though you may
have gone in expecting n cheat you
will have so far surpassed your ex-
pectations that you will look sneak
ingly about you as you come out The
shooting galleries with the gaudy
swinging targets-lions tigers. ole
plants are equally dclusion. and
you will never get the quarters that
reward hitting the bull's-eye FIVE
times The photograph galleries
whore n-types are TO be had at phe-
nomenally small prices will give you
llkenesses TO make you wonder at
your own possibilities OF homeliness.
Then there ARE the shops. The
Bowery is a great trading place. The
lower east side does most of its shop
ping there buys its hats and shoes
and shirts and gowns and furniture.
There arc queerer shops in other
street not far from the Bowery, but
the Boweiy Is the headquarters for
J swindling in merchandise, "a in
amusement
Bargain signs hang over every dooe.
Every one has just assigned. has just
burned out is leaving business.
Everything is going al n sacrifice. All
things ave nt bargain prices; yet moth
ing Is bargain. There Is every
whore a droary monotony OF cheap
ness the cheapness that shines In the
windows and falls 10 pieces in tho
arms Of the purchaser on his way
home. A dollar will buy more hero
than anywhere Csc IN the city -and
also less.
Among these shope are the pawn
brokers pretcndcrs and swindlers as
the others For they arc not pawnbro-
kers FOR all their three ball signs and
their conspicuous directions as 10 how
10 reach tho private entrances They.
liko the auction houses. sell bad iewel-
ny, fire-gilt watches nicSel-plated
chains. gold washed rings. They
pretend that these things are unro-
doomed pawns In reality not a pawn
is In all the display.
In fact the whole Bowcry. in all its
amusements in all its business enter
prises, Is based upon the grand primal
principle OF the philosophy OF hum
bug-that you can get something for
nothing. That Is the wherefore OF all
this tardiucss all this vain show. this
paint and gliding and glitter These
fakirs cater to the belief OF low intel
ligenco in It's own shrcwdnoss and cum
ing
A atrauoor In Nav York walked nm