Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1892-02-14
AROUND IN GOTHAM.
TOPICS OF GENERAL INTEREST sUc.
GsSTED BY RECENT EVENTS.
The .Astor baby aud It's Alleged Failure
Wcaith-rhe "smart set" Not go Very
Rich as Stated by Its SERVANT


amount of cretuitous advertising. In the
whole course Of his large and very lucra-
tive practice his name never appeared in
the papers so profusely as it did IN only
two days time But the unregistered
baby was young John Jacob Astor's first
born boy, William Vincent and tho
reason why the doctor failed 10 make
the proper return was that he has so
much else 20 attend TO that he actually
forgot IL till reminded of 1T moro than
two months after tho birth. This lapse
of memory not only extensively and need
lessly advertised the doctor, but II gave
all the newspapers the opportunity TO re-
peat tho highly ilorid fiction that the tor
gotten babe was herr 10 $4,000 600,
when probably the whole fortune OF
.Grandpapa William amounts 10 about one
tenth of that sum. IL Is not generally be
lieved by real estate men, who are the best
judges. that the entire Aston property In
this city amounts tomOre than SlOO 600 900
and the great bulk of IL is in the hands Of
William Waldorf Aston IN trust. as 1t
were, for transmission TO his eldest
son. As nearly all this great property ~
in real estate. II Is easily dlScOveraDie u
Grandpapa William paws taxes on more
than Sl5,0O0.0 goo OF property, aud possibly
il will be found tia. his own return IS
somewhat less. But about Or. Lusk he
Is still in his prime-ip fact. as we reckon
men here, no Is still young man. with
practice probably of $4,000 year, and
principally among people who can Afford
to pay big fees, even when they only
pretend TO be sick. DR.. Lusk, Ike
Polk, Janewoy, Stephen Smith, Looms.
and q half dozen moro who might be
mentioned. was originally an inferno on
the Bellevue Hospital staff, beginning
there as poor young doctor, happy to
serye as o Junior and senior year tor no.
thing. and then six months more as
"hOuse" for board. lodging. and wash
ing. That hospital has been the practice
beginning of many OF the most eminent
physicians and surgeons in this city-men
who now derive immense incomes from
their own private practice. And what
is creditable 10 these distinguished
doctors, among whom Lusk Is an
eminent example IS that they
never break away from Belle
vue, where they began rs internes. For
years they serve on the medical board OF
that public institution. are IN their turn
visiting physicians and surgeons daily for
O month al time, and are on call az any
hour. day or night. for any complicated or
critical case. All this, of course, graiul-
tously; they leave the bedside of perhaps
their best-paying patient aud gladly GO
down TO the hospitals to treat the poorest
man or woman for nothing. Noble pro-
fession
THEY wRANGLE OVER OrTEA
They are having their usual contention
mp at the big yellow ugly Metropolitan
Opera-HOuse as TO what kind Of Opera we
are TO have next season. The French
Italian article. under Abbey and Grau, has
not been n pronounced success. Tut II has
"A
certainly more pleasure, artistically. than
any opera we have had here i'll years, but
the crazy Nagnerltes are clamOring for
another season of noise and blathor,
and the probabilities are that they
may be able 10 carry their point
AS a matter Of fact, there is no more
popularity about the Wagner opera than
there Is about "a wagOn-lOad of iron drawn
over the rough pavement of Broadway.
But the people who have the Wagner craze
are determined, If possible. to force their
peculiar discOrd on the community al all
hazards. 50 far rs opera IN this city is
concerned. IL is really nothing but a social
fad and affectatlOn. A lot of rich peo-
pie, who wish 10 exhibit their toilets
and their jewels. own and occupy
boxes in the Metropolitan. and care
no more about the kind Of music
which II presented upon tine stage than
are now being worn by the tIji Islanders.
"Sassiety" must have opera, because 1t is
the thing TO have. About H. per cent. of
the people who support these entertain
ments az the Metropolitan are genuine
lovers of music. Some OF them are music
teachers, some amateur performers, and
some love music for music's sake.
You will find a large percentage Of these
people BARRIERS, walters. and poor musI-
clans, standing IN the top galleries at re-
duced rates. These people know and appre-
Clate tho performances on the stage. !
should say that large percentage of those
in the boxes give but little more attention
TO the orchestration and vocaiiZation than
they would give 10 a b0xing-match # box
ing-matches were voted lust the thing for
society. Abbey and Grau have not made
much money out of their venture. | fear,
but they have achieved artistic success
and have earned the thanks Of that poT-
tion of the community winch really wOr-
ship music.
THE GREAT AcIoR's FAIR.
The most remarkable fair on record not
excepting the big annual one at Mini
Koyeorod. nor the horse show which
seems TO hold the American record TO date,
will be an Actors Fund fair IN the Mali-
son-Square Garden MAY %. Tor months
preparations have been making, aud Il is
already certain, not only that nothing like
il has ever been seen, but that IN all
probability no similar thing VIII
ever be arranged. One of Its odd fea-
lures is TO be an exhibition Of the photo
graphs Of the leading men and women not
only OF the American. but OF the Eu-
ropean stage as we'll, duly autographed III
many cases and arranged IN groups about
a central picture of the theatre with winch
these actresses and actors have been
identified. or the manager who has been
prominently connected with their profess
Bional careers. This feature alone ought
20 make the fair attractive. No window on
Broadway draws more curious eyes than
Reitzmann's. where an attempt at gather
Ing theatrical celebrities has been made,
near Iwentv-secOnd street, by an ex-
perienced photographer. IL is human ma
ture for men and women TO be interested
in the everyday personality of people
who amuse them behind the footlights.
Actresses and actors wear good clothes
and have exercised the uplifting of
the spirit"-by which Phillips Brooks
made for himself handsome out of
hOmely mouth, as a rule. with measure
able success. Their features and their
clothes have generally something piquant
and striking IN ensemble. II people
will stop and stare at an incomplete
collection Of American and English stage
fayorItes. their admiration for complete
arrangement of the photographs of the
best looking and most talented men and
women OF the stages of Berlin, Paris,
Rome. Vienna, Naples. ST. Petersburg,
London. Buenos Ayres, Copenhagen, Mel
bourne, Sydney. Calcutta. Bombay, Dub
lin. and Hong Kong is safely discounted.
This is what Manager A. NJ. Palmer con-
templates and tho idea Is novel one. to
say the least
oyEREsrIMArED FORTUNES.
The newspaper making Of baby in the
junior branch OF the Astor family heir TO
$50 000. 600 Is only an example Of the ab-
sufd overestimate OF numerous great for
tunes IN tins town. For example, Il is r
current deluslon that every member of the
so-called -Four Hundred" Is the master
or mistress Of many millions. This belief
Is based upon the assumption OF the other
wise-styled smart set ~ itself that its only
claim 20 distinction is its great wealth.
Aud surely II must be that, IL any
thing, for IL Is not education. intelligence,
refinement, cultivation, or like quail
ties which 60 10 mako the really best
socieiy IN any city so that II must be
the wealth. But wealth is something that
the public, at least statistically, can put its
finger on. IL - tangible, because 1t is tax
able. and the books are open 10 whoever
rhogSpQ ~ read Evarvbn1,, k,nu,a ~,