New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1893-08-02
Wednesday, August 2, 1898.
Chicago 20 a Frenchman.

visiting the w oflQS fali at chicago Ill
the capacity of correspondent for l1llus-
tration, writes in an interesting. way of
his experience in and impressions of the
Windy city, says the Sun.
He speaks in a most t1attering way of
the architecture and appearance of the
great exposition, and attempts to give
his readers as accurate and honest an ac-
count of what ne has seen as it seems
7 possible to do with pen and pencil.
His sketches of buildings are exceed
ingly true to nature, but IN his drawings
of scenes in and about the fair all his
figures look like Frenchmen dressed up
for the occasion.
The way some Of our Americanisms
appear to foreigner is amusingly shown
in letter written when he had evident
~ been in Chicago but few days: He
Says:
"The Chicago BARRIERS will doubtless
surprise some of our people, not by the
luxury of his establishment, which sur
passes anything we know Of (for the Pal
mer House barber shop is paved with
real silver dollars), but because of Ger
tain rather peculiar customs that he has,
This barber still clings to the old
fashioned dentists chair, which can be
moved and balanced, and upon this he
places his patient, in a recumbent pos
ture. In this pose the victim is lathered
shaved, chalked, rubbed, brushed with
chamois skin and covered with various
perfumed oils and bay rum.'
It is odd to hear the Frenchman COM
plain of the "old-fashioned dentists
chair" when in mostFrench barber shops
customers are forced to sit up in an Or
binary -bottomed chair while the
talkative operator daubs lather all over
his mouth while he holds saucer under
his chin to catch the spatterings.
In some cases piece of rubber with a
hole in the middle is pulled over the Gus
toners head like poncho to prevent
the lather running down his neck.
''The woman who sells tobacco" con-
tinues the writer, "sells something to
smoke to men and something to chew to
the women. This chew, however, is moth
ing but small tablet of pepsin gum,
favored with fruit syrups, which the
w'men keep in their mouths all DAY and
chew constantly
And this criticism is just. Fully two
thirds of the women one meets in Chica-
go and at the fair are chewing gum.
With regard to our citizen soldiery the
Frenchman shows that he does not un-
derstand the system.
"Although the federal army of the
United States is latent and platonic
force, since it exists only in case of war
or when troops are needed, yet their corps
of officers is second to none in the mat
ter of gold lace. They have notably an
infinite number of major generals, the
one more ma jor generalish than the next
'They have all been very proud Of late
too. Some Of them have been able to
command regiments recruited from no
one knows where for the purpose of the
inaugural parade at the fair.
HWhether you live in small hotel or
a colossal enc like the Auditorium, you
cannot get your boots BACKED in the
house, No white servant will take your
boots and brush them, even for pay. It
is servile job, beneath white mans
dignity. Without intending pun, T
must say that bootblacking there is
black mans job: /
tribe b6otbiacks are relegated to the
street, where you must seek them out
The customer climbs on to throne on
a platform, where he awaits the compile !
ton of the operation in the open air,with
no protection from wind or rain.
"The house painter is an original char
acter, as is his brother of France. His
little cap is just as good as the cotton
bonnet we are accustomed to, but his
trousers, which are very practical ones,
surpass anything I know of in point of
comicality. These inexpressibles serve
him for blouse. Built like the old side
opening trousers they emf in bib that
comes up to his chin.
''He wears a collar and cravat while he
works, and he only has to remove these
trousers to be a gentleman again"
Overalls are apparently unknown in
~