Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-01-07

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wAh IN fronieal tone; ut seems to me We are
among acquaintances. l hope some one will
h95y up to offer US glass of something"
1nis PLEASANTLY had the success desired. II
wns repeated from table to table and the
drinkers, who were particular scquaintances Of
my companion and so held him In fear and
abomlndtion, gave marked signs Of satisfaction
Each one returned to his interrupted converse
ton, and from our post OF observation, with
out rear OF disturbance, we could follow and
note tine progress OF the common drunkenness,
winch went on always, always increasing.
THE BRUTAL MEN AND WOMEN.
Tho look Of the hall is already curious. I'm
agine on the benches, which are the only seats
In the Chateau Rouge. throng of men and
women hvid. patched up without social re-
gard. brutalized These poor somnambulists
OF alcoholism are covered with sordid garments,
white blouses or blue blouses, checkered gowns
OF cotton or wool, all well worn Against this
uniform background of simple indulgence may
De seen, like stains, threadbare coats Of ambi-
tious cut, bought taken from the stall of
some old-clothes dealer, silk dresses frayed and
torn, beneath which appears some lace rag all
stained with sweeping through the refuse Of
the gutter On the wrists of girls who are
still pretty there shine bracelets of mock gold,
jewels of SO little value that they can be coquet-
tishly worn without awakening the cupidity Of
the male acquaintance. With hoarse voice and
crazy gesticulation all ask to drink. "Winel A
stif! green!' The walters, with distrustful
politeness, serve these gentlemen and ladies
with brandy, with absinthe. with the adulter-
ated wines which they crave. The drinks, it is
the rule, must be paid for the moment
! they are brought In little sips and
slowly the customers taste the poison which ia
In their glasses. Little by little the liquors
stimulate the lethsrgic drinkers and life comes
back to their over-excited brains. Quenched
eyes kindle again. thickened tongues grow loose,
babble and become overlooking. Strange talk
goes from table to table among neighbors-the
vulgar and ridiculous incidents of the idle ex-
istence OF brutes, wherein mingle at times sinis-
! ter adventures. Here II is the narrative, en-
larged and boastful, Of some bloody quarrel in
which the narrator triumphed; there 1t is the
| laughable story Of some good trick played on
the ''sorrel mare" and what else2 Cruel stories
OF girls beaten, of thievery successful or failed
| Of night attacks
Soon the voices grow more clamorous, all
speak together and confound each other in an
indistinct clamor Of grotesque voices. Here and
there, however, some are In mulish torpor.
They look without seeing, listen without reply
ing and probably without understanding
Their eyes are vague and their mouths are
open. Those fellows have eaten nothing today"
the ex-policeman tells me- thus explaining their
frightful prOstration. On the other hand the
| women, who are prompter in their drunken
ness, are already wild and wavering. An old
woman rises up, dances from place to place
puts her lean arms around the drinkers necks
With sad cynicism she recounts her life of de-
bauchery and folly and boasts of it. Do you
know that she has been at least twenty times in
prison! Could all these women say as much?
Then young girl, without sensitiveness, wild
nall mad, In accents at once stupid and heart
rending, speaks Of her soiled life. of the rude
trade she follows and will follow as long as she
lives, even to the hospital. Beside Us in the
Senate Hall five fine gentlemen have installed
themselves. They have asked for wine with
the seal on These are the veritable rupins.
They have velvet jackets and vests
of violet wool, over which are spread out great
watch chains loaded with trinkets There are
rings on their fingers and seductive love locks
on their foreheads. On their heads are high
peaked caps of the latest fashion. and around
their necks cravats Of provoking or tender
shades. And thus they are perfect These
messleurs play very gravely, watching each
other to prevent any mutual trickery, and
varying the games with the most interesting re-
marks. IL cannot reproduce them here it is
because 1t would be in vain to try to put such
infamy into honorable language.
Meanwhile the noise has become tremendous
fetid smoke rising up from the pestiferous
breath Of all these drinkers fills the cabaret
In several places they begin singing songs.
sentimental or patriotic, with unclean refrains.
'At present" the policeman saws TO me- 'their
resolutions are taken; they have decided on the
nights exploit They are amusing themselves
and forgetting their troubles before risking
the affair. Let US go"
THE STUDY OF THE GRAND DUKES.
This excursion Of the grand dukes into under
ground Paris not a mere wanton within.
They were acquainted with the wretchedness Of
81. -Petsrsbure~nd London and they wished to
make comparisons. Vladimir is reported to
have said: Here the poor at least have the gar
ments Of poor people. see rags, but they are
the rags OF working garments. In London
found female street sweepers in cast-off silk
dresses, and every beggar in a dilapidated
covert coat. Poverty there has an added
dreariness from cast-offluxury. whereas at Paris
it comes from labor interrupted There it ia
professional; here 1t is occasional" This was
probably said before his night excursion among
classes which are certainly professional in
Paris. However, the princes seemed alive to
every characteristic of poverty. They noted
one singular thing in the patrons of low-class
dance hall. where every cavalier has to pay two
sous FOR each dance. 1T Is very dear" they
said, ''for those who waltz much Here are
young men who look as ii they had not dined
spending q franc to dance an hour or two"
The grand dukes have now left Peris. but the
Franco-Russian enthusiasm, which has lasted an
entire year, is not likely to abate. There is
Russian restaurant on central street near
the Grand Boulevard, where one can have cook
cry with unpronouncable names served up by
these new friends of France. Russian indus
tries are naturally profting by all this Sew
eral shops have been opened by Moscow houses,
where enameled jewelry. cigarette cases and
lamps, as well as lacquered ware and malachite
work, are displayed In the enameling of
lamps, ladies' belts, match boxes and like ex-
pensive trinkets the Russian products keep
closely to good Byzantine patterns, and even
in workmanship they seem superior to similar
decorations commonly found They have
their own secrets Of manufacture and their own
traditions Of color and contrast 1t NAV be
seen, therefore, that these products Of the
alliance have come to stay.
Whether the alliance itself has come TO STAY
or not remains to be seen. l confess cannot
help remembering the laughable conjunction
Of the two nations in the inscriptions on the
Castor-Brunnen in Coblenz which is now a
stronghold Of Germany, the supposed enemy of
both. The first inscription reads thus: Year
1912. Memorable by the campaign against the
Russians, under the prefecture of Jules Doa-
zan." Gle was the last Of the French projects.
The Russian general when he entered the town,
as he finally did, added the following words, in
equally good French: "Seen and approved by
us, Russian commandant Of the city Of Coblenz,
January, 1914" STERLING HELLO
What the Zebra Is Good For
A little Washington boy, writing compost