Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-09-15
MATCHES AT THE FAIR.
It is Considered Fairly Good Matrimonial
Market.
Men and Women sightseeing To-
gether Naturally Become At
tached to One Another.
Correspondence Of The Evening Star.


of The Star. He had made a careful study
OF the human exhibit. and knew what he
was talking about.
TT never occurred to me that 1t is a
matrimonial market at ALL" said the cor
respondent.
''Oh, well, you don't know about those
things" he said Every place that large
crowds come to Is matrimonial market.
Now. this is not as good as the seashore in
one way, for the people are very busy see
Ing the sights, and. consequently, have not
much time to see each other. but 1t is bet
ter than tie seashore in another sense. be-
cause there are as many men as women.
On the whole, / pronounce 1t fairly good E"
and he walked away with the important air
that belongs to a judge of awards.
As a man leaves Washington and jour-
neys to the west. he becomes aware that
he is penetrating the region where many of
the occupations that are reserved for men
chiefly in the east are filed by young NO.
men. They sell him his ticket on the ele-
waited railroad, they make out his check for
the dinner he has eaten. they even sit be-
hind the gratings at the banks. they are
almost as numerous in the great office
buildings as the men themselves. 1t is only
natural, therefore. to find hundreds Of these
girls attending to the wants OF the visit
ors at the fair. Some are good looking,
some are ugly. some are sweet and pleas
ant, others are sour and disagreeable. but,
Ieduy, very lew can De claSSe0 among the
last named Nearly all OF them are young.
The Foreign exhibitors have caught the
American spirit. and in all their sections
they have girls to wait upor the public and
answer questions, and some Of them can
reply to a question that comes in any one
OF five languages.
As Matrimonial Market.
But about the fair as a matrimonial mar
ket- It will probably be found at the end
that a good many hundreds Of people have
fallen in love with each other who would
never In all likelihood have met II 1t had
not been for the fair. They are introduced,
or they introduce themselves, at the hotel
or boarding house and then they proceed
to do the fair together. As long as they
go about In busness-like way looking
at all the sights they have little oppor-
tunity to do anything Else. but whsn even
ing comes and with It the quiet seat and
the fireworks and illumir atoms are the at
fractions then, perhaps. & few tender words
may be spoken After a certain stage in
the worlds fair love making there are no
more sights 20 be seen, for the palr avoid
the crowds and seek only secluded spots
where they can bill and COO. 1t was one Of
these smitten people that confessed to the
writer that the first day Of his arrival he
the second day he had met the one woman
In all the world who" &c. AMI that after
that he had been endeavoring, with some
success. to see her without being bothered
by the rest of the show. In the morning
they would sit on bench on the Wooded
Island Toward afternoon the crowd would
drive them away from there. He said he
tried taking her around in the Ferris
wheel. but they got so much absorbed in
one another and talked SO mucn that it
was not unit: the wheel stopped that they
noticed it had been going, and then they
perceived also that all the other passen-
gers in the same car with them had been
listening TO them and laughing at them
He next tried the veranda Of the coffee
had found quite satisfactory. In order to
present some sort of excuse for sitting
there long time he kept absorbing coffee
and she kept drinking cocoa RE was afraid
to calculate how much they had drunk
but he thought 1t probable they mad each
got away with a keg full at .east- After
the second afternoon in Java he declared
that the natives began to laugh at him, so
he left and took to the water, alternating
between gondolaS and launches, until his
money gave out and she went home. He
has been to see her since and is now en-
gagged
Why He Bought Photographs.
There are a good many matches being
made among the girls who Sell water lea
nuts. popcorn. rings. fruit, photographs,
souvenir coins. fans, trinkets and thou
sand other articles and the young men
who purchase these articles. Thus. one
young man was discovered with bundle
In his hand
What have you got there?' he was
asked
Photographs" he replied.
cot yourself?'
mo, no. of the fair"
'Of what buildings?"
He looked perplexed for moment. STAN
I'm hanged IL KNOW
why did you buy themT
tweil" he began. they are pretty-that
Is she Is pretty-and she recommended
them. know"
Did 1t take you a long time to select
those photographer
No. not long" he said. Let's see."
and he looked at mis- watch-"yes. by Jove.
have been three hours choosing these
photographs. and I can't remember what
they are at all You see. she recommend
ed them"
And this young man went his way. The
next day. IL is probable. he purchased more
photographs and finally he doubtless de-
sired permission to add her own to the col
lection.
There used to be a certain fruit seller at
the fair, who has since gone home. who
always sold more fruit than any one else.
she was tall and dark and she wore a great
shock OF curly black hair that she failed TO
tie up. Her booth was in an exposed posi-
ton and breezes from the lake used to toss
her hair about her head. 1t was a great
sight to see She presided over mounds OF
golden and purple California fruits but
she herself was the most beautiful fruit of
all There was Columbian guard who
was near this fruit stand-yes. 1t was very
near it. II he guarded nothing else ne
guarded the fruit A fine-looking and plea
sant-spoken guard he was and he evidently
liked his station, but after the handsome
fruit-seller went home. the guard was no
longer there. and inquiry revealed the
fact that he had resigned from the force.
Maybe her home and his are now the same
same.
The Girls Are Pretty.
These worlds fair girls may be said to
average pretty. Among the visitors pretty
faces are not the rule. II foreigner wish
es to see the pretty women. for whom
America is 50 famous. ne should not be
satisfied with what he in the crowds
at the fair. Pennsylvania avenue. or Con-
necticut avenue or F street. shows more
pretty girls in an afternoon than the NOV
ing crowds at the fair show in n wecx
hut the girls who belong in the fair-who
are part Of IL. in fact--are pretty. The
truth Is, that 10 Is necessary that they be
pretty. Who Can thoroughly enjoy a cup
or cocoa II an unattractive girl ,.arelessly
attirei hands II to you? But if she wears
one of those bewitching Dutch cans Orna-
mented with brilliant brass trimmings ard
her smile is pleasant. and her checks are
rosy-iOes not all this add a flavor to the
Comforting beverage she dispenSas1 or
even with the plebeian pop-corn-are we
not more apt to buy 1t from a pretty
American girl, than from dirty old Ital-
Ian yenier1