Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1894-09-20

l have often watched Frances 4.
Willard, the famous organizer and tenn
perance reformeF, cross a down town
street, and whatever it proves or dis
proves, it must be confessed that she
does not accomplish the feat with the
dignity and ease one would expect
from one of her rare executive ability.
Loobir~y as if she fully realized that
she is taking her life in her hand she
makes for an opposite corner quite as
a little child who has been warned by
its mother of the dangers of crossings
might do. Perhaps she is the excep-
ton that proves the rule and possibly
she would not make a good house
keeper Notwithstanding her ability as
a woman of affairs. Who shall say?
The three corners where Washing
ton, Madison and Monroe streets inter
sect Dearborn street are more frequent
ed by notable Chicagoans than any
other part of the city. Here one will
see once or twice day Lyman j. Gage,
the well-known tinancier, whose face
is like some fine cameo and his carriage
erect and incisive. Here, too, may be
seen John r. Walsh, often called the
Chicago Napoleon of finances, rather
understood, but with massive head and
shoulders and masb-like face.
Thomas Brennan, who has for nearly
twenty years been a member of the
Chicago board of education, who, with
his long, snowy hair and strong face
is a striking figure, is often in this
vicinity. The young mayor, never.
however, alone, passes along this part
of Dearborn street at least once day.
a big man with fine, handsome. face,
who when he finds himself observed
seems i'll at ease and anxious to escape.
Many others scarcely less prominent
daily frequent this locality.
It is over on State street that one
sees the procession OF vanity fair.
| There is a great deal said as to the crisp
| New York girl and the Chicago girl
| who is not SO crisp. The truth is that
the crisp Chicago girl rides in her car
rage, for if she does not, with the wind,
| the smut and the dust, she ceases to
| be crisp when she has walked block
Washington and State streets are the
| focus of down town vanity fair; but a
| block either way one finds the demo
cratic street corner stall. There is a
| gentle Italian who presides over place
! of this sort on the corner of State and
| Madison streets. AS I stood in the
shadow of his friendly awning watch
| ing the never-ending panorama of the
street, one of the gamins, who, like the
English sparrows, are always more or
less in evidence in every part of Chi
cago, said to another:
Just watch me, Smydie, while
make de play He then proceeded to
filch an orange while the dealer was
waiting on customer. With the
orange in his hand he came boldly for
ward, saying:
Here, mister, is one of your oranges
as rolled off,
Then, as he explained to the soft
| eyed, olive-slzinned Neapolitan that he
should be more careful as to how he
might not suffer loss, he asked:
Il say, can't have orange?" One
good turn deserves another, and the
curbstone merchant gave the street
Arab the orange he had flched. As the
small, shrewd dirty boy finished explain
ing to the man how he could improve
the appearance of his stand he said:
Cant have just one more orange,
mister?" He had given evidence of his
genuine friend1iness and he walked off
| with the two oranges winch had been
presented to him to ''divvy" with
| Smydie, who had been watching him
make de play"
These are only few of the many
things which may be seen on Chicago
street corners any day in the week, and
vet there are those who assume that
this side of the Rockies things and
people are for the most part without
| interest and are constantly going
afield to find that which they deem
worthy of observation
| A~roTNETTE VAN HOESFN.