Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-08-11

N Etlll kinds. Wretches.
| E MIN tr-mble, And If there
be still time, Come 10
| Me, and perhaps my
| Spectacle by its Re
ality, may make you better and open to you
the only horizon. the sole end OF all things
here below-and that is Nothingness.
wait for you!
| CSigned) DEATH"
The door is hidden by black hangtngs
sewn with silver tears You push the hang
ings by and step into spacious darkened
| room. where a few candles give a fearful
| twilight A great voice calls: ''Soyez le
| bien venu a. la mort, Maccabee."
A dozen collins. on supports. replace the
| ordinary cafe tables.
1t is the Cafe of Death the latest thing
| in Paris OF the fin de steele Thursday
| nights reserved for the grand monde, each
| glass OF beer two francs, and you may kiss
the undertaken free. On ordinary nights
the book is thirteen sous.
1t is on the tough-artistic Boulevard de
| Clchy, few blocks north OF the great
| Boulevard and half way up the Montmartrc
| hiil-the quarter Of the Moulin Rouge and
the Rat Mort. Of journalists and artists and
| models and other mammals in great number
There are well-to-do and worthy people lv-
| ing in the quarter. but. nevertheless. the
| atmosphere is that of toughness. The Bou-
| levard de Clichy is both wide and shaded
| The promenade at night is thronged with
| girls and bIllies Trarnps sleep on the
| benches. Workingmen In blouses sauntcr in
| the evening, smoking pipes. And through
| the mingled throng of Paris scum and cx-
| perts in the arts and rich folks UP to se-
the sights the honest and religious lower
middle-class wives. mothers and daughters
OF the quarter stroll TO take the air. quite
all ha YaaiE
lnnumerable cafes and drinking shops make
the scene bright. The Moulin Rouge's blood
red windmill arms 60 round and round, like
some set pieces Of fireworks. And there are
yaGrant strains OF music from the concerts
one of these concerts is the Trianon. whose
pictorial poster shows two pretty women
who are evidently great friends. one is
the Concert Lisbcnne. formerly the so-callei
Cafe des Concierges. Its proprietor a had
Old communist, has just obtained some 30
90 francs from Max Lebaudy Ghe youthful
Spendthrift millionaire with which to III
his venture up anew. The Concert Cigale Is
indicated 10y its name. The MirlitOn OF Arts
tide BruapJ. the poet OF the slums is lust
below. The Carlton, around the corner.
tries 10 give old-fashioned songs and reci-
tatlons of more decent character than has
been tie vogue for some years PAST. The
Chat Noir has just failed. The Dead Rat
just across the avenue is-weIl a very
special restaurant. ii Is enough to say that
this Cafe Of Death IL by all odds the decent
est establishment along the line. For all
things are comparative. The crooue-mort
walters language may seem nasty but IL is
tame indeed beside the ordinary thoughts
and conversation of the dear delightful!
Paris artists and the ordinary writings OF
the Montmartre journalists.
Nodded by the Police.
The name OF this establishment is really
not the Cafe De Ia Mort, although all Paris
calls it 50. When first opened il WAS under
that name that they gave you teer to drink
from imitation skulls But the police raid
thcm visit, ordered that the drink should
he served liz plain glasses and suppressed
the name of death. So now its title is off
cially, the Cabaret Tor drinking shopl du
Neent. Meant is French for Nothingness
Gu SIT beside your coffin in the bllck
room. And you See sitting here and here
in philosophic attitudes big skeletons that
yaMn ara snap their Jaws ut Intervals
l,eath scenes ami midnight orgies decorate
the walls. Above the door of the black
chamber of transtieU ration are the words.
Alors ultima ratio" Lastly. 10 provide for
all things. there is the suggestive sisn:
The lady clients are desired TO scre3rn
tout doucement that is, very gently, very
softly.
You sit beside yoIr coffin and demand a
glass of beer. IN Verre de hiere
One collin maggot. pour un deSeSDere de
la vie. the croque-mort waiter calls mono
tonously To the beer boy, ''ou telle autre
rlaladie quil VouS plaira''
1t Is CHASTITY pun on ver(re) de biere-
Nerre, glass; Yer, worm. and hiere. beer or
bier. TN aSticot de cercueilt' Asficpt is
fishers slang for bait.
The waiter hegs you not to drink the beer
He points to the white foam THAT is the
spittle of scorbutic inValids." The saucer
on which the glass is handel you is marked
Microbes"
The walters are costumed as undertakers'
men. IN blsck coats OF an ancient cut tall
Cil-cloth hats and with black bands of creme
tied around their arms Such men IN real
HE have the name Of croque morris tbite
dead from the ancient duty which they
had, TO bite each dead mans toe before the |
colin lid was nailed down, to make sure the ]
body was not merely in a trance And So
co he consist ert. these imitation crooue.
morris of the Cabaret du Meant use through
out their harangues TO the clients and
their horrid conversations with each other
the regulation Paris croque-mort slang the
1argon OF the domestic servants of the
grave. All customers are Macca bees or I
dead men merely. though weil-dressed 1
person is a salmon" in particular lust as
poor man Is 'mackerel' and a little |
enid a smell. In this slang of the grave
the name of Maccabee was formerly applied |
exclusively 20 the bodies of men found |
hung or d-owend:
&c gros machabee, horrible pendu
Sur la dale fro:de on Went de Tetpndre
Ard the word dale" for morsue slab
came from the fish market where dead ash
were laid cool stone slabs Tn. CIou
des Maccabees-the peg or 'shook'' Of /
Naccab"es-is an expression for the morr,Ie /
where bodies are hung up" ecausa il ia
the Aionte-de-Piete or pawn shop of dead /
bodies, where they are put on deposit iust
as we say i have hung up my watch" So 1
here in the Cafe CT Death, after five min
utes sitting In the twilight by the collins 1
you Will hear voice call from the bla ok 1
han IN the corner: Come. now, YOU con-
sumptives and tuberculous. morcue slsls
rnredeemed tickets, Seine rot. descend from
your hooks, heap yourselves up i'm the 4
charnel house. the one great equalizer
Into "a BLACK Vault.
With your beer you have received Il ticket |
for the other world. The crowd moves on /
ward, underneath an archway, into a black 4
vaulte1 passage. Here the ladies often have |
attacks of nerves: FOR as the alley widens |
into what looks like a burial cellar under
meath church there strike upon the vision |
scenes, strange scenes, in the far-off per- I
spective underneath the arches and between /
the pillars. vague glimpses Of gray sllele. F,
tons engaged in conversation or the dance.
The passage narrows and there is "A door
You knock. bell strikes three. There Is /
voice: What do you seek, my brothar?' |
M nd Ia