The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1895-04-17

impelled by the general infectious spirit
of the time, has thrown off his lassitude
temporarily, crawled out of his shell and
disporteth himself with more or less glee
and hilarity upon the boulevards.
Dodging in and out among the swaying
mass of humanity are the little imps
who are vending the ubiquitous badge
and the diversity of those badges-little
peaked hats and sombreros, rosettes and
buttonieres, wisps of ribbon with photo
graph of the Queen thereon, and last, but
not least, the miniature tamale, all ON or
beside, or made of narrow tri-colored rib
bon. But they are decorative; they lend
jaunty air to the wearer, and gradually,
as the said imps have succeeded in dis
posing of them to those who bought them
first because they wanted to, and to
others who bought them because he first
had, so, now, all bon finale, with more or
loss grace and spontaneity, tied or
pinned them on to their dauntless fronts,
and the result is that the majority of peo-
pie one meets are be-badged and becom-
ing infected in many other ways with
the unavoidable and unmistakable carni-
val spirit.
To make that feeling more widespread,
for the past few days solemn emissaries
of various costumers have been parading
the streets decked out in divers DISCUSSES;
one, folly, with cap and bells, half his
face painted dead white, the other half
cleaning black, on the white side tuft.
of black whiskers, on the black corre,-
spending tuft of red.
His gait has been "as much slower tiaan
a walk than a walk is slower than a
run, !" and but for the conspicuous sign
which he carried proclaiming to the
world that costumes like the one he wore
could be found at such and such . place,
it would have been knotty problem to
the average onlooker just what manner
of man or beast he might be representing.
As it was the dullest intellect perceived
at glance that he was being fool--for
paw The others who Were advertising
similar wares were almost as depressing
to look upon as citizens, but the fact was
at the same time impressed upon all who
saw them that the time was close at hand
when all might be fools, not for pay, but
by paying so much per suit.
Most of the public buildings and bust
ness blocks are gay with tiuttering flags
and long stretches of bunting; even the
CHASTITY remains of the old court house
are partially concealed, or at least ameli-
grated, with lines of huttering pennants
and the cross streets as far as the parades
reach are a pocket edition as it were of
the more pretentious and conspicuous
thoroug hfares.'
The park with its green trees and
greener grass is gorgeous with the ram
pant Fiesta colors. Every tree has its
quota of them and banners and streamers
are flying from every available pole and
post there and whereabouts.
The tribunes which by the way is a
very pretentious name for very unpreten-
tious structures and which extend the
length of the four sides of the park may
not be beautiful from an architectural
standpoint, but they are perfectly satisfac-
tory as a means to an end.
When they are loaded down with
their freight of humanity, all decked in
gala attire and wreathed in the sunniest
of smiles and good humor, awaiting the
advent of the Queen or the various
parades, or that gem of gems, the battle
of flowers; when, in addition to the
wreathes of smiles, they bear in their
hands and laps the many-hued blossoms
with which to return the bonn bardment,
or open The siege, as the case may be, no
body will think of the bare board benches
which are the means, but will only note
the result which promises to exceed any
thing that has ever been seen here.
If the city is gay by day, it is doubly
H., II in, I'D, to bp
augmented gas and electric lights on the
streets, the shops are blaze of light, and
the crowds on the sidewalks are even
more impregnable and impossible.
To the ordinary noise of changing car
bells and clatter of wheels is added the
chrrupful blast of that abomination to
the ears of man, the tin horn. Large and
small horns in the hands and mouths OF
large and small boys, lend their hideous,
deafening noise to the general melee, and
hades itself seems to have been let loose
in the land.
The occasional merry maker is also seen
jauntily wedging his way in and out
among the crowd. His is not at all the
air of those poor advertisers above men
toned. lie is there because he wants tC
business to cavort en- masque and he leers
and stares, perks and peers into the faces
of the less fortunate ones who have not
as yet quite risen to the masking pitch
and his general air of jollity and tolerance
toward the world at large and those il
particular with whom he comes in con
tact does more 10 spread the infection
than all else.
He and his ilk are but straws that show
how wise the council was in laying tina
ordinance on the table which would have
acted as cold blast on the essence of The
carnival ana would have withered its yer,
fiber at the root.
And that same councillor vast TIL,
same? Anyhow the magnates that wer
discovered seated in solemn conclav,
Monday night in the pavilion with hi
royal highness, the mayor in the center
of the semicircle and the representative
of the magical nine wards arrayed OF
either hand. E.
Back of them, like guardian angels o
birds of prey, stood the stalwart pre-
servers of the peace. those stars in tn,
ornament = the policemen = with Chic
Glass in the flesh at their head
With some grace and considerable celer
ity they accepted the inevitable and re
moved their obnoxiols personalities, wher