Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1895-07-14
SEVERAL HIGH GAMES
Odd Scenes on the Roofs Of Tall
Buildings.
SOME NOON-HOUR PIE
Solving a Problem-Ringing I'm the
Hoop II Almost as Fine as Golf,
and Dancing without Men Has It's
Attractions.
Correspondence Of the Dlspatch.)

NEW YORK. July 13.-How to have q
| Joy the frivolitles OF the summer girl
without leaving town, and without the aid
OF liberal papa or a heavyweight bank
account, has been solved by some OF the
working girls Of New York.
The gigantic buildings which seem to
shoot up almost in a night in the down.
town business district have been OF the
greatest aid in the solution of the prob
lem, for they supply the means by which
the goal is reached.
When the warm weather began TO set
In the girls employed In the various d.
partments of the Western Union Com
pany asked the manager for permission
to spend the noon hour on the roof OF
the towering building. This YVES readily
given and taken advantage Of At first
the girls contented themselves with de-
murely eating their lunches and looking
down upon the rest of the city from their
high perch.
Gradually 1t dawned upon some genius
In the gathering that they could make bet
ter use of the roof than merely eating
lunch and admiring the view, no matter
how fine the latter might be. But an in
terruptiOn OF this scheme came at first
In the numerous shapes of the young men
employed in the building. ell the way
from the small office boy 70 the high
salaried clerk. The young men played
ball, and very often the sphere bounded
over the edge OF the roof, coming down
with crushing force upon some luckless
passer-by Frequent complaints ended IN
rule being made prohibiting the men
from going on the roof.
Some OF the romantically-lncined young
ladies regarded the rule excluding mas
culinity with dsfayor, but the majority
welcomed 1t, as 1t gave them a wider
scope for their own enjoyment. Besides.
the New York working girl IL a pecu-
liarly up-to-date bit of femininity. and
the new woman idea has taken deep root
In her receptive mind.
MAN Is NOT NECESSARY.
One of them voiced the sentiments of
many on this subject when she said:
what does man do for me? l have to
work for n living and take care Of my
self. IL i had fine home end a good
husband J. too. would frown perhaps on
the new woman. People say stay home
and take care Of your household duties.
But If you haven't got any household du-
ties and no home. unless you can earn
enough to keep one, what are you going
TO do? / can support myself better and
live more comfortably than II / were the
wife OF some half-paid man, who has no
more right to assume the responsibility
Of supporting n wife than l have Of sup
porting a husband. No, l have found that
1 can take care of myself moderately well
and can enjoy myself without depending
upon any man."
II is not an uncommon thing for sixty
girls TO meet on the roof Of the big build
ing a minute or two after the noon
whistles have blown. The first ten
minutes are consumed in swiftly disposing
of the contents Of various beribboned and
ornamented bags. which would never DO
recognized as lunch-baskets.
RINGING THE HOOP
Then the fun begins. A little stake
fastened 10 Il fiat-iron base Is placed In
the centre OF the roof. and then one OF
the girls gravely measures off thirty feet
by forty lengths Of her shoe. This girls