The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-12-19
PUNCH AND JUDY.
Free Store Window Shows
Make Merry War on
the Avenue.
SIDEWALKS BLOCKED UP
Walters the Jeweler Kicks Against
Bernstein the Clothier-
Legal Restriction.
WALKS BLOCKED UP

of the First precinct this mo1ning
against those merchants on Newark ave
nue. who display Christmas, shows IN
their windows. 1t was charged that
crowds collected in front of these win
dows. and to some extent inpeded traffic.
clothier, and Mr.. Sullivan. representing
the Boston. who are the principal CIV
ers OF window shows. appeared ,9 6efoTe
Justice Potts this morning as wen as
some of the complainants. A conference
was held there. in which it was agreed
that the show should be permitted to
and five and seven and nine P M.
Mr.. Bernstein expressed himself to q
News reporter today as being We1
satisfied with this arrangement.
81 would rather not have it at all. Z
said he. ...It does not bring me any
trade; l believe. on the, contrary. that it
keeps many people outof my store. l
will obey the ruling of the Justice in
this matter. I should be as well satis-
fled if he had refused to allow it to con-
tinue.
II do not know who made the com
fore Judge Potts this morning in the ca
pacity of complainant | am led to be-
heve the trouble is the result of jeal-
ousy among my business rivals
Careful canvassing of the neighborhood
revealed the fact that the CHIEF perhaps
the only complainant was the hrm of A.
Newark avenue. Walters jewelry estab-
lishment has as its Immediate neighbor
on the left Bernstein's clothing store.
Here, before the irresistible charms of
a Punch and Judy show, an immense
throng congTegates daily, which effectu-
ally puts a stop to sidewalk traffic Of all
sorts.
small boy with his eyes fastened
upon the fascinating performance has
his feet rivetted to the sidewalk by some
undiscovered source and unciassified
force. Absorbing interest renders him
deaf, dumb, blind and fairly immovable
by any force short of a big policeman.
hun h
fitted shoulder to shoulder after the man
ner of a football rush line. The only
hope of pedestrians lies in the weak spots
where stand a few, adults almost as in
tereSted as the children. The wise man
and the weak woman prefer walking
around to attempting a rush through the
mob.
/ watched the other night the audience
which that show ATTRACTED. All kinds
were there Children well dress and com
as to dirt, holes and raggedness. Older
children, too, were there. Those mothers
afa e WITS paeng Iefe By the and and
wait SO that he may see that. funny
Punchy. OF course they. have no interest
they will wait to witness the final de-
nouement of Funch's Jonah-like disap-
pearance into an aIligator's interior, even
If Willie begins to howl to go home;
moment, half smile and hurry on to
their waiting dinner.
AzaSenldI nlfHQeQ, uHWOTTleu tramp OF
robust form and hairy visage guffawed
louder than the youngsters. woman,
with mud-splashed garments and bright
spot of color on either cheek, saw it
with hard, unsmiling eyes. Beside her
richly attired dame of ample proper
tion was amused not a little by the
childish play.
This is the crowd Mr.. Walter com
plains of. He said to me this afternoon:
-s.What good can such a display do any
one? It costs lot. of money and does
not attract the buying class. However.
that does not concern me. What does
concern me very much, however, is that
this crowd keeps people away from my
door and windows. The crowd extends
very often over twenty-five feet on either
side. Passers-by are compelled to walk
around this crowd in the street and SO
are not permitted to pass close enough
to our place to know that we are in the
business
Il complained to the police about it,
and this is the means they took to stop
it. 1 would not be satisfied even now,
only that / know I cannot get any fur
ther satisfaction"