The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-10-11

the common people, the foi polloi like
Potter Palmer and Frank MacVeagh
ana Phil Armour, are so sore on poll
tlcians, no matter how prominent they
think they are. When a man can walk
on State street from Randolph to Har-
rison without having his toes stepped
on. his attire dtsarranged or his pocket
picked it is pretty dull in Chicago. 1t
Is actually a fact I was told, that the
reign of crime in Chicago is ended, be-
cause there are so few people on the
streets that pickpockets and sandbag
gers would be seen and captured.
Honestly, it's so dull there that some
Of the hotel men have Grape on their
doors-it's cheaper to pay rent and
close up than to keep open house and
feed and lodge Sunday crowds every
day in the week. It's just like Sunday
on State street, and the levee is so
quiet that Andy Ross and some of the
big fellows on the police force have
nothing to do but play high five and
shoot the can over to Sol Van Praag's.
'One day I got tired of looking out
of the window at the mud on Michigan
boulevard. That beautiful street is. as
it was last year, and the year before
that and any number of years still
more previous, the acme of magnih-
oence--above the curb line. IL l was
running that lake front hotel that
everybody knows is the finest in the
West, would have a clean street in
front of my, door, anyway. l used to
fairly suffer from inconsistencies and
a sight Of the beautiful asphalt in front
of the Windsor when looked out upon
the Shiny drab-colored thoroughfare
that stretched for miles to the south
of the lake front park. Looking at
the muddy street gave me another
argument why st. Paul is such good
town to live in.
but as 1 said, I wanted change
of scene and diet and started south.
got as far ass Hyde Park and met
Landlord Ross. of the Chicago Beach.
He inveigled me into "a visit. and
prolonged one at that at the big
family hotel where one can get up and
walk a mile on the verandahs in full
view of the lake for an appetizer.
There's more fresh air and more fog,
when the wind Is from the southeast,
and more genuine comfort In summer
at the Chicago Beach than at the
downtown places. There's music in
the air at night and hops and parties
and all Hyde Park and all Kenwood
spends part Of the day at the house
It's a good place for bachelor or
hypochondriac.
"Of course / went over into Jackson
park and wept a few tears at the
the statue of the republic is gone now
and no sign of the city that was white
and beautiful. l spent one afternoon
in what I was told was once the fam
Gus midway, trying to unearth some
hieroglyphicS or other relics Of the
famous Street in Cairo. One park guard
threatened me with arrest for mutilat-
ing the driveway and another made
me drop what / thought was a frag-
ment Of the minaret of the Turkish
| mosque. The guard said I was carry
ing off a portion of a fancy hitching
post. 1t was just as well, perhaps,
that I didn't secure that relic for my
satchel was already filed with samples
Of thing, paint, table linen and other
sundries that l am going to use in
renovating the Windsor.
But as 1 said before, I am glad to
be at home again. Howard Estes tells
me that my hair is getting darker. but
then he is such f1atterer. If Whitney
will repeat that pleasing statement
might believe it, Cullen thinks l have
lost flesh, but then he looks at the
world through darkened glasses since
last spring. Charley Bell says he
didn't know me, have changed so
much Now the author Of the Bell char
ter ought % be q reliable fellow, and I
feel so well that 1 am half inclined to