The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-02-12
TYPICAL NEW YORK PLACE.
A Monster Building That is q Village
In Itself.

| In IteeIL
| Mrs. Schuyler Van Rensselaer, contributes
to the February Century n paper ON places
| In Now York." in the course Of which she
| says: IL You enter one of the largest office
buildings and go up and down and around in
| IL, you will see that II il not a mere house,
| but almost town I'm itself. II covers nearly
| the space OF an entire city block. Thirty two
elevators serve the persons and the wants OF
its denizens and their visitors, and they carry
some 10000 passengers each day. The great
business concern which owns 10 fills a whole
floor, with halls as big as churches and rcgi
ments OF clerks. On tho other floors 1.-Two
many another big company. and many an in
dividual doing "a big business OF this sort or
of that. and their number will not amaze
you much as the luxury with which pro
sale tasks of money making now surround
themselves. wonder sometimes what my
grandfather would have thought Of IL. No
one in New York did business i'm bigger way
than he sending his famous clipper ships to
encirclo the world and traffic in score of
ports Yet when my fathor began to clerk"
for him, the first of his duties was 10 sand the
office floor; and can remember how small
and plain was this office. even at a much
later day. with the bowsprts Of vessels al
most poking themselves In at the window as
they lay along the border of South street.
The people who dwell in the typical office
building of today walk about on polished
marble floors: the government has given them
postoce just Tor themselves: "A big library
and restaurant exclusively serve the law
yers among them; another restaurant gene
rously serves whomsoever may wish TO eat:
there are rows of shops in the huge barrel
vaulted main hall; there BARRIERS rooms
and bootblacks' rooms, and so forth and so
ON. You can almost believe that man might
live i'm this building, going forth only to
sleep and be supplied with pretty much
every thing no need DESIRE except the domes-
tic affections, church and theater. IL
seems rather surprising, indeed, that mis-
sionary chapel has not been started in enc of
its corners and a roof-garden for daytime
performances up on the hilltop called its roof
But up on this roof you may find the bureau
which breeds our weather for us. and down
in its Underground stories in the very entrails
Of earth, you may confidently leave it your
wealth TO guard.
Truly, the stee-clad burrows of a great
safe deposit company look capacious enough
10 contain all the wealth of New York. and
whether your share of it be large or small,
a safe so little that diamond necklace would
almost NIL it, or so big that it is Rood-sized
room, and its rent means the income of a
good sized fortune-seven thousand dollars or
so per annum. Narrow lane after lane is wal
led by tiers of these safes, as streets are
walled by house fronts; there is second
story below the first, and there are other
places where other things than gold and sill
yer. precious papers and Jewels mav be
stored. There are rooms full OF trunks, and 1
remember a big one with the sweat OF steam
glistening on its walls and ceilings, which
was filed full and heaped- and piled with
bales of a shining cream-colored stuff-raw
silk, costly andnlso perishable, needing 10 be
kept perpetually moist lest it lose its pliabil-
ity.
When in this treasure house Of uncount-
able riches we see marble floors which can |
be lifted by levers so that they lie against the
bases of doors impregnable without them,
and vents which can throw curtains Of |
scalding steam down upon the head of any |
one who may try to tamper with them, it |
seems though the days OF Oriental magic |
ians had returned with conspicuous modern |
improvements OF course, there fare rows
and rows of little cabinets where Croesus may |
handle his wealth very privately, and fine
large waiting rooms, too. all shut in by gates
and bars and passwords. .'The ladiesl,wait-
ing room Is great convenience, said the
gray coated guardian one day. when gentle.
men bring their wives down town and have
business to do elsewhere it's nice place to
leave them in" So IL is; but. if it Is much
used for this purpose I hope that Its nice,
ness, not its terrific security, determines the