The Southern herald., 1900-03-02
CROWDS IN NEW YORK.
Nothing short OF a Quarter of a Mil
lion Rush Makes Much Ofa
showing There.

IN which an ordinary crowd OF Stran-
gers and sightscers does not make
much showing. Thus $4,000 persons
arriving simultaneously in any other
city of the country make a difference
forthwith. but in New York, or more
properly the Manhattan Island part
Of it, 100000 strangers add little to
the outward appearance of the town,
and even 100000 can be accommodated
without any change specially mani
fest on the streets. This is not due
to the fact that New York is one of
the largest cities territorially in the
country, for it is not. Philadelphia,
New Orleans, st. Louis and Chicago
are each of them better able relative
ly to provide space for strangers than
is New York, but in none of them can
so large a crowd be accommodated as
here. This is due to the geographical
formation of New York, which is diff
ferent from that of any other Amerl-
can city.
Strangers arriving in New York
soon separate, Some are TO be seen
OH Broadway; some on the Bowery;
some in the lower part of town; per-
Laps as many in Harlem or on the
river side as elsewhere. They are soon
absorbed in the throng, and the addi-
ton of even very large number of
newcomers passes without much no
tce. Another reason for this cOndi-
tion of affairs is to be found in the
fact that New York is one of the few
cities, American or European, which
has, practically, no Union station for
incoming tourists, A majority of the
strangers who come to New York en-
ter the city on railroads having ferry
connections. There are a dozen such
lines, and each of them has two or
more New York ferries. As conse-
quence the incoming stream of visit
ors is separated almost into fractions,
Few arrivals in New York aecommo.
date themselves at hotels or in lodg-
ings with reference to their point OF
arrival, thus what is sometimes called
the tourist class is dissipated through
out town in such detail as to
avoid a great crowd anywhere. Still
another reason for the almost phe-
nomenal ability of New York to ham
die crowds is to be found in the fact
that on occasions of public observance
or entertainment, holidays, celebra-
tions, parades less or public functions
the ordinary business of the city is
temporarily suspended in what are
generally its busiest districts, Sixth
avenue, Fourteenth street and Twen'
ty-third street in the dry goods dis
trict; Wall street and its vicinity
downtown; and some of the most
thickly populated of the East side
streets. Such thoroughfares become
almost deserted when there is holi-
day, and the persons employed in
them are to be found on such days in
or near their homes.
Still another reason for the absorp-
tion of the crowds in New York is TO
be found in the fact that unlike most
cities there are no outlying territories
on Manhattan Island exclusively de-
voted to residences from which in
times of public interest residents
come TO add to the throng of sight
secrs. New York is, in fact, the city
Of thorCughfarcs, and not the least
important of these are along the wa
ter front. This water front is more
crowded when there is no holiday in
progress than when there is one, and
it is often an occasion for surprise tC
visitors coming to New York for the
first time that when there should bt
nothing to attract sightseers so many
of the streets are crowded, while with
perhaps 100000 strangers in town fol
some observance the same street,
should be comparatively deserted. II
takes 100000 extra people to make
much OF a showing in the way of 9
crowd in New York, and even the1
there is room for all. New York has
more regular commuters in day thar
any other American city has ever hat
visitors in a day.-N. Y. Sun.