The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1900-01-21
THE CROSSROADS HOTEL.

THIS - one Of the many letters written
by Bill Nye to his old manager. Major Pond.
and printed In the Saturday Evening Post:
Ny Dear POnd-I am writing this at
an imitation hotel where the roads fork. l
will,Call X the Fifth Avenue Hotel, because
the hotel at a railroad junction Is gercr-
ally called the Fifth Avenue. ~ the Gem
City House. or the Pa.ace Hotel. Jus; IS
the fond parent Of q whi.e-cyeI, tHo-legSed
freak Of nature loves 20 name his men
tally diluted son Napoleon, and Tor the
same reason that a prominent horse owner
In Illinois last year eocked my name On i
tall. buckskin-colored colt that did not re-
semble me. intellectually or physically-a
colt that DID not know enough 10 60 around
a barbed-wire fence. but sought TO sift him
self through 1t into an Untimely grave. so
this man has named his sway-backed Wig
wan, the Fifth Avenue Hotel.
1T IS different from your Fifth Avenue IN
many ways. In the first place. there IS not
So much travel and business I'm its neigh
borhood. As l said before. this = where
two railroads fork. In fact. Il IS the lead
ing industry here. The growth Of the town
is naturally Slow, but il IS a healthy
growth. There IS nothing in the nature Of
dangerous or wildcat speculation in the
advancement Of this place, and while there
fdS bettl 10 IDllttdbic W tGtj-l d4H Gl!tS
in the principal business here. there has
been no falling off at all. and the roads
are fOrking as much to-day as they did
before the war. while the same three men
who were present for the first glad moment
are still here to witness the operation.
Sometimes a train Is derailed, as the
papers call 1t. and two or three people have
TO remain over. as We did, all night. lack
fly this happens to be an open date for our
combine) 1t is at such a time the Fifth
Avenue Hotel is the scene Of great excite
ment. \ large Goldfish. with a broad ard
sunny smile and his bosom fun Of rock silt,
IS tied In the creek 10 frescCn and IL him
self for the responsible position Of floor
manager Of the Goldfish ball. : pale cham
bermaid wearing a black jersey with large
pores in 1t through which she e. gently
percolating. now goes ioyOUsiy up the stairs
10 make the little post-office lycA-box
rooms look ten times worse than they
ever did before. She MARBLES r low refrain
IS she nimbly knocks loose the venerable
dust Of centuries and sets It ah-at through
out the rooms. All is hustle about the house.
Especially the Cham!-rmaii. We are nut
up In the guests chamber here. Il has
two atrOphied beds made up Of palms
and counterpanes. The light. Joyous feeling
which this remark may convey Is wholly
assumed on my part.
"The door Of the room * fun Of holes
where locks have been wrenChcd of in or
der TO let the Coroner in. Last night
could imagine that 1 was in the act of meet
ing. personally, the famous people who have
tried to sleep here. ana who moauci
through the night, and who died while
waiting for the dawn.
This afternoon We pay oUr bills. as 5
our usual custom. and tear ourselves away
from the Fifth Avenue Hotel. Ne leave
at 2:SL. Hoping the roads may continue to
fork just the same as though We had re-
manned, and that this Will fI,d you enjoy
Ing Yourself I'm NEsI-S rrs4ls
"EDGAR WILSON NYE"