Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1901-01-25
WHAT THEY DIDN'T HAVE IN 1900.
New York Sun.

nlnS Oh the nineteenth century had no
railroads, no telegraphs, no newspapers
worth mentioning. They were ignor-
ant OF the sewing machine and had
no conception Of the telephone. They
knew nothing of the great variety of
modern electrical inventions which
have SO much to do with what is now
regarded as ordinary comfort.
They possessed no lucifer matches,
no bicycles and no comfortable stoves.
They knew not how to heat their
houses in winter, for furnace. and
steam heating were equally beyond
their ken. They had no cheap cloth
ing, nor any expensive comfortable
house furniture such as may be bought
nowadays.
They were restricted almost to such
articles OF diet as were produced in
the immediate vicinity. Canned
goods they we're ignorant OF and pre-
served foods of any kind were almost
unknown to them.
They had never had their photo
graphs taken and did not dream that
the sun could come down and make
pictures more perfect than any artist
could produce.
They had never seen a steamboat;
they had no such carpets on their
floors as are nowadays in use, and wall
papers were yet to be thought OF.
They had neither envelopes for letters
nor adhesive postage stamps. Modern
plumbing was yet to be. The age OF
illumination, with its multitude OF
patented processes for producing and
multiplying pictures. was to arrive in
the distant future.
Note the vehicles that pass you to-
day. The omnibus, the horse.car, the
trolley-car, the ambulance, the police
patrol, the express wagon, the furni-
ture van, the delivery wagon of the
department store, the newspaper
wagon delivering papers to crowd of
boys, the coal cart, the push cart of
the notion vender, the steam fire en-
gine, the hose cart, the automobile,
the hanson, all created since 1900.
Nobody 100 years years ago had
ever seen tall building, a metal
water pipe, an iron rail, a gas jet, all
elevator, or sent telegram or touched
an electric button, or heard the steam
whistle OF factory, or spoken through
a telephone, or looked through pane
of glass six feet square. Look into
the shop windows. Hardly an object |
in many OF them could beeven named |
by citizen who died in 1900, could he |
come back and behold them.
Such man never in his life saw a |
sewing machine, nor lawn mower,
nor typewriter, nor copying press,
nor a steel pen, nor piece Of blotting |
paper, for q revolver, nor n breech-
loading gun, for friction match, nor
no envelope, or rubber shoe, nor any |
article from the gum of the rubber |
tree.
A workman in 1900 labored from
sunrise to sunset and earned if q
skilled workman, from third to q
half what he is now paid for working
ten hours. Then he might be inn
prisoned for debt; now he cannot be.
Then he had not the benefit of lien
law; now he has that benefit. In 1900
there was no free schools, except such
as were supported by churches or
charity, or were on a pauper basis.
One hundred years ago the Missis.
sippi, from the mouth of Red river to
Lake of the Woods, was geographically
the western frontier OF The United
States. Historically the pioneers of
Ohio and the Northwestern territory
and the unborn States of Indiana and
Illinois, were ascending the declivity
OF the Appalachian mountains and
disappearing in the forests whose soli-
tudes extended from Fort Dearborn to
Natchez.
Beyond the Mississippi to the Pacific
was an undiscovered country, under
the dominion of France, England,
Mexico and Spain; the mysterious
region of unexplored deserts of illimit-
able prairies and plains; of nameless
rivers and colossal mountain ranges. |
st. Louis, New Orleans and Pensacola |
were foreign towns and the name of
Chicago was not written on the map.
The entire population of the Union
was about the same as that of the |
State OF New York in 1900. Its area
was not much in excess Of 100000 |
square miles, and its organic law had |
no provisions for acquiring foreign |
territory, for holding colonial depen-
denotes nor for the incorporation of
alien communities.
Reorettsd n