The Savannah morning news., 1901-10-20

countryside, obliterating the view of
the exposition. Temporary hotels and
perhaps even outside restaurants were
a necessary evil. But Bohemian beer
gardens were not. The city groaned in
spirit as two mighty pavilions of the
latter class were run up within a
thousand feet of the main gate of the
fair. Despite the attraction of beer
served among mummied palms, one or
these places failed to draw and it has
been whitewashed and relabeled the
New England Kitchen. The other, or
chid-like, lives on air.
Downtown and up, certain harmless
little booths offer "Pan-American or
angeade," or strong cider, or other per-
nicious dyed drinks. grateful to the
throat OF the wayfarer. but scarcely
grateful to his sense. Fa-
KRIS, masters of their art, draw throngs
of curious people at every street. cor
ner, and hideous night lunch Wa
CONS prowl both day and night
AS if these were not enough, the
overworked baggage express has
pressed into its service misshapen
moving vans, drawn by rope-taiIed
mules, which go numbering about, pill
ed mountain high with trunks, hurting
the feelings OF citizens who are jeal-
Gus for the city's fair name. These
sensitive souls cringe because the in
coming traveller has TO make his way
from the station through avenues OF
clacking solicitors for rooming houses;
because most of the private dwellings
that are not labeled "Rooming Bureau"
are placarded with fanciful names,
The Bridal" Exposition View"
THE Clock" and immense signs are
hung out everywhere offering Rooms.
1t hurts their feelings, too, to nave
the city trolleys filled with outlandish
foreign folks, and to have the lips OF
the best as we'll as the worst OF Buff
lalonians tainted with select Midway
slang. It's Have a look!" and You'll
have to hurry" from newsboy and
golfer alike; school commandments
are "ballyhoos," everything not strict
ly first class is fake" You can tell
a Buffalonian in San Francisco by his
slang.
Graver manifestations Of the pres
ence of an exposition came with the
advent of thief and confidence man.
Police inhospitality sent most of the
swindlers on to Niagara Falls; but
the thief is not so easily discouraged.
He assumes the guise of your gasman,
you telephone tinkerer, and your lock-
smith. His feminine accomplice APP
plies for rooms and nabs anything she
can lay her fair hands on on her way
about the house. She gets into flats
with duplicate keys. Immunity from
pilfering this summer means eternal
all-seeing vigilance.
Another odd by-product OF the Pan
American is the runaway small boy,
who f1ocks to Buffalo by companies
and by battalions. His tale is ever the
same. His teacher told him that he
would get more education out
of a week at the Pan
American than from whole year OF
school," He hasn't any money or any
intention of being sent home without
a glimpse of the exposition. He di-
vides the attention of the police JUS
tees with the pickpocket and the THIEF.
These are the notifications OF the
Buffalonians. They are only a part or
the trying by-products of the Pan
American. Expositions come high. II
you want one you must not only sub
scribe for stock and buy unlimited tick
cts for yourself and your family, but
you must pay an eXtortionate rent Tor
your house, an extortionate price for
your bread and butter. One of the
very first symptoms of the approach
ing exposition was a rise in the price
of soda water. You must pay, too, an
extortionate wage for service. More
over, you must be content, If you are
a merchant or a manufacturer, to give
your employees a holiday every time
there is a special day at the exposi-
ton, and provide them with gate tick
cts so as to swell the attendance. You
must, If you are housekeeper, spend
your time conciliating your servants
lest they take their flight and get a
LOB" at the Pan" Whoever you are,
you must submit to have your trolley
system demoralized so that you can't
find your way about your own city.
Last but not least, you must be pre-
pared to entertain your friends from
out of town unto the third and fourth
attenuation-the friends of the friends
of the friends of your friends.
Yet 1t must not be supposed that the
exposition by-products are all unfa-
vorable to Buffalo. Some of them give
her the agreeable Illusion that she is
genuine metropolis. Her trolley cars
run in trains of four. Real crowds
surge through her streets. The the
aters put on plays to run throughout
the summer, instead of for, at most, a
single week. Buffalo Bill, who used to
stop in Buffalo for one day, went into
camp there this season for whole
fortnight Buffalo has for once surfeit
of fine restaurants, an experience she
never had before in her whole history.
Numberless conventions keep the
streets Lull Oh PAL duSS diiu Tic news
papers full of speeches. Opportunities
to hear great men come thick and fast.
The special state days at the expo
sition bring celebrities who represent
every section of the country and every
conceivable shade of political opinion
A religious service, held near the
grounds every night, attracts famous
preachers. Public characters of all
sorts are as thick as Canada flies.
Moreover, social functions in honor OF
distinguished strangers have kept life
lively through the usually stagnant
months of summer.
Besides. more than one entirely new
business has sprung UP in consequence
of the fair. The booth builder had nc
field in Buffalo previous to May /; MOI
had the official guide. The Seeing
Buffalo Coach"-a great numbering
top-heavy affair. designed by Noah as
a working model for the Ark-does q
thriving business, for which there was