The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1902-02-21
MART FOR BRAINY MEN.
NEW YORK A MECCA or HOPE FOR
THE UNFORTUNATE.

Other smiles from Home aud fortune.
Human nature Is franker and
honester In a low-price hotel in New
York than any place else Ia the me-
tropolig Even the pretences and sub
terfuges illuminate temparamental did
ferences.
The well-ccnducted cheap hotel Is
the refuge of those who have fallen,
not those who rise from the gutter,
Those who make their homes in lodg-
ing houses are oftener than not men
of considerable education, who have
known better days They are human
derellcts drifting about the saragossa
sea of misfortune.
In one hotel in this city there are
about 1900 persons cared for every
night in the year. The rooms are
scrupulously clean, the beds comfort
able and the rates are no higher than
are charged in second-rate lodging
houses. But the guests are Of de-
cidedly higher order. An air of re-
ment pervades the place. In that re-
spect the hotel is in every way the
equal of the more pretentious hostel
ries. It is those qualities that make it
the temporary home of men who have
not altogether given up hope or eXpea-
tation of better days. AS a rule, they
are not communicative, but once IN a
while one of them will become .reminis-
cent after you have gained his con-
fdence.
If you speak of Africa, Asia. South
America or any other part Of the earth
you are almost certain to find in the
group Of listeners at least one who has
been exactly in the place mentioned,
and it's ten chances to one that if you
ask him how he came to be here you
will get the stereotyped answer that he
made failure where he was and came
to New York to retrieve his fallen for
tunes.
In a group of five men in the reading
room one night last week one Of them
commented on the Boer war and some
of his listeners applauded his crid-
cisms on the conduct Of the Britich
side of the contest. One man remained
silent He carries scars made by three
Boer bullets at Spion Kop, and nat
urally concluded his views would not
strike a popular chord. The hardships
of war were discussed until a man mad
opportunity to tell of his experien', s
while acting as a timekeeper while the
work on the Panama canal was In
progress.
another man told Of horrid fortunes
endured for Is days in an open boat.
after the ship in which he had been a
passenger had been burned at sea.
fourth had been in business in one
of the South American republics. The
usual revolution came according to the
standing schedule arranged for those
affairs down there. The American was
accused of sympathizing with the revo-
lutionists. his property was conGs-
Gated and he was cast into prison.
After a delay of several months he
was released upon demands made by
the United States government. But he
never recovered any of his proper. y
He returned to this country and is nov
one Of the vast army Of has beens'
to whom New York is the Mecca 81
hope.
The fifth man was one of the six
survivors of an exploring expedition
whose late, if not its achievements
has become historical 1t is still {
mooted question whether the member:
of the expedition were forced to resor
to cannibalism. The narrator was
silent on that point, but his hearers
inferred that the charges that nave
been made were not altogether ground
less.
A short distance from this group sa
another man with history, but thost
around him knew nothing about it. H
lounges around the hotel day ate
day and week after week, hardly eve
going out of doors. He is a large
fine-looking man, always we'll groom y
and always reserved. RE talks VIII
none of the other guests, and so MAKE
no confdants.
1t is said by few of those who pre-
2 sumo to know what they are talllint
about that he was, not many years age
2 one of the best-known and most Ian
Y gerous bank robbers in this country
} the brains of a most notorious gan
c whose members, excepting himself, ar
g dead or in prison. The story is mat Iii
inactivity is purchased by a syndica.
e of banks who prefer to pay him sub
+ stantial yearly income Tor life to kee
him from collecting a much larger on
himself
1t is said he goes to a certain ban
q .--,-.-- No, 1l..r r.nnoir-nc -