The Savannah morning news., 1902-08-31
WICKEDEST PLACE
TN AMERICA
Where Gambling is Carried Openly and Women
Stake Money.

d
automobiles, landaus, drags, surreys,
and public hacks.
In other letters / have described
several phases of the daily scene at
the track. but l have now here brought
clearly forward the characteristic of
the grandstand crowd which is the re-
suit of holding a fashionable race meet
ing at a popular watering place
resorted to by whole families who rent
cottages, have established their sum-
mer homes in the place. or who bring
their wives. children and dependents to
the great hotels. The result of this
characteristic of the place is that in
the boxes on the grand stand you see
young girls, school boys, tiny children
and governesses, nurses and maids,
while, scattered about the rest of the
great open building, are the servants
OF other families, school teachers,
young misses, boys. mothers with in
fants in arms-in short, representa-
t1ves of all the varied and comprehen-
sive mass that makes up the popuIa-
ton of a resort hall marked as respec-
table for seven or eight Geca des.
The frank and open gentlemen of the
Western contingent, Who rush down
upon the grass and into the betting
shed to scatter thousand dollar bets as
lightly as a canary sprinKles superfiu-
Gus hempseed about its cage, offer no
deleterious example and spread no de-
mpralizing influence among the unso-
phistica and the tender whom they
leave behind them on the chairs. But
the other notables in society-finance,
politics, and trade-&re plainly seen
by all the thousands rs they study the
racing histories of the Horses in the
books and newspao ers they carry with
them.
The crowd sees them visiting one an
others boxes between he races and
gathering what they can Of the fresh
est gossip from the stables. The crowd
sees their salaried Or commissioned
agents writing down their bets ami
then stopping at each box to enlighten
the fashionable Mrs. ", The daughter
of Millionaire T., and he bride OF the
young Mr.. o. ("whose husband wen
$4,000 at faro last night as every one
says,) as to how these fair queens Of
the high world should wager their
money. The crowd ..otes, also, that
the governess of the De Willoughbys
orders her bet written down after Il
consultation with Alan De Willougnby,
aged seven, and Chester De Willough-
by, of twice that age.
When a race has been run the bet
ting agents, who circulate among the
plain people, tell them how much
young Mrs. o. won by Whisky Fling,
and everybody sees the fashionables
crowding beside her box to congrat-
ulate her. These agents also whisper
how Mr. So-and-s so and Mr. So-and-so,
the famous millionaires and stable
owners, are going to bet on the next
race, and, in dozen ways, everybody
is familiarizediwith this form of gamb
ling and sees it so openly practiced
by persons of such high standing and
good repute that it is no wonder If
thousands who never bet before in their
lives have taken on the habit this year
in Saratoga.
Finally, when the last race is won,
the betting agents circulate among
the spectators once again, this time
to pay the winnings and to collect the
sumo lost by those whom they have
trusted. Then the crowd hears the
rich ladies and fashionable misses say
ing quite aloud: well, only came
out SIS ahead" or II lost two hundred
altogether" and they also see the gov
erness, and here and there a father or
mother, dividing the days winnings
with the little boys who are with
them, five dollars to you," and "a dol
lar and quarter to you, Herald" and
you get ten dollars to put in your
bank, BERTHE. dear"
dinner is innocently spent, so far as
1 am able to judge. by practically all
who are in Saratoga. A large number
of what Mr. James L. Ford would call
1.-The carriage custom" drives out to
the polo grounds to see the toughest,
wiriest, hardest-fleshed men throw
themselves and their marvelously in
telligent ponies into the most exciting
game that has yet been invented.
to- 70 1Troer V1nn an
the polo horses, and if any
of the spectators make even
an occasional side bet on the
result of a days play 1 never heard
of it. Those who do not go to see the
polo game content themselves with
driving for an hour or more-almost
always upon the deadly dull road to
the lake, one of the least interesting
of the many drives the region offers.
The Dinner Hour.
All are at home by o'clock, or half
an hour later. and the huge dining
halls of the great hotels are filled
every night. Those who are absent yet
not missed in such great assem-
blage are the persons who go to the
Saratoga Club house to dine.
Here a word must be said for the
celebrated Mr.. Garfield in his capac-
only word that does justice to linn in
this role. is the word perfection" but
this must be led up to and explained
He serves the best meals obtainable
outside New York city in all the coun-
try, and he provides the best service
to make the meals the more enjoya-
BILE How he does this two CONVERSE
tions which actually took place in his
club house will fully explain:
Said a ulti-millionaire who is him
self a distinguished entertainer in the
fashionable world: "Mr. Garfield, l do
not see how you are able to serve such
meals. The cooking is simply perfect
and the service is admirable"
You have no such chef as l." Mr.
Garfield replied, land, if you will par
don my saying so, you are not likely
to have. I have seen few that are his
equals. and I have got him, and he is
content to stay with me- AS to the
food, 1 charge very high prices, and
yet lose money upon it, but do this
for a purpose. And when it comes to
the service, / purposely keep three
times as many walters as are needed.
1t is on that account that you are not
able to look upon to form a wish for
anything without having waiter step
up and serve you. No place is run 50
expensively-you might say so Waste
fully'-as this restaurant of mine
To another person he said: John
Morrissey is the inventor of the Sar-
atoga Club house as you find 1t to-
day. and as IL has been under three
predecessors of mine who have lad 1t
since he died. The idea of excluding
the villagers is his. The idea If well