Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1903-07-17

quarters into half.dollars out of their
own pockets to force the customer to
give them halfdollar tips. They
think quarter not enough.
Really, the amount of money spent
in these New York restaurants is as:
founding. suppose all the proprie-
tors must get rich. Yesterday l read
in the papers that the wife of the
steward of one of these places, while
driving in her private carriage in the
park, had collided with an auto; her
carriage was smashed, and she was in
iured. She was taken to an apart.
ment house near the park, where she
lives, and which she and her husband
own. These apartment-houses near
the park are worth anywhere from a
quarter OF a million to a million.
Mr.. Hart continues by instituting
some comparisons between fruit on
the tree in California and the same
fruit on the table in New York. He
says:
I delight in testing the fruits OF my
native State, and comparing the prices
charged for them by Eastern restau-
rants with those received by the gaunt
grangers who stand under the prune
and apricot-trees in California, feeling
in the pockets of their dingy. Overalls.
The prices differ greatly. AtDelmon.
ico's, l find that they give twelve
prunes for thirty cents, or about two
and half cents per prune. At Sher.
ry's they give you ten for twenty-five
cents, also two and half cents per
prune. At the Waldorf they give you
ten for thirty cents, but as their
prunes are of the large twenty.thirty
variety probably the extra half cent
per prune is justified. Rector's is a
semi-sporty cafe, where ladies from
Soubrette Row talk in loud tones to
their adoring escorts, casting coquet-
tish glances ut other gents the while.
At Rector's they gave me twelve
prunes, which the cashier at first
marked "thirty cents" This sum,
however. was erased, and forty cents"
written over it. Evidently the price
of California prunes rose at Rector's
while I was ordering them. At the
Cafe Martin the price varied from
twenty five to thirty cents per Dozen
probably according to the weather and
the prospects OF the pruue crop.
Thus it will be seen that there is an
average OF two and hall cents per
prune charged in New York, while the
growers in California receive about one
and half cents per pound. There is
some mystery here.
The disproportion is not 80 great
concerning other California fruits.
However, it is still high. For exam
pie, they will serve you in these swell
French restaurants . dessert called
coupe de abricots. This consists oi
half an apricot put in champagne
glass and then partially covered with
sour cream, or what we call in the
country clabber"-price fifty cents
In California I have often seen fruit.
growers engaged in what they call
thinning out" the apricOts. The
The trees bear 90 heavily that they
break down unless the over production
of fruit is removed. / have seen a
granger on S., 900 farm with . 5000
mortgage throw away several million
dollars worth Of apricots at these Del
monico prices. This seems wicked
and wasteful. The grangers ought tc
be more careful.
At Sherry's they will serve you what
they call 4" compete Of peaches" but
the phrase is ungrammatical. l was
always taught that it was incorrect to
say Zone and a half dollars"-you
should say como dollar and q halt
Inasmuch as Sherry's compete ol
peaches" consist of one peach and q
part of another one, regard the title
as ungrammatical. wonder how
long they keep the other half if no.
body orders the same dish on the
same dayf They are canned peaches
by the way, and of the large cling
stone variety that come down from
the interior valleys in such quantities
that the boxes are sometimes dumped
into San Francisco Bay by the hun.
dreds. Sherry's price, forty cents pei
peach.
Perusal of Mr.. Hart's experience in
the Borough of Manhattan tends to
incite Californian to indite a treatise
on " How to be happy although not
q millionaire and unable to live in
New York."
The scene for such a homily would
naturally be laid in almost any city OF
town in the West, including, of course
Olympia. The palatable delights oi
dining at Delmonico's arc not easily
exaggerated. In addition to the gus
tatory pleasure, the arts of music and
decoration supplement the table deli.
cacies, and the entire sensuous nature
is administered unto. But the sense
of satisfaction in being separated from
six to sixteen good dollars for, and in
consideration OF a modest meal, is no,
obvious.
A careful scrutiny of Mr.. Hart.
sample bills of fare reveals nothing
not within the reach OF the Dime,