The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-02-01
MANY CONTRASTS FOUND
MERIDIAN STREET THE MOST cos
MOPOLITAN THoROUGHFARE.
From End to End OF This Street All
Kinds OF Life Can BE Found
Monument Divides IL.

Every big city has street OF many con-
trasts. Ask the average Indianapolis man
which street in this city is the most cosmo-
politan and the one affording the greatest
variety of different kinds of life. and it is
ten to one that he will answer, washing
ton street." because Washington street has
always been recognized as the "king-pin"
of Indianapolis thoroughfares But a close
study Of the city. by day and by night
will convince the observer that it is not the
principal thoroughfare of indianapolis that
is the most interesting in point of its many
contrasting scenes and cosmopolitanism,
but Meridian street, that long and for many
miles absolutely straight highway that
divides the city into two portions.
Meridian street is not only the most Co.'S
mopolitan street in Indianapolis, but it
probably shows more variety and greater
changes than any other thoroughfare in
the State of Indiana. 1t begins, on the
| north, with the boundary lines of the city
and ends with the city limits far away
| to the south. after an ignominious retreat
! into dirty narrow road. It's northern be-
| ginning is marked with picturesque suburb
| an cottages and shade trees that are beau
| tiful in the summer months of the year.
smooth asphalt pavements mark its sur
| face and cement walks stretch along either
side of it, At it's southern extremity old
| fashioned brick walks are to be found along
| its borders, and the soil is its only foot
| hold, while curious little graveyard al
most touches its western boundary. Its
miles of length harbors all kinds and con-
ditions of people and every business and
| every degree of business. The rich have
their elegant homes on this remarkable
| street; millionaires have their offices;
| princes of commerce sit at their desks in
| great establishments that have been built
along this thoroughfare where it enters
the heart of the city-and the poor have
their modest little frame dwellings, and the
small shopkeeper his tiny store. where if
| the days sales amount to 81 or s. life seems
| we'll worth the living.
| CARRIAGES AND AUTOMOBILES.
| Luxurious carriages and the most costly
| automobiles roll along the northern por-
ton of this street, and when the snow is
on the ground the merry jingle of sleigh
| bells is to be heard as the finest horses of
| the city speed its white surface,
drawing the finest of sleighs. Trolley cars
hum along its southern portion past two
miles of little frame houses and unpreten-
tious grocery stores. meat shops and corner
| saloons. Christianity is represented along
its length by many large Protestant
| Churches of great architectural beauty
well as little wooden places of worship.
The magnificent local headquarters of the
Roman Catholic Church is situated amid
| beautiful surroundings on the northern
| portion of this thoroughfare, and far away
towards the other end the Sacred Heart
| Convent and Monastery, forming one of
| the most interesting groups of religious
houses in this part of the United States,
is to be found just off the main street
| Mission Bands from the Salvation Army
parade the street at night in the business
section of the city, holding their principal
| out-of-doors services where Meridian
street crosses Washington.
The great, the rich, the mighty, the
poor, the besotted the depraved, and all
grades between, are among the habitues of
this long highway. To the South, just be-
yond the network of railway tracks at the
Union Station. Is small quarter of the city
where scenes such as are to be witnessed
on New York's Bowery, are common night
| ly pictures. How my lady of the fashion
able Meridian street ballroom would stare
if she were to walk into grand Satur-
day night dance" a dance hall, where
foaming beer Is taken as refreshment be-
tween the waltzes instead of sparkling
champagne punch, and where the men
often accost their partners of the fairer
sex with, Say, liz amt this dance
ourn?' Near the dance hall, on this same
street of many contrasts, is wineroom
with piano, where sits youth who puffs
away at a cigarette if his life depended
upon it, while his fingers, stained with nico-
tine, speed with lightning-like rapidity
over the dirty ivory keys in a rapturous
symphony In rag-time. A few misguided
women sit about the low wooden tables
with mugs of beer or glasses of wine before
them, answering boistering "joshes'' of
the men who frequent the place with bits of
readymade repartee such as "Oh, g'long
with you," you talk, but you don't say
nothin'," or "Aint that the TRUTH" Some
times these women and men waltz about
the floor of the room in a slow, awkward
'two-step,' as they call it, their eyes glued
upon the walls opposite them and their
faces drawn into anything but an express
sion of enjoyment.
PIANIST GETS SICK.
That is their way of having good time.
sometimes the pianist gets sick of his job
and longs for better things. He is really
a musician by nature, but he doesn't know
what ambition means. But once in awhile
he bestirs the sleeping poetry within him
and in sheer desperation bursts forth into
one of Chopin's Nocturns. How does he
come to know it? Where on earth did he
learn to play it? And the manager of the
place winks at the dumfounded visitor who
has dropped in for "a bit of local color i'm
getting up his article" and whispers be-
hind the palm of his hand: Maybe you
think that fellow doesn't know music He
went TO a school of music once, by George,''
There are barrel houses along one Sec
ton of this street of many contrasts-sordid
places where big drink of whisky may
be had for dime. and where il is often
necessary for the policeman on his rounds
to push open the lattice doors and make
sure that the patrol wagon is not needed to
carry away some poor unfortunate who has
spent his days earnings in an overindul-
gence OF Supplying liquors. But these
places are not so numerous as they once
were, thanks to the vigilance of the city
officials, and the few that exist are better
conducted, give less to drink for the money
and cause less trouble generally. And just