The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-10-31

The hotel men who were in Topeka
this week for their annual convention,
could tell many an interesting story
about the Kansas hostelries II they
would. Not only stories about what has
happened in the hotels but about the
hotels themselves.
Eugene B. Stotts. from Garden City,
could have told the story of the rivalry
between Buffalo Jones and man
named Stevens. Both lived in Garden
City and each was determined to do
little more for the town than the other.
Jones began years ago by putting up
an adobe building which is still stand
ing. Then he built himself a better
home and began making money IN
lands.
Jones thought the town needed good
court house. He built large eight
room, two story stone court house and
hotel that figures in this narrative.
Later Jones decided that the town
should have a good hotel and business
block. He built three story stone
building on a corner of block In the
first floor were several store rooms and
the hotel office. The dining room and
rooms of the hotel were on the second
and third stories.
The Stevens decided to Guido Jones
and his building which has always been
called the Buffalo block" Stevens
built a hotel on the other corner of the
block and he made it four stories high,
one story higher than the Jones build
ing. Stevens equipped his building with
an elevator and an electric light plant
The interior of the upper three stories
is like the rotunda of the state house,
open to the roof with balconies around
each floor. The hotel is big enough for
a town twenty-five times as large as
Garden City and of course, it is now
losing proposition on the original in
vestment, but that makes no difference.
Stevens had the satisfaction of building
.. Ex4<N 1t 60r mr.
doing him two better by putting in an
elevator and an electric light plant.
There are a good many western Kan
sas towns that have hotels standing as
monuments of the boom days. 1-arned
has two. and one of them is known for
hundreds of miles around. 1t is lie
Grande' hotel. 1t was built in the days
when the city limits were stretched
l-eVery day to take in q new addition
and when town lots filled the country
between Larned and old Fort Larned.
Now wheat lands are in between. LIE
Grande hotel is a big affair and a good
building. 1t would be a mighty good
hotel in a big CITY. but when the boom
passed by like the retreat of a hot
wave the hotel was left, high and dry
without boniface or guests. Since then
the hotel has been used for the storing
of wheat. When Joe Letter sent the
| price of wheat skyward in 1897 Col.
/ William Scott. of Larned, rented LIE
/ GraEde hotel and used it for wheat
bin. The farmers were holding their
wheat for higher price. The elevators
were running over. The buildings of
old Fort Larned were full of wheat
1 Every bin and Storehouse that would
/ hold wheat was full. LIE Grande was
! it and filled it with wheat. He had
thousands of bushels in it. Since the
wheat was sold the hotel hasn't even
had wheat in it.
The hotel men could tell of the hotel
in FL Dorado where the guests stay out
all night If they are not in by 10 o'clock
for the woman who runs the hotel
4 locks up at 10 o'clock and goes to bed
4 They could tell of the hotel at Wa
mego that has a piano in one of the
rooms. The proprietor, so it is said
never uses that room unless all the
other rooms are taken, and then he
asks the guest if he plays the piano
and If he does he puts him somewhere
else if he can. One time Frank Lewis
of Topeka, and a party stopped at tht
hotel. The landlord asked Lewis if hi
played the piano. Lewis said he didn't
The landlord sent Lewis to the room
with the piano in it. The rest of tn.
party visited Lewis. One of then
played the piano until 1 o'clock, and
the landlord was mad. So were ths
guests. but the room was rented will
Everything in it, so what could tn,
Door man do?
One of the best hotels in Kansas a
which to eat an early breakfast is tn,
Higginbotham in Manhattan. No mat
ter IL you get breakfast at O'Clock ii
the morning, you get quail on toas
curing the season. There is a hotel il
Decatur county with beds provided witt
TICKS filled with corn husks. IF yo,
happen TO stop there just after the tick
nave been filed you will have trouble
me man who fills them has a stron,
arm. and he fills them in about tn
same fashion that a hay baIer works
Inc husks are crammed in so tigh
init the tick is round. You can't II
IengtnWise of the tick without rollin.
OH. me only way to stay on is to Ii
crosswise with head and feet lowe
than the middle of your spine
There is a hotel in Lyons. Kan,
which has, or used to have a genuiu
. curiosity as member of the regula
loaiers brigade. He was ventrilouufs
and good one. He would find out fron
the motel clerk the name of guest sit
ing In the office after supper. Thel
the old man would station himself in
, corner of the office. A voice, apparent
~ Irom the street, would call to tn
clerk to know if the guest was there
The guest would say yes and then tn
voice from the street woul
call to him to come to tn
door The guest would go to TIL
r door and then the voice would SCUM
from across the street and then Their
would be laugh and the loafers a
: the hotel would join in it. Even the
the guest would not know that he ha
been tricl<ed by the ventriloquist. Whe
the joke was explained the old ma
would give an exhibition. All he want
ed was a cigar and he would go throug
his entire repertoire consisting of a do
tight in the cellar, a cat fight in tn
, chimney and the voices of two men /
, deadly combat in the street The oil
man always finished his performanc
with q shell game of the real sort. H
. would produce three shells and plac
them on his knee. The spectators coul
get as close to the shells as they wante
TO. He would place little wad of pape
under one, move the shells about slowi
and then ask which shell the wad wa
under II WAS 1aaxrar. -11radar the shell fha