The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1905-07-28
Tho city of Toronto
Described In Letter From VI. -. Rowland,
Former Editor of The True Northerne'.

family toreceive The True Northerner.
1t is indeed letter from home. And
| think possibly my old friends, the
readers of the paper, may be at least
little interested in hearing from me
not of myself. but of the city where
| am spending the most of my sum-
ner.
Toronto is a wide awake city, good
business and manufacturing town,
but an American cannot feel at horIe
here as he does in a sojourn in any of
our cosmopolitan American towns.
OF course I miss "Old Glory" an
other flag floating from the public
buildings, and the frequent sight of a
red coated soldier is just bit start
ling TO one accustomed 70 the incon-
spicuous American military uniform.
This is an intensely loyal royalist
city, and those who look for future
annexation of Canada to Uncle Sam ;
domain have much very active mis-
sionary work TO do in this city. AS a
sample of the feeling here, the city
press is full of articles urging the
made goods in preference to those Of
the United States-and yet most Of
the best goods displayed in the stores
here are of American manufacture.
1t has been talked in our country
that everything was so much cheaper
in Canada than in the United States
on account of our protective tariff.
Such is not the case. Possibly inn
ported English woolens are little
lower in price, but American made
goods, fully equal to the English in
quality, can be purchased in the
United States fully as cheaply as
good woolens here. oh, yes, there is
one other thing that is much cheaper
here. The poor man can buy his
diamonds at about two-thirds of the
American price, as they come into
this land duty free.
Just little about Toronto itself.
The first thing that impresses an
American is the extremely narrow
streets. The principal streets are but
four rods wide, with double street
car track in the center and excellent
car service, by the way, and many
of the by-streets are but three, some
not over two and oue-half rods wide.
think there is but one street in the
city over four rods, but possibly there
may be some in the resident districts.
Nearly all the residences are of
brick or stone, there being none of
the fine frame dwellings so familiar
at home. There is not SKY scraper'
III the city. While there are many
modern and substantial buildings,
they are not many stories high.
One of the buildings which is a
pride of Toronto i the ne~ King Ed
ward hotel, which cost upwards of two
million dollars and would be a credit
to any city in the world. In fact, the
city is fortunate in having plenty of
good hotel accommodations.
The big fire that visited the city's
wholesale district a few months ago,
while serious temporary loss, will in
the end prove of great advantage to
the city, "a fine, modern warehouses
are going up all over the burnt dis
trict, and a new union depot will oc-
cupy part of it another year.
Toronto's city hall is one of the
finest l ever saw in a city of the size,
and cost about two and a quarter mil
lion dollars. The Ontario parliament
building is another fine public edifice,
and the Toronto university and other
educational institutions are we'll pro-
vided with buildings.
The city has number of fine parks,
chief of which is the island park in
the lake just in front of the city, a
beautiful spot that reminds one of
Detroit's Belle Isle in natural advan-
tages, although not nearly so much
has been expended in its Improvement.
Good ferry boat service reaches the
island. And that reminds me that
these ferry boats are the only Sunday
boats out of Toronto. No Sunday ex-
cursions, no Sunday ball games, no
Sunday open saloons, no Sunday
stores or barber shops-even the cigar
stores and shoe shining parlors are
closed, outside of the hotels. 1t is
only within a short time that Sunday
street cars were run. On the surface
it looks like a condition that would !
satisfy the most straight laced Paw
Paw puritan. However, as usual, |
there is a 'hy in the ointment. I'm
der the law no liquor licenses are
granted except to "hotels." \ GER
tain number of rooms for dodgers
must be maintained TO procure a liquor
license. It is funny to see a common
little corner bar room with "hotel"
sign. and he who doesn't want TO visit |
an ordinary saloon had better be care
full what "hotel' he enters. All these /
"hotels," the real ones and the make
believe, serve liquor Sundays and af-
ter hours to their guests" And |
rooms are we'll occupied from the clos
ing of the bars at o'clock Saturday /
night until their reopening Monday
and it is caution TO see
the amount of liquor carried TO rooms
during Saturday evening and Sunday.
That reminds me of the man who,
when warned by the temperance add
vocate that drink would shorten his
days, replied, Eyes, that's so; the
longest day | ever spent was in a dry
town.
I met an old Englishman in my
hotel the other day who had been
travelling in the United States. Two