The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1905-04-18
COL. BACON IN NEW YORK.
He Visits the Subway Tavern And
Tells What he Saw and
Did.


date of April IS, OF his visit to the
famous Subway Tavern"
Being in New York-now mael-
strom OF Easter goods-and floating
on the surface OF the situation, we
were washed up by the tide last night
and swept into Bishop Potte-s Sub
awy Tavern" Everybody who comes
to New York nowadays goes to The
Subway Tavern, which, under the
combined allurements of virtue, whis-
key and sand, is making mountains OF
money. In this benevolent lnstitu-
ton Of Bishop Potter's you get a
drink of the same whiskey for ten
cents that you would pay fifteen cents
for elsewhere. What more sublime
height of virtue than this? The Sub
way Tavern is not-as we had
thought, and as most people thlnk-a
place under the ground. Nor has it
anything upon earth to do with the
great underground railway, so far as
we can see or learn. One of the de-
scents to the Subway is directly in
front of it, and that is all. 1t is an ole
two-story wooden building at the
corner of Bleeker and Mulberry
streets. This is far down town and
takes visitors into quarter OF the
city which they would certainly not
otherwise see. 1t is not quite as low
down, however, as Chinatown, nor
is it BY any means as interesting. AS
YOU approach the Subway Tavern you
see various little open air performance
,es showing the beauties OF simple lite
in those parts when Blocker and Mul-
berry streets are in bloom. These
performances cheer you W morally,
and you enter the reception room OF
the tavern with assured feelings OF
redemption and salvation. The re-
ception room is plain and shabby. 1t
is called The Water Wagon" Why
should water wagon not be plain
and shabby? There is neither money
nor virtue in a water wagon. AS you
enter the water wagon, mine host
Jansen, really very handsome, intel
ligent and we'll hammered young man,
comes forward to receive you-after
the fashion, we suppose, Of the an
cient roadside inn keeper. Very few
persons, however, despite its virtuous
air, lirger long in the water wagon.
They smell and hear more heavenly
things, and soon find the open door'to
a wide and long modern bar room,
with very few traces or hints OF an
ancient inn-except the whiskey, beer
and ale There are also large in
voices of case goods and, we reckon,
coffin varnish diluted with wood alco-
hol. There are good many men in
the bar room, but they are quiet and
orderly, and seem to be filled with
the spirit of rejoicing Christians.
Many women, extremely good wo-
men-we do not joke--go to the tav-
ern, but they do not linger in the wat
er wagon, nor do they enter the long
and ster:1ize6 bar room-sterilized Of
all iniquity. On the contrary they hur-
~ downstairs to long room in the
bowels of the earth. This room is
the heart and soul of the tavern, and
here so great is the purity, piety, vir-
tue and benevolence, that you immed-
lately begin to feel the awakening Of
what Maxim Gorky, the Russian writ
er and patriot, called "a redemptive
spirit Of shame that your
past life has been so dissolute and de-
graded
The Real Tavern.
This room is the real "old tavern .
Its floor is thickly sanded-with good.
clean, wholesome sand. The chairs
and tables are old-time and somewhat
rickety. The lamps are cheap, old
fashioned, greasy and dim. A huge.
ancient. Saxon-looking fireplace
stands on one side, with huge black
iron dogs, shovel and tongs. Logs