The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-05-09
THE DIsCOVERIEs or AN fMAfT-
GRANT.
VII.

II N9AhAD hAC no ~ AO1IuOu lIOm ulD
guide book that the famous resort lay on
an island shaped just like a ship-or like
Manhattan, and that Its principal attraction
was a promenade deck. What surprised
him more was to find Hindu temples on
the island. He himself was quartered Id
such a temple, converted into q hotel by
an i~Treligious age. and he could see what
looked like another from his window.
The guide book described the Boardwalk
as the greatest place Of recreation in the
world. and the immigrant wished to COM
init himself to its recreative influences as
soon "a possible. But first he must remove
the stains Of travel. and the operation
was prolonged by his having to choose
between five different notifications Of
water on tap In his bedroom. When 1t was
ended the hour had come for dining. and
he seated himself in one OF the large halls
OF the Hindu temple under q domed roof,
where he received a rather serious shock.
No sooner was he seated than q gfrlish
voice exclaimed right into his ear: "oh,
i dreamed about him last night. / posi-
lively dbl 1t was nearly as heavenly
as She was interrupted by a rough
male voice, equally close: ~Yes. / think
one OF those bernaise steaks would Just
about" 'Not the railroad man, you
don't meant" exclaimed another voice.
NO, the son OF Sam said O fourth. The
breath OF this speaker, like that Of all the
others, seemed to brush the immigrants
very cheek.
HS had already turned right around on
his chair to discover who the first speaker
was. There was not q visible body behind
him on either side or in front within FIVE
yards. Yet the voices had been talking
right into his ear! He thought OF The
Tempest" and trembled. Then he re-
membered Howells's Register" and grew
calm. Confidently he shifted his chair and
looked for q grating under It. There was
no grating to be seen there. He lifted the
table cloth and 'peered under. None there,
either. Heb beat a glass for a waiter. Here
stoop down, Can't you hear those voices?
What the dickens Then the waiter
explained, and the immigrant glowed with
a sense Of anticipation fulfilled.
He had been led to expect the bizarre, the
extraordinary, the final ultra-American
touch at Atlantic City; and surely he was
getting 1t. II this was not the supremest
proof OF American philagorism he had come
across yeti The domed roof, it seemed,
had acoustic properties of such a nature
that the conversations OF one set Of little
tables were conveyed along aerial con-
duits to the hearing Of other little tables in
remote parts Of the hall. Every speaker
there was sure Of a widespread audience
and every solitary old maid or bachelor was
sure OF company. Talk about the public
sociability OF the Americana
There was one discreet limitation, how
ever. to the workings of this dome OF pub
licity. You could not tell who in particular
was saying what. 1t was impossible to
judge the starting points Of the voices.
Which Of the many maidens in sight was
loves young dreamer? Ths immigrant
could not make out. and presently. when
she advanced into yet more intimate con-
fdences, he WA glad that he could not make
her out. He was thankful to nave at all
events that show Of ignorance left to pro-
tect mis- self respect with. Perhaps had
he been talking to some one she would
have been warned by the bruit to hold her
tongue. Perhaps she was too much rapt
in bliss to heed any warning. Ut turned
out that he had promised-in the dream
to ask her hand next week.
Cheered by this astounding symptom of
Americanism the immigrant sailed forth
hopefully to. the celebrated Boardwalk.
Tit Hindu temple lay a little way back
from 1t. but 1t stretched forth feelers Of
covered ways to clasp the benefioent wood.
That very unevenly planked thoroughfare,
raised above the sands on iron columns,
was indeed the via Saora" of Atlantic
City. The topography Of the place sug-
gested a comb, the back or spine thereof
being the Walk, and the teeth a multitude
Of avenues named after States, zach of
which was lined with double rowo of hotels
struggling 30 desperately. as il for air and
life, toward the planked thoroughfare that
the whole city recalled a game Of 'Ticky.
tioky, touch wood"
When the immigrant. fancying himself
almost q matinee favorite, trod the famous
boards for the first time, the sun was light
ing the antipodes; but Boardwalk would
do very we'll without any natural advan-
tages. Along an endless vista it was cano-
pied with little stars, hung In crisscross
lines. All the Hindu temples had moons
upon their ~pinnacles. A commercial di-
reotory imprinted itself in or and oNtes upon
the sable. Forked lightnings darted at
tention modestly toward brands of cigars,
and far UP in the void soft and hard drinks
told their contrasting tales in equally lumi-
nous language. Nothing whatever was
left in the dark but the sea, and one could
hear the swish OF Its moving waters at
their priestlike task out there beyond the
tafirail. II was a garsh scene, but after
all not essentially distinct from Broadway.
The immigrant went to bed hoping for more
marked surprises in the morning.
To be frank, he was finally disappointed
in Atlantic Cfty-from his special point OF
view, that IL. He had come there expect
ing an extraordinary American environ
ment-something quite ~outrageously New
Worldish; but he had to conclude at last
hat Atlantic City was really a great deal
more like some places on the other side
than, for instance, New York itself YVES. OF
course. Atlantic City was not at all like any
French bains de mer, but in It's social
features II Tailed with disappointing exact
ness with certain British seaside resorts
with Margate. for instance. Geographic
cally MaTgste wa quite different, standing
on chalk cliffs breaking down steeply TO
the beach; but socially, in the strange
ideas Of p~leasunc entertained by its visitors,
1t bore q sadly close resemblance to Atlantic
City. There were minor differences, OF
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