The independent., 1907-01-24

their very midst, loved to stroll into
the Pavilion on a summer night so as
to get their Minds off their Work.
BY the time everybody at the Table
had bought twice and the show had
worked down toward the Moving Pic
| lures. every tired Business Man in the
place had forgotten all about his work.
A good many of them remembered their
Names, however.
| The Traveller. who was revisiting the
Town year after year to observe the
devastation of the Saloon Evil, couldn't
even get a good seat or catch the eye
Of Waiter.
| AS for the Saloon Evil, he learned
that there was no Saloon In the Neigh
borhood The taxpayers were opposed
to Saloons, although they had no OBJ
lection to well conducted Temple Of
Art, where one might sit comfortably
and get pie-eyed, picked, saturated,
spifhicated, sprung, ossified, petrified
and lit up like a Cathedral
He feared that he would be unable
to write the story of Ten Nights In a
Barroom without involving the entire
Social Life and mentioning the names
of all those prominent In the Learned
Professions.
Besides he could no longer find the
Barroom. The Stuff was now coming
from somewhere down stairs on a
Dumb Waiter.
Did he keep on going back the same
as the Traveller in the Book? Yes, for
he liked to see Good Show himself.
and he found that he could drop In
any time and order a Horses Neck and
watch all the Nice Folks from the
Residence Streets hosting the Bubbles
without In any way compromising his
Reputation as a RefOrmer.
About three years ago, when he Wis
tied the Spot which had once been
desecrated by the sale Of ordinary
Whisky, he came across Garage with
Repair Shop behind it, and learned
that the Resort had taken on a new
importance as an Inn for the enter
tainment Of those who owned Touring
Cars.
On a pleasant evening all the Head
liners in the World OF Fashion would
be gathered around small tables on the
big veranda, and no matter how much
they threw in it was all right. because
| they had Chauffours to load them up
and take them home.
| But how could the traveller write
about Ten Nights in a Barroom II
I anyone had come along and called the
place a Barroom he would have been
arrested by the Park Policeman who
stood out in front to keep the Common
People from rubbering at our un-
crowned Kings and Queens.
The final visit of the Traveller was
the one that put him down and out.
On the worry Corner where once there
had been a Saloon, Turing Strong Men
Ruin, there was now a dandy big
Hotel
The man who had been merely a
tough Barkeep was now in charge Of
very select Establishment which had
no Barroom whatever, although 1t
boastcd Palm Room and a Rathskel
ler and Flemish Room and a Gentle
mems Cafe in any one of which you
could have 1t opened up for you at any
hour of the Day or Night, while those
who could no longer sign their Names
merely made signs at the Bell Hop.
Also a Ladies' Tea Room where it
was served In Cups, the same as
Bouillon.
The Owner of this Exclusive Hos
telry was President of the Local Asso-
citation organized to prevent Saloons
from coming into that part Of Town
BY years of good behavior he had lived
been engaged in the Liquor Business.
The old Traveller looked over the
ground and threw away his Note Book
He found that he could not write about
Ten Nights in Barroom, because the
Evil had been exterminated.
Copyright, 1907, by George Ade.)