Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-07
THE "CRAB" OBJECTS
IkT = EP, I reckon I'm a crab. senten-
tiously observed the man with
the old-fashfoped face as he sat-

number out of date, behind the times,
or something. Whatever 1t is. I don't
| belong to this period. That's a GER
| tainty.
'Notice the women fiocking through
this hotel lobby? Well, that's one Of the
things that makes me positive that
belong to another epoch. and not to this
| one. Why? Wen, it makes me kind o
nervous and uncomfortable to see women
| trotting around hotel lobby. Can't ex-
actly explain why. But 1t does, all the
same. Oh. yes, 1 grant they've got just
as much right to fizgig around hotel lob
| by as men nave; grant any old thing
when you put it on that strict basis OF
rights, but Fm just trying to tell you
| that it makes me feel sort of restrained
and in the way to see women making
themselves so blamed at homA In a hotel
| lobby. I'm not tackling the right or the
wrong Of the thing at all. OF course It's
all right If the women want it that way:
Any old thing that the women want IN the
| United States of America Is right II
they want it hard enough. You'H haXe
observed that they get everything 11n q. they
say. all I'm talking about Is how the
| the-times male person. =
| 1T has only been matter Of about
| Ten OE Twelve years SiHcc WohSn IA %
/ began to take possession of hotel Hobbies
| In the United States Now there's no
| lodging 'em. A hotel lobby, no matter
now comfortable or luxurious In itself,
has never seemed the same to me since
| the women knocked the bars down ana
| took possession of hotel Hobbies for their
own more or less flustery, f1abbergasted,
aimless. misunderstanding purposes.
| Their fitting hither and yon In hotel
obby, according to my acknowledgedly
| VII ckS
the comfort and repose that the lobbtes
of first-rate hotels used to have. Hows
that? Oh. yes. I've heard that idea sx-
| pressed too-about the sense of sweet
and all similar like that the presence. of
women in hotel Hobbies is supposed to
impart. Unto which reply. piffie, and
then some more. piffie Women impart
and light in places where they belong,
but when they bust through the ram
parts and take possession of places
! where. according to my peevish view.
they do not belong. and were never meant
| to belong, then they don't impart any
| thing but a sense of their own pushing
ness, a sense of their implied challenge,
| 1 want this and I'm going to, have. it.
| whether you like it or not. and, they
don't impart anything whatevercof the
| feminine charm that, is supposed. to in
| here to them. - - -, =
ISThere are all kinds of reception rooms
| and music rooms and dressing. pooms and
| such like set aside a-purpose for the use
and comfort Of women In hotels. Why
dent they use EN-? The only place
where a male guest of a hotel can have
any sense Of freedom and intercourse
with his fellow creatures without unnec-
hotel lobby. He can't stick in his room
all the time. That's too lonesome. So
he is driven to- the lobby. In the gone
time he could sit or stand around the
lobby, meeting up with the bunch. ex-
changing talk with them, and not feel
any necessity to put the soft pedal on his
speech. Not, understand, that men
men worth while-made a practice OF
abusing the comparative exclusiveness of
the old-time hotel lobby by indulging in
acter; merely that they enjoyed being
with men only. when they could put off
their really pretty manners if they chose
to and get back to the essentials of the
game of life for change.
quite recently. in Washington, New
York and elsewhere. I have seen fussy
arrogant-seeming women breeze into hotel
Hobbies and begin to. sniff-sniff. Then
they'd make some perfectly audible, and
meant to be audible, observation of
very peev.sh and crushing character
about the horrid cigar smoke, and brush
| imaginary smoke away from their faces
with. their hands, and, in general, make
It just as DANCED measley and ornery
and unpleasant for. the men. sitting
around in the lobby as they possibly know
how. to make it, Where do these women
want men who stop at hotels to go for
their smokes. Down in the cellar with
the coal beavers? Up on the roof? Out
in the kitchen. with the solutions? Or do
| they want them to hike out of the hotel
] altogether, rain or snow or halt or shine.
and take their smokes on park bench?
altogether in body? Ye-eh. Grand
| chance for that. uh-huh.
"I' for women. Like 'em amazingly. I'd
do anything on earth that lay within my
power for nice. sensible women. I've got
one of that kind for wife. andve had
her for more than thirty years now. Got
four grown daughters. too, that come
pretty near measuring up to the standard
of the modern woman in the essentials
that are worth while. But took q
| myself. My part was sto impress upon
| them that, while it's up to men to go to
any trouble, depart from any begufling
| and comfortable path, take any reasona-
selves are possessed of certain rights
bearing on and appertaining to their sex
| and the stunts that they're called upon
| to perform in this life that women have
no right whatever to seek to take away
| from them And I made that part of
| their education SO thorough that think
| it came mighty middling- nigh to being
| impressed upon them.
"A little while ago l went to vaude-
vile theater in New York where the men
| are permitted to smoke. That being the
case l smoked. But I didn't get the
| least bit of fun out of my smoking,
| though my, one purpose in attending
| that vaudeville theater was to sit down
! in cheerful place with something en-
Pertaining going on, where I could enjoy
| a cigar or two. But there were three or
! four women sitting in my neighborhood
| who took all of the fun out of it so far
as I was concerned. They fumed and
| smiled over my cigar smoke-three- fora
| half smokes, too, Son-and famed their,
| faces with their programs, and made
cracks to each other about Doors that
| had the audacity to smoke In the pres
ence of lydies and all similar. until, in
disgust, 1 simply got out, before the
| show was half over.
"Of course, there were plenty of other
men smoking in the theater, anu they
probably all got it, too, only just heard
the remarks of the women who were sit
| ting nearest me. Well, there are so
| many vaudeville theaters In New York
where there is no smoking that couldn't,
begin to count them-vaudeville theaters,
I too, where. exactly the same performers
appear as appear at the house where.
| smoking is allowable for men. But
the women wouldn't go to those nom
smoking theaters. Nope. They attend
| ed the theater where tired men, often
after arduous days, go for the solace of
| a smoke with music and such like. and
| then they make 1t so ALFRED miserable
for the men that the men just. can't