Evening star., 1909-02-13

swimming in very exaltation of srati--
tude. The movement to take that
noise away" meaning, that is, to OBJ
literate and extinguiSh the music that
has been torturing people in New York
restaurants for long years past, now
is we'll under way. Quite number
of the best restaurants in New York
have paid off their instrumental noise
makers and conversation runners 'and
told them that they need not come back
any more. The agitation progresses.
There are signs that even the lobster pal
aces patronized by auriferous persons OF
the chorus and their bone-headed escorts
soon will cancel their music" Restau-
rateurs are being inundated with letters
informing them that the music" is and
always has been an abomination and a
nuisance The restaurateurs Will take
heed The time is at hand when it will
be possible to go to almost any good res
taurant in New York and indulge in the
pleasure of a chat with your table visa
Wis without making a funnel of your
hands and shouting at the top of your
voice. Soon the cornetists who start
typhoonic obligato on the theme of Love
Me and the World Is My-Hne" just when
You have merry quip or sentimental
word to unfold into the ear of the person
eating with you will be incontinently run
into the brush.
Inc hungarian '-OfCneStTaS tnat start
all of the sesmographs on Manhattan
Island to recording with their thud-thua-
ding of barbarous dulcimers and xylo-
phones and other nerve-torturing In
struments" will be swept on to the Stag
heap. The long haired. immature fiddling
boys who have to feel all over the +
string for their notes when they get be-
yond the third position will be canned
in a'colioquial way of speaking. The per-
formers who. in the cheap table d'hotes,
stand on a platform and below that
near-funny song about ''Finicule, Funi-
cula'' Will be joining the railroad con-
struction gangs of their countrymen over
in Jersey and up in Connecticut. Even
the places where monographs with horns
the size Of ocean-going steamer smoke
stacks blare the bawled tones OF Caruso
and Bonci-even the Photographs are
going to be taken out.
Very fine doings Everything comes to
us who wait. We shall have some peace
fui restaurant meals yet. 1t Is possible
10 love music with a genuine maniacal
love and yet to loathe and despise New
York restaurant music"
The next thing to be done now is to get
rid of New Yorks horde of anarchistic
walters who take extreme pains to make
il obvious that they hate everybody. in
cluding themselves. and who look as If
the, We got bombs, with time-fuses at
tached. concealed about their persons.
The spirit of concession is mounting. Be-
fore the close of this twentieth century
We shall be able to eat in moderate COM
fort even at the restaurants where We
are outrageously overcharged.
THEATRICAL folk will remember the
= season of 190s-l9O9 with just about
the same degree OF tenderness that is
felt by financial people who bark back to
the various black Fridays in our history.
No season has ever been so lamentably
sorely put to it TO find new methods OF
"papering their houses. Bushels OF
complimentary tickets are sent to the city
colleges TO be distributed among the stu
dents. to the department stores to be dis
tributed among the statesmen and sales
women, TO hotel clerks to be passed
Sratuitously around among the guests;
and il appears that. even with all Of this
shower of paper" In constant progress,
il is impossible to keep most of the thea
ters of New York more than half filled.
There are few good plays enjoying
substantial prosperity. but most of the
plays on view are very very bad BY
bad I mean dull. stupid. making for
somnoience or boredom to the verge OF
extinction. The sure-enough bad plays
are getting the money When salacious
things make a hit it is natural enough
that other producers should be moved by
the spirit OF emulation. Now they're all
trying TO be just ba-ad they possi-
bly, can be. not only in the domain OF
le8ltlfnate Drama, Dut IN eXtraVaSanZd,
and even in vaudeville.
Meanwhile. the moving picture shows
are jammed and packed to the doors all
day long and half the night. too. These
shows, whatever else may be said about
them. are clean. sensible admission
price is charged There are no sulky
youths in charge OF the purveying Of
tickets. There are spectators, They
offer chance to rest and think 1t over 10
shopping women. They give business men
with problems to dope out an opportunity
10 get away from the plant and sit down
for a space with their problems. They
keep up to the minute and have new stuff
constantly on view. And they are get
ting the money. The combined theatrical
managers of New York are trying all the
time 10 hand various sorts of jolts to the
proprietors OF the moving picture shows.
but their animus Is too obvious and they
are not succeeding. The theatrical man.
ayers. for example. are making regular
campaign against the moving-picture
houses on the ground that these houses
haven't adequate facilities for letting
folks out in OF fire. But this is too
plainly a case OF the pot calling the kettle
black. Only about one-third of the thea
fers Of New York are properly arranged
10 let audiences out in case OF fire.
The time IL coming when a dollar viii
se the highest price charged for the best