Clarke courier. [volume] (Berryville, Va.) 1869-1997, 1910-03-30

10 Cents, and Wedding Breakfast
For Six, With Twelve Quarts Of Oa.,
on the Side, Cost Just s1.es.
Guarded as carefully as any OF the
guests Jewels that lie beside Il i'm the
Dig safe OF great and glittering
broadway hotel IN New York city and
treasured by the proprietor more than
It's weight I'm gold is an old cashbook.
The entries run from March TO De
cember, 1916 They record in quaint.
descriptive phrases the comings and
goings OF the travellers who stopped at
a wayside inn on a turnpike road less
than 100 miles from New York. This
tavern was kept by the broadway ho-
tel proprictor's grandfather. The build
ing OF the railroad. the passing of the
stagecoach and the changes OF more
than half n century have obliterated
this once famous old Inn Mt South Dur
ham, and now all that remains Of II Is
this ancient book. which served not
only as a record OF cash received, but
took the place OF the modern hotel
register
The prices charged by this innkeep-
from those exacted today as this an
Client hostelry Is from the gorgeous
summer hotels OF the countryside
where It once stood. The regular price
for dinner was 10 cents, but even
this appears TO have been cut TO fire.
quent travellers. For instance. there il
an entry OF Candy peddler from AL
bany, two meals and lodging. 81
cents" Almost every entry Is n brief
description OF the individual traveller
and what he got-for example, Free
kle faced. eagle nosed boy. hay. sup
per. lodging and grease. 81 cents
This boy was probably driving a horse
and wagon. which would account for
the hay and grease. Another man who
was described as fellow with tired
colt got hay, lodging and breakfast
for A cents.
Every few days there came along.
according 10 this ancient register. n
Connecticut man." He invariably
spent jus; q cents for food. and that
was for pie On two occasions there
IL an additional Charge for ''rrcasins
wagon. q cents" Thcrt<wcrr no the
atrical companies touring this turn
pike road ialf a ,cIrury ago. but 4
phrenClo=iS gyi ,SrS and vanirhes Il
being reco.. ~ i..ai FOR hay. q quarts
OF oats. !,Cgi.g AMI breakfast" he
gave up ~ rc-.SS. once IN awhSln 4
real spend .ari,t would come along.
like the .'gcat with three ladies and
two children" They had six dinners
For these. the hay for the horses. the
meals for the dog" and the 'segar"
for the man $1.2S was charged. There
was wedding breakfast ut this
quaint tavern too. II is set down as
wedding. Radclif-s sister. 6 dinners.
u quarts OF oats. SLIGO"
People went west" by wagon ia
those days from the thickly settled
east TO sccE their fortunes. Some did
not end what they expected and came
back again. Oac such group. an "em-
igrant family returning east-seven of
them"-spc-t - nj the inn. Three
cents worth Cf candy" is frequent
entry. Probably the candy peddler
from Alha-y" paid for his food and
lodging in sweets. -'3ere are but two
entries Cf cay,hing stronger than lem
onadc. alG t,.ase are for bcer-four
quarts lea . cents. Oysters were
cheap. to. SCI. siX ,1tcs Of them in
creased tcc cce,ca,s OF the tavern
keepers ia-.,y Lcy hy just IL cents.
AmoSg So. Journey crs along this
turnpia, Z. whose passage is record
Ell in I.i' S. yc;lowod volame is "Old
Particles. doubtless he was some
cranky &C. cc,.str Who Kicked about
everything AID whose goings the inn
keeper sped as much IS possible. Then
there was tie "tNAistiiIg Man." the
"Stiff Arm NAN" the "DiSHcptic Man"
Qhe had four quarts OF tea) and the
Hen Man" who ate piece Of pie
and traded ROSTERS with the hotel
keeper. Other travellers along the
highway are thus described: "Aboli-
ton Man" Mean Fellow" Gent
With Noble Horse" Lady With Cry
ing Baby" Hank Days Likeness"
and "Cravat Peddler" fooD.
Occasionally an old acquaintance
would pass by or some dignitary, for
it is set down that a friend from
Lexington" had hay and lodging one
day at the inn. Who knows but he
might have been a son OF one Of the
"embattled farmers" who kept the
bridge that April morning OF the ride
| OF Paul Revere? The Grand Juror
and His Wife" tarried for meal at
the inn the same day as>did the Dom
inie's Wife and Child" On Nov. 3. so
the careful chronicle says. the pro-
| prietor event to York." where he re-
NAMED six days. Tie must have had
roaring. FOSTERING time of II while
in the metropolis. fer the next entry
in his handwriting is somewhat shaky
and says. "Sundries while at York. 80
] cents."-New York Press.