Catoctin clarion., 1910-03-10
OLD TAVERN CHARGES
Cost Of Living at a Turnpike Inn
Near New York In 1e46.
LOW PRICES THE RULE THEN
The Regular Tariff For a Dinner Was
10 Cents, and q Wedding Breakfast
For Six, With Twelve Quarts Of Oats
on the Side, Cost Just $1.69.

10 Cents, and q Wedding Breakfast
For Six, With Twelve Quarts of Oats
on the Side, Cost Just $1.69.
Guarded as carefully rs any Of the
guests jewels thnt lie beside 1t In the
big safe Of a great and llirtrring
Broadway hotel In New York city and
treasured by the proprietor more than
its weight In gold IL an old cashbook.
She entries run from March to De-
cember, 1916 They record IN quaint.
descriptive phrases the cOnlings and
goings Of the travellers who stopped at
wayside inn on turnpike road less
than 100 miles from New York. This
tavern was kept by the Broadway ho-
tel .propr.etor's grandfather. The build
ing Of the railroad. the passing OF the
stugecoach and the change OF more
than half century have oblit>rated
this once famous Old inn Mt Sou, h Dur
ham, aud now all thar remains Of 1t Ii
this ancient book, which served not
only as u record Of cash re tive>l. but
took the place of the mo>.eln hotel
register
The prices charged by this innkeep
er Of Ions ago are MS f"r removed
from these exacted today as this an
cient hoste,.y Is from tht gorgeous
summer hotels of the countrysi.e q
where II once stood The regular price
for n dinner was 10 Gents. ba, even
this appears to have been "cut" to fire.
quent travellers. For instance. there is
an entry Of Candy pedIirr from AL
bany, two meals ard lodging. 81
cents" Almost every entry Is Il brief
description of the individual traveller
and what he got--for example. "Frec-
ke faced, eagle nosed boy. hay. sup
per. lodging ard grease. 81 cents.
This boy was probably driving Il horse
and wagon, which would account for
the hay and grease. Another niAn who
was described as Il "fell,w with tired
colt" got hay, lodging and breakfast
for "A cents.
Every few days there came along.
according to this ancient register,
"Connecticut man." He invariably
spent Just q cents for food. and that
was for pie. On two occasions there
is an additional charge for ''greasing
wagon. u cents" There were no the
atrical companies touring this turn
pike road half century ago. but
phrenologist appears and vanishes. 1t
being recorded that for hay. quarts
of oats. lodging and breakfast" he
gave up 56 cents. Once In awhile
real spendthrift would come along.
like the gent with three ladies and
two children" They hGd six dinners.
For these, the hay for the horses. the
meals for the dog" and the ''seGar'
for the man SIPS was charged. There
was a wedding breakfast at this
quaint tavern too. 1t Is set down as
wedding. Radcliff's sister. dinners,
l. quarts of oats, SLIGO"
People went west by wagon In
those days from the thickly settled
east to seek their fortunes. Some did
not find what they expected and came
back again. One such group. an "em-
igrant family returning east-seven OF
tue&u -SlCut p. dt thC Inn. W
cents worth of candy" IL frequent
entry. Probably the candy peddler
from Albany" paid for his food and
lodging In sweets. There are but two
entries Of anything stronger than LEM
onade, and those are for beer-four
quarts for 0 cents. Oysters were
cheap. too. for six plates Of them in
creased the contents of the tavern
keepers money box by just 10 cents.
Among the journeyers along this
turnpike road whose passage is record
ell In this age yellowed volume Is "Old
Particular" Doubtless he was some
cranky old codger who kicked about
everything and whose goings the Inn
keeper sped us much as possible. Then
there was the "Whistling Man." the
"Stifr Arm Man." the "Dispeptic Man"
Che had four quarts Of teal and the
Hen Man." who ate piece Of pie
and traded rOosters 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 dlgnitary. for
It is set down that friend from
Lexington" had hay and lodging one
day at the Inn. Who knows but he
might have been 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" tar:ied 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 went to York." where he re-
mained six days He must have had
a roaring. roistering time Of 1t while
In the metropolis. for the next entry
In his handwriting Is somewhat shaky
and says, "Sundries while at York. 30
cents"-New York Press