The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1910-06-05
AT THE HOTELS.


tire life of old John Jacob Astor, said
Niles F. Watkins. a real estate BROKER
Of New York, who is at the New VIII
lard IN $780, Aston tore down his
house in Broadway, cleared the whole
block from Vesey to Barclay street. and
built the huge gray Quincy granite
hotel which held forth until not many
years ago as the Aston House, being one
of the most notable landmarks in New
York. and also one Of the best paying
pieces Of property.
"a few days after it was finished, the
Old gentleman and his eldest son, VIII
ham, were walking through City Hall
Park. where the post-ofiice now stands,
and stopped a moment 10 admire the
building-the finest hotel in America at
that time.
Pop. that's a mighty fine building.
said William, I wish TO gracious It was
mine
So answered his father. Well
Billy: give me 81 and you can have it.
out came the dollar-a big silver dol
lar that is cherished By the family
TO this day as the dollar of our daddies-
and within an hour the deed Of the prop
erty was made out and recorded. This
was old Mr.. AstOr's only sale Of real
estate in his life"
Discussing New York politics, Mr.. Wat
kins SAID that there is no other State in
the Union which can boast of such praTni-
nent statesmen and politicians as New
York. In the first place." he continued.
there is Teddy Roosevelt, and no one
but he can tell what his intentions are
for the future. He may or may not enter
politics again, or he may or may not
have his eye on the White House What
ever it may be, it is dead sure that he
win not allow himself to be forgotten by
the American people for many years to
come He has succeeded in monopOlizing
the limelight Of publicity for these last
ten years or longer, and is the best ad-
vertised parsonage in the world
Another strong man OF New York is
Gov Hughes, and ii seems certain that
il he had not accepted a position on the
Supreme bench he would have figured in
national politics as a Presidential posi-
biIity. However, that possibility is not
eliminated by his going on the Supreme
bench.
"Elihu Root is another big gum. and
is a New Yorker. You know he is the
man Of whom Roosevelt IS supposed TO
have said he would go to the Capitol on
hands and knees 10 see him elected Pres
ident OF the United States. Root viii be
heard from before long.
Another coming man OF New York is
Mayor GaynOr, he who was styled the
future President by Mr.. de Lagercrantz
the Swedish Minister, az a banquet few
days ago in New York. GaynOr viii be
the logical Democratic candidate for the
-
ceeds IN re-electing himself IS governor
of the Buckeye State
Col. K. B. Collins. retired army Of
fieer, who is in business at ST. Louis.
Mo, and was seen at the Raleigh last
night, in discussing West Pointers, said:
II have often heard a question as TO
whether West Pointers wore eorsets. Il
is absurd. in a way, because should
any effeminate youngster resort to such
a thing il would be an impOssbility TO
keep the affair a secret, and, once
known. his school life would become a
burden to him on account Of the endless
amount of criticism he would receive
from his fellows He would be made the
laughing-stock of the school, and would
soon find himself the possess0r Of any
number of eTeminate nicknames that
would CRATE upon his ears in any but a
pleasant manner.
'It is true" continued the old soldier,
that many West Pointers acquire a fig
ure the perfection of symmetry and a
carriage the acme of manly grace, but
these are due not to any ingenious ap-
pliance, but to the systematic drills and
exercises that make every cadet, to a
certain extent, an athlete. At the out
set these young fellows are put through
what are called the setting up exercises,
their object being to sTaighten the body
and develop the chest. One might sup
pose that II would require a great amount
OF such exercise TO make any marked
showing, but three long hours Of such
exercises daily viii soon produce beae-
fetal results in the most stopped forms.
THE cadet uniform is also a great
help in this direction. The dress coat is
tight, very tight. The shoulders are
heavily padded. Ia order TO give them a
square effect. The chest is made thick.
so that there viii be no danger OF
wrinkling. And In size, a new dress coat
seems always TO be designed for a boy
several sizes smaller than the one who
is 10 wear it. A new dress coat, in fact,
is always a source Of suffering to its
owner. When he first puts it on, it but
tons readily about the neck, but seems
TO lack about six inches at the waist
The owner may squirm and wriggle and
attempt to reduce his waist TO a mimi
mum circumference, but his maiden ef-
forts are never sufficient to button the
new dress coat. Experience is a great
teacher, though, and the young fellow
laughingly requests one or two of his
friends TO lend their assistance, and with
their combined tugging and squeezing he
finally succeeds in buttoning the coat
All this for the sake of looks; comfort
has no place in the makeup of a West
Pointer; 1t is discipline and looks.''
1t does man good and a profession
also. according to DR.. Wilson H. Fitch,
of Pittsburg, who was seen ar the Ar
lington yesterday. to tell tales out OF
school Il suppose most people would be
surprised TO know how frightfuIIy baby
ish physicians act when they are them
selves attacked by sickness. and how
often they are the subject 10 fright as
to their own physical condition. OF
course. not all physicians are alike in this
respect: there are just about enough ex-
ceptions to prove the rule.
"SOme time ago one of the greatest sur
geons in the West suffered excruciating
agony. From what? A gumboil. 1 heard
that he was raging around. and I ran
against him in the hospitals, where he
has one of the largest clinics in America.
When I saw him coming along / whipped
out a small lancet and suggested that ne
allow me to lance the boil. He consented.
and stood ii braYely until he saw the
glimmer of the blade, when ne drew back
hurriedly, and the great master fairly
took to his heels, shouting back at me
that he would let nature take its course
That gumboil was never lanced.
Another case. A very noted specialist
notified five Of his brother practitioners
that he was in immediate danger and re-
oueSted their rrasenca al his res;5aroo