The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1911-01-10
LIDS.

The styles of lids change. Now
and then, in some places, the close
fitting lid is the proper thing to
wharf.-the kind that fits tight and
snug and square. Then something
happens and the lids begin to tilt.
That is what happened in St.. Paul
on New Years eve. The Capitol
city presumed to have a lid which
goes on duty at II o'clock every
night and all day Sunday.
1t is notorious that, while other
cities and towns of the state are en-
deavoring to obey the state liquor
laws, St. Paul all the time, and Min
neapolis most of it, pays about as
much attention to the Sunday closing
law as Jumbo, the giant elephant,
does to a baby flea.
New Years eve in St. Paul is
glowing example and in this instance
it was not the lowly saloon keeper
and his persistent patrons who were
the lawbreakers. No, indeed. 1t
was the "swells both men and wo-
men Of the upper ten, who purchased
liquor and it was the fashionable
cafes and leading hotels that sold it,
and said liquid refreshments were
not of the 'scuttle of suds'' variety
but rather the 81 a crack kind.
Of coure the sparkling beverage
was purchased to properly Cd cele-
brate the birth of 1911 and there
was, to be sure much merriment, but
lid broken by joyful jewellers is just
as badly fractured as if it were
kicked into oblivion by sturdy
drinker of alcohol who lends his as
sistance in denuding our forests. .
But the lifting of the lid was per-
haps not ssEhe most noteworthy %
the st. Paul celebration. 1t reveal
ed rather an astounding social con-
dition.
Men of the town, leaders in bust
ness, financiers and others, clad in
a.; ~, ,tc
which included fist fights in promi-
nent cafes and continued their "mirth
making in other riotous ways in
prominent hotels, the particular re-
voting feature of their escapades
being the part played by women of
standing, although many of them
couldn't stand early New Years
morning. Those women made the
night ring with song and jest and
many a silken gown is still at the
cleaning establishment on an unsuc-
cessful mission to have wine stains
removed.
This, of course, is speaking in gen.
eralities, and dosen't have the same
effect that it would have had could
the skeptic who reads have been
present. About the time he had
seen an deliberately gOwned woman
mount the table at one of the lead
ing hotels in St. Paul and there drink
to the health of the New Year, and
could have heard the continual crack
of the champagne bottles, and could
have seen a certain gentleman jump
through the bass drum of the high
priced orchestra and then prance
around like a clown at the circus to
the edification of the -"smart set" and
could have seen a certain business
man scrawl his name to check for
SOB to pay for property, broken,
said skeptic would begin to under
stand that st. Paul society folks do
not intend that Chicago and New
York shall do all the foolish things
that are to be done on New Years
eve
But getting back to the lid ques-
ton again. It is only fair to the
cafe proprietors to say that, unless
you had your order in earlier than
II o'clock, all intoxicants were
served in tea cups.
The more you know about the
cities, the better Bemidji looks-lid
or no lid.