The chronicle=news., 1912-11-27
JAN|T0RS
ARE CARRYING
CANES

Samuel Ghle. formerly OF the BTltisH
army. but for the last four yeais OF
J New York and having some acquain-
tance with other American cities. has
remarked ON tn. habit of cane-carry-
Ing in this city.
II have noticed" he said to u re-
porter that In no other American
city is the cane worn so universally
as In New York. In Boston. where
everyone tries TO be so proper aside
from few callow college students
the cane Is worn almost exclusively
by men OF property or affairs. or who
move in the op?er circle Of society.
But In New York. the cane is not
badge OF distinction by any manner
of means. even snw my janitor
wearing one last Sunday. Young
squirts who spend their days clerk
Ing In haberdasheries stroll out on
Sunday afternoons logged out like
chappics. with canes dangling In
their hands. throwing the bluff. us
you Americans call II. that they are
OF quality.
lone youn. chap told me that all
young man In New York needs to
give class Is n shave. n shine. clean
collar and cane.
"'Pon my honor. | almcst believe
him. Imagine It's psychologist
II have noticed one young chap In
particular. Mornings and evenings
he passes my residence on his way to
and from his work. don't know
what h. does. or where he works, but
ordinaiIly he walks along quite mod
ostiy. dressed sometimes almost
shabbily. But Sundays he Is dif-
fcrent chap. He comes jauntily down
the street. swinging yellow cane.
and You should see the change In the
fellows whole bearing. II his name
was Vanderbilt he couldn't act the
part better. You'd Imagine. really.
that he's Just pulled through n
whoppinE blk business deal or had
made n cleanup In Wall street. He
lifts his chin ou, OF Its customary
resting place In his collar and sticks
I: out and up In III. air. He throws
the shoulders back. and whenever an
automobile passes he gives II n bored
look rs much rs to ray. 'Phsaw. !
have a dozen Of those In my garage.
When Monday came again he leaves
his cane At homo and becomes an or
dinnry mortal again.
81 Imagine those chaps make quite
Il hit with their girls when they take
their canes out waikin; with them.
Perhaps II helps them by giving their
hands something to hold to hide their
lnervouEness. I shouldn', bc surprised
II cares have given many young
New York swain courage to pop the
question.
"Of course every one expects act
ors to swing n cane: It's part OF the
traditions OF Thcspian's street ap-
pcarancc. you know. fur trimmed
coat and a cane and all that. Ny
word! Broadway fairly briytles with
canes when these actor chaps come
out for an airing. Perhaps all these
New York young chaps-clcrks and
the likc-hayc upcd the Thesp'aIs.
hoping they'd be taken for one In
their hours off. Clever idea. what?
1--WE noticed another odd thing
an extraordinary thing. even. with
all the styles and sizes Of canes to
choose from there are n horrible lot
o: men who show atrocious taste In
selecting their sticks. with the result
that they only make themselves ap-
rear highly ridiculous.
"Ive seen a mountain Of man
six feet high and twice that around
him, dwadling along with n ridicu-
lous little swayger stick. only about
half Il cane you know, looking like
an elephant twiddl!ng straw,
while ctruttirg beside him would be
an odd bit of man brandishing n
huge yellow bamboo cane almost as
big as himself.
"You know | think one can tell a
mans whole makeup by the stick he
wears. Leaving out the giants and
the piamies. and considering only
men CT the ordinary type and stat
urc, a common-sensc plain. service
able cane usually means a character
that corresponds. A man who selects
the slim straw of n stick that would
break II he switched his legs with 1t
usually is none too stable himself;
while the man who lugs ponderous
club. heavy and bludgeon-likc, usual
ly is bludgeon-like in character. And
you can follow this line OF deduction
for yourself into the ramifications of
scrolled and Sudden trimmings and
the like.
| "Yes. it is plain to me that New
York's cane wenrcrs are to be found
not only among the classes but among
the asses, too. Canes, OF course. are
part of city life, and the bigger the
city the more extensive the practice
of wearing them This would partly
explain why canc-wearing is more
common In New York than In other
| Americnn citing. Now York Is the