The Washington herald., 1912-10-15
GOSSIP The FAMOUS
OLD CITY OF WARSAW

. x o. I - :
The unexpected news from q. Psesrs-
burg that owing to rsvolutionasy
movsment for . constitution carried on
In al sscrscy At warsaw. but which has
been discovered by agents OF the Ct.
Petersburg secret ssrvtsa the capital city
Of the former Kingdom Of Poland has
been placed under stric4 martial law.
sounds rather ridieulous 70 one who
knows that there nsvsf has been time
within the past two centuries almost
when Warsaw has not been under mar
tial law.
Warsaw! To most persons the vsry
name spells terror, recalling from the
realm Of the past some OF the most
gruesome happenings Of history. The
visitor arrives at the place certain Of
hating It and sure Of being Glad when
the time comes to leave It again. But
he has reckoned without the spell Of
Warsaw. the strange. almost uncanny.
fascination which this city. with its dual
personality, throws over those who are
within its gatea- It 10 q place OF tragic
memories. Of wrongs. Of frustrated hopes.
Nowhere. perhaps. does the spirit Of sup
pressed nationality burn with more vivid
hame: yet nowhere 10 that hre 20 futile.
Soldiers Of the Car march the streets:
the people know that the guns of the
fortress overlooking the vistula River
plateau are trained on the town. missiles
which in a short hour could lay all War
saw In ashes and ruins. Ever since the
revolution which gave Russia a constitu-
ton Tin name II not In reality. a revolu-
ton which In Warsaw claimed 1000 dead.
the city has been under martial law.
Yet Warsaw IL a city Of infinite charm.
one OF the bost beautiful one Of the
gayest places In all Europe, and her
life goes with the merriest swing Now
and again she frowns perhaps. but most
ly she smiles like q coquette pleased
with her own beauty. And just at the
present moment, after the heat Of sum-
mer. she Is at her best. aliuring with a
potent spell that is strongly exercised
and quickly felt. All the world has
heard Of Berlin's 'lindens" But Il is
surprising why the fame Of warsaw's
chestnut trees has not been heard abroad.
These days they are at the height Of their
glory, huge masses of thickets. loveliest
foliage. to which only painter and poet
could do full Justice. Berlin and Paris
would envy the Dolina Szwajcarska uhe
Swiss Valley. beautiful concert gar
den. delightfully."- laid out, in a ring OF su-
perb chestnut trees.
Many Of the streets and squares are
richly adorned with them. They make
the long boulevard. formed by the Alicia
Ujazdowska and the Alicia Belwederska.
a combination Of London's Park Lane and
Rotten Row and the Avenue des Champs
ElvCAna nf po oria of Hha vir
turesaue thoroughfares Of Europe. These
magnificent trees are seen at their best.
perhaps. in the lovely park Lazienki.
where they cluster thickly round the de-
serted Palace Of the Kings Of Poland.
make shady bowers. charming alleys, and
border a miniature Sepentine Lake.
But Warsaw also Is a city OF violent
contrasts. of startling ironies. Its people
are either of the aristocracy or Of the
working class. There is no solid middle
class. no real democracy. There Is gres<t
wealth, lavishly displayed. and beside II
grinding poverty. People are either very
happy or discontented. Extremes every
where! The roubles Of the people have
been spent to raise magnificent churches
with gilded domes and to adorn them with
costly art. Yet how remote the churches
are from the people. How little these
gorgeous edifices really mean to them,
On their steps half-starved. barefoot
children play: in the shade beggars crave
kopecks tpenries) Of the passers-by. The
wealth that 1t took to gid that great
dome or to deck this interior has been
misdirected.
which provide all the luxuries of the
modern world. Eauipages OF the most
handsome description are to be seen dur
Ing the day about town. The latest auto
mobiles bump over the iron road back
OF the streets. together with the lumber
ing "droshky' (cab). which will take YOU
anywhere for a quarter. Here the Rue
de la Paix. or Bond Street. is Wierzbowa.
where the wealthiest will find all they
want. In the Marszalkowska and in the
Nova SWAT (New Street, there are many
handsome and up-to-date establishments.
and shopping there Is quite as much a
pleasure-and quite as great an expense
as in Paris. London, Vienna. or Ber-
lin.
Old Warsaw is vanishing. The small.
and often picturesque houses. which have
served for so long. rapidly are giving
place to vast blocks of flats. built in a
heavy Germanic style Of architecture.
And apartment house life changes the
habits and temperament Of people. II
drives them more and more into restau-
rants and cafes to find a substitute for
the pleasures which a home in the mod
ern fiat does not provide. And. besides.
the Pole is Of plea asure-loving nature.
easy-going. and easily pleased. Too Of
ten. indeed, does he put pleasure before
the more serious things of life. This
coupled with an impulsive. quarrelsome
disposition went far to lose him his in
dependence as a nation. a Pole with a
ffty-ruble note in his pockete goes to a
restaurant and drinks champagne with
his friends.
Warsaw tends to its business till 6
o'clock then the people begin to enjoy
themselves. Cafes and restaurants are
we'll filled until long after midnight. The
average Pole is not a business man. The
German and the Jew possess the COM
mercial talent and do the great bulk Of
the country's trade. But the Pole has no
equal in the art Of enjoying himself in
restaurant and cafe, in theater and caba-
ret. Sports are only just beginning to
find a foothold here. A few of the