The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1914-01-23

city in those days: people who wanted
to make money and people who want
ed to spend 1t. 1t was the first kind
that kept the place crowded like
present-day cut rate Greenland sum-
mer excursion, but it was the second
crowd that paid for the lights. The
lights were most of them down there,
Charley, under that long passenger
lane you see below you. They called
it Broadway, because it had nothing
to do with the straight and narrow
path Now We haye lights guide US
around the heavens, but there was
nothing like that in old New York.
Then they had them to trim the spend
ers by.
eve heard of that place they used
to call Broadway" said the superin-
tendent Lillian Russell sings a song
about it at the z. & T. Aerial theater."
II know" said the captain, "and she
was just as beautiful and youthful
then as she is now. She was one Of
the things that helped make New York
the hypnotic-magnet it was. Every
laundress in the country said to her.
self at night: Lily Russell went to
New York, and look at her now. Why
can't go and do the same?"
There was a place called Coney
island, too, wasn't there?' said the SUI
perintendent.
"Yes., Coney island was the most
crowded spot on the globe in summer
time. On a Sunday it was packed
tighter than Manhattan island. The
New Workers. idea of change of
scene was to get out of one crowd into
bigger one. When he was damned
in so tight that his lungs couldn't work
he was happy. The straight front cor
set was invented in New York at this
time for obvious reasons"
'The people coming into New York
from the rest of the country must
have felt strangely out of place"
unused the superintendent.
"They did," said the captain, "if
they came from the United States.
The visitor from Kalamazoo would try
to get chummy with his neighbor in
the theater. Kalamazoo the neigh
Dor would say. It's in Africa, isn't it?
No, Michigan ooh, yes, Michigan.
That's one of the western states,
what?' The best part of it was that
the other fellow has just got in from
Muncie Ind, the day before. But
suppose you came from London-Ohi
| nhor Of f,0.
ally. New York always felt ashamed
of the fact that it was located so near
to America. English styles used to
come out there before they did in
London. When the president of the
United States paid the town a visit
they sent a traffic policeman to the
depot to see that his taxi-cab didn't
break any speed laws. When any
member of English royalty deigned to
come over the mounted police were
swept away like chaff by the surge
of free-born New Workers rushing for
ward to get in the moving picture of
Crowds Waiting Arrival of Duke of
Con-Naught.' If the royal machine
would hit citizen the man would
die happy. Such was the patriotism
Of that great city at that time"
Didn't they ever go out and see the
rest of the country" said the superin-
tendent.
"Only when they had to. The only
time they enjoyed themselves then
was when they stepped up and regis
forad from Mour VOrly nifv Tho roct nj
the time they were wishing they were
back in the crowd"
The superintendent stared musingly
down into the silent space below.
"There must have been something
about the town, after all, to make such
strong attraction" said he.
"There was" said Captain Mac
Manus about five million people"
Copyright. by W.. G. Chapman)