Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1916-06-25
BERLIN PEOPLE, BECOME WEALTHY,
 SPEND LAVlSRLY
Restaurants Crowded AL ways; Prices Higher But
 Money Seems Plentiful.

In hlS direction Sufflced to evoke It
 again.
 The passerby, however, grew curl
 ous, and made a trip through the
 better parts of the city. This is what
 he found:
 Three better-class cafes with from
 ten to thirty persons standing out
 side or in the entrance-way. waiting for table to become vacant.
 All other wine or beer restaurants visited so full that only in one could & free table for two persons be found. Two others whsre the dooskeeper an nounced in advance: "alles besetzt.' '
 The observer had for months en- countered difficulty in finding a table in leading restaurant having more than 800 tables. In one of the places Unter den Linden the head waiter had been graciously pleased to let him dine on his promise not to re- tain the table longer than an hour. In another Inter den Linde restau- rants he had found that it was all but impossible to eat without reserv- ing a table in advance And these two places are the most expensive ones in all Berlin.
 Clby OI Sp6uUeTSs
 The condition Is symptomatic. War. which brings poverty and misery to so many, brings wealth to others. Many persons who had been struggl- ing along with barely more than the necessaries of life for years have grown wealthy almost over night. And they are spending, spending lav ishly, spending carelessly. Berlin has become the City of tSpenders.
 The crowds that fill the better class places go there in spite of the fact that everything costs more than before the war. Beer is dearer. Even coffee has increased in price. The still considerable stocks of the highest grade French champagnes are find ing bigger sale than ever before. in the face of price increase of four to five marks "a bottle. A prominent German champagne firm recently de- clared dividend thrice greater than that of the preceding year. It was only one dividend contributed by the spsnders.
 Caviar cost from IS to 24 marks a pound in peace times in Berlin. Until the recent prohibition of the further import of non-indispensable articles put an end to the business, vast quan- titles c,f Astrachan caviar were being sold for prices upwards of AZ marks. Similar conditions existed as to other luxaries.
 Dealers in fine porcelaine, Orien- tai rugs, bronzes and antiques gen erally are doing a flourishing busi- ness. There are almost no really fine rugs left among the stocks of the Berlin dealers. None can be secured by import, and the speMders have bought up all that were on hand. A Berlin resident went recently 10 one of the leading auction-houses in the hope of securing an old Turkish rug at a reasonable price. It sold for twenty per cent more than would have been realized in peace times. The same was true of other rugs, Of in fact. of nearly everything offered.
 Jewellers FlOurishing.
 The most fashionable jeweler in Berlin said to the Associated Press 
 ssWe are having great difficulty in keeping abreast of orders. This is, of course, due in part to lack of but it is due also to an amount of bushes which-apart from the tourist trade, which is naturally | altogether lacking-is probably | higher than it was before the war. People of class who never came here | before are now buying. and buying i good and expensive articles. have h mind typical case.
 "Before the war certain woman l used to come in once or twice year and buy some trifling article, rarely paying more than a hundred marks She bargained inveterately, always to have the price reduced, and none of us liked to wait on her. She came in last week and asked to be shown some pearl necklaces. Sae selected one for thirty thousand marks and paid for it in cash with out bargaining. Her husband is leather dealer.
 Another woman of a similar type aas made several large purchases rom us. Before the war her hus- band had a small machine shop, em- ploying three or four hands. He is low running day and night with sixty and has made two million parks.
 The leading German diamond min as company will pay for 1915 a 45 ier cent dividend against S5 for 1914 Ilthough cut off from its mines in 3erman South Africa. The sale at in- 'S1ased prices of it's stock on hand in 36Ylnany iustifies this company of- fetols said.
 More Money for Pleasure.
 Tie spen4ers have been buying IiS6os. Their children are taking T {1ao lessons. Fashionable tailors 'flS making evening clothes for men 7c never before felt the need of 22siia .cy could not afford them if they
 Y mild winter hes not been able < MT 2e& ee&ioas!y the bus!ness ot the 3 Sso4;sted press representative r {2 ke ihSea Sf tAe largest theatre | S9pS6y ;S Fe,.;1. 35oyt co1di- ], |6|Is n 1s theatsics! world. |: