The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-01-17

Cameron Mackenzie. in the Saturday
 Evening Post.
 17F one, could get up above New York,
 between midnight and 1 o'clock of ES any week day, and were able to look down into all the great cabarets ana the restaurants, visual impression Of this strange, overwhelming phenomenon of American life might be gained.
 One would see, through dazzle Of light, vast rooms, every room so filled with revelers that walters would be edg- ing sidewise round chair backs in order to make their way In some of the larger hotels there would be two or even three such rooms. Streams of people would be flowing in The spaces in the centers of the rooms would be walled ana wedged with thick masses of humanity.
 Leaving out of the reckoning all but the really sumptuously appointed places, there are operating in New York this season approximately 60 of these new wonder rooms of pleasure called cabarets. Practically without exception every one of them is nightly jammed to it's utmost 
 capacity. In many of them every table But that is a matter of the smallest moment to the managements, because for every table not claimeds by midnight eager applicants in abundance are pressed against the plush ropes. Anyone of sew eral of the larger establishments passes in as many as 750 persons every evening to sup and dance and spend. The enor- mity of the thing is amazing; so also is it's lavishness.
 To regale the crowds which have come to them the cabaret managers have out done themselves this winter Not only have the arts of wining and dining been developed to new point of sophistica- tion, but forms of entertainment more costly than ever have been introduced. One hotel pays a team of exhibition dancers $500 week, and it's nightly expense for music is $250. Several of the cabarets offer musical shows with large, marvelouslX costumed choruses and some of the highest priced come dians of the stage. Three or four skat- linz troupes, representing outlays of from $500 to 5000 a week, are performing in different of the night resorts.
 1 At one establishment an old world marionetse show has been introduced | with great success; it is only one feature 1 in a long programme, but it costs $2O0 a
 week. One of the very largest of the
 hotels has begun the transformation of the entire acreage of it's roof into three vast connecting rooms with glass parti- 1 tions between; in one room there will
 be genera, and exhibition dancing, in
 another ice skating. iIf~ third roller
 skating. More than $100,0O0 will have
 been spent upon this project. If the pro- prietor of any one of these places was convinced that his particular pleasure- hungry throng wanted all night grand opera, he would hire the most expensive singers in the world.
 l All of this is made possible not alone prodigality. White light prices have
 reached staggering level. It has be-
 come perfectly ridiculous for anyone
 even to consider entering most of the
 caburets this winter without leaving all thought of expense behind. Only a flushed carnival crowd that had cast
 away every consideration but good time would permit the imposition which the
 horde in the metropolis accepts with . ca. eless grin.
 Practically eAll of the big cabarets now
 levy in one form or another an admis-
 sion fee. These charges vary from 75
 cents to g. In some cases the sum is paid at the door; in others it is merely
 added to the patrons check. Thus two linen and a woman. upon entering one of
 these places upos sa evening not long