The Washington herald., 1918-04-19

Special Correspondent Of The Washington Herald.
New York. April ls.-Times Square.
as the thesters gush forth their hordes.
is a maze OF complex activity. The
revolving doors are spinning and the
cafes and bars and the soda fountains
are packed with the suburbanites who
are being refreshed before the dive
into the swirling caverns Of the suo-
way.
The nightly panorama about the drug
stores show every type Of New York
ers. The magazine cover girl and the
man with the monocle. The pale
young man with the furtive manner,
who whispers his order to the clerk
and is unnerved when refused. Soiled
doves buying cheap perfumes. and The
stylish flaneurs trying to flirt with
anybody who is willing.
The drug stores about Times Square
are rare Institutions, and bring forth
the inquiry, when is a drug store not
, drug store? The answer being, when
il is a restaurant. One Of these hybrid
restaurants Is thinking OF adding
corned beef and cabbage at the foun-
tain.
A flapper can start dinner al the
front door with an apple from a crate.
Then the poor little flapper car edge
to the fountain where the menu cIn-
braces everything from tomato soup
to scrambled eggs. On Friday the piece
de resistance is sardines. One Iuay
buy shoe trees, safety razors. diction-
aries, toys. monographs, and even
neckties. They fill prescriptions. but
seem rather indifferent stout them.
On the sidewalk is the straw blonde
with her heel run over. chewing gum,
and the man from Cos cob in a cellu-
loid collar. blinking at the wriggly
electric signs. Newsboy- are shouting
the early editions OF the morning
papers.
taxIcdb loaded vita buoyantly
bunned joy-riders flashes b.. defying
the traffic semaphore aad laughing
while they flirt with death. The Child
restaurants-called the Cafe des En-
fants by Broadwayites--are now
Gotham's night resorts. other places
are closed, and Let's 50 TO Child's'
supplants the pre-war cry, Let's go
to ReCtors'"
The white-tiled cafes are filled with
their fashiona bly-g -gowneG women. with
the liveried chauffeurs waiting outside
in purring limousines. Big brokers
are there talking their financial lingo.
Over alone in one corner is the girl
whose fellow has broken lis date. she
eats slowly. with her eyes constantly
on the door. She is blonde. He
may have changed to brunette. Such
is life in Times Square.
Al Woods has a knack at ,piGrams
They are characteristic OF A, who
expresses himself with burgeois
bluntness upon all occasions. He has
a show that is making hit out in
Chicago. Woods has octn hard put
, most Of the time finding words to tell
his friends how big a success it really
is. The other day the ninetyfirst
friend stopped him to offer his con-
gratulations. They tell ne it is i'm
mense, AL" he said.
Say. kid" said AL. in ais own in
imitable fashion. that show is going
to stop the war
There is a practical joker who IRE
Guents a Fifth avenue club who will
SO TO any lengths to put over a tol:C.
I He was seated in a leather chair talk
! ing 10 an acquaintance. A victim Of
one of his recent jokes came along.
saw him and took the red-hot end Of
his cigar and began stealthily 10 push
it close to the joker's nsnd TO make
him jump.
The Joker by a quick glance saw
what was being doEe. He steeled him
self for suffering. Closer and closer
came the red-hot cad OF the cigar.
The friend, intent upon his work, in
tended to draw it ava at the slightest
vince.
But the cigar did not make him
bulge. The flesh was being burned
and the amateur Joker grew pale,
threw tae cigar away and exclaimed:
MY Heavens, he's got a wooden
hand" Then the practical Joker went
to a doctor and had his hand fixed up.