The Washington herald., 1918-08-20

New York, Aug. 2Q-The hottest day
in New York's history illustrated how
100000 people can swelter in a haze
Of humidity and still keep their dis
positions unspoiled. New York
sprawled out on fire escapes. parks.
doorsteps, porches and roofs. to say
nothing of the thoughtful S-year-old
boy the police found stark naked
asleep on a cake OF ice in front Of
a saloon.
The cramped East Side. with its
custom Of accepting extreme weather
as philosophically as possible. re-
fused TO go indoors at all. Its maze
of sidewalks. cutters. alleyways and
streets was alive with men, women,
children and babies-who did not try
to sleep. but merely tried to keep
each others spirits from dropping.
A crusty old millionaire crawled out
of his canopied bed along when dawn
was flashing acros the horizon. and
was found asleep in his pink silk
pajamas with his head in his hands
along a Fifth aveune curb.
In the public squares and small
breathing spots ii was as IL an army
of migrating families had simply
halted there and bivouacked for the
night. But there was good natured
bantering and a pitiable effort to help
the other fellow.
The Bowery proved a thoroughfare
of suffering for both man and beast.
So many truck horses fell Frustrated
that an East Side boy. on hearing of
II, yelled to a companion: Say,
Emil, let's go over to the Bowery and
watch the horses fall dead"
Perhaps the best wheeze Of the tor
rid day came out OF Park Row where
the newspapermen stuck to their
posts. striped to the waist, and try
ing to make the best of a IuckIess
situation. The telegraph editor on
one paper picked up the early morn
ing edition of a rival paper and saw
a glaring error on the first page.
oh. well.'' he sighed. 1T isn't the
sheet. 1t is the stupidity"
Perhaps the most enviable creature
In all New York was Rawksha, the
polar bear In the Bronx Zoo. Rawksha
spent the night absolutely encased in
ice save for few holes for air to
trickle through. Last year they near
ly lost Rawksha during the hot
weather. so they took no chances this
day.
Down in Chinatown the derizens
slept in the middle of the streets.
Tongs forget their wars and min
SIed freely. On Broadway the
crowd was in fine fettIe and milIed
about with plenty of facetious per-
slnage to keep in good humour.
Reywood Bround. who went over
with the first Pershing troops. was
speaker at a green room frolic
the other night. He told a colorfuI
taie OF mule whacker on the
French front who got lost one night
with load of ammunition and
somehow slipped past the sentry
ana was blithely driving over No
Mans Land"
The sentry finally espied him and
IN wild excitment rushed out and
waived him back. Man." whisper
ed the sentry, you are driving
right into the German trenches. For
GODS sake turn hack quick"
The driver. in wonderment, shout
ed: How the hell did get herr? -
The sentry appalled, said in a whis-
per: Don't speak out loud. whisper
do you hear me-whisper"'
Ihere was a snort of disgust
Wshiper hell! I've got to turn four
mules around"
sam Bernard, who is himself a
Jew. delights in telling Hebrew
stories. His latest one concerns two
colored girls in a millinery shop
One was trying on a highly colored
! Dit OF head-gear and admiring her.
self in the mirror. Finally she
turned to her friend: Liza how yo
all lax this hat?"
The other studied It carefully fol
several seconds. Finally she said
i doan' care for it much, Mandy, II
! makes You look a little Jewish"