The Washington herald., 1918-10-22

New York. Oct. 21-what a mighty
A Y. W. c. A. building Is to be
Chinatown has been introduced 10
adept at tossing and juggling four
steel needles. The little world
within-a-world at Chatham Square
has It's bridge parties. women
clubs and current topic societies.
The Rubberneck Wagon is re-
sponsible for Chinatown's change,
so the police say When sight
seers began TO thread their way
after the patteriug sandals through
drsgon-lit arcades and up pinchins
stairways, the poppy tendrils be-
gan to lose their hold.
The Chinatown OF old. black with
| crime and groggy with vice, is
dead. Then the skin was like
ashcn tissue paper and Transparent
fingers trembled and quivered like
aspen leaves. There were purple
| lips too parched to frame the plea
for deck of dope. yellow men
died with a shrek in their throats
| anu III NAAtAA NSNAs NsH'N
white men murdered for the privi-
| lege to forget.
There were CORY killings and
dark disappearances, and who
knows how many voluntary van
ishings into the solace or vile holes
OF the arcades. All the while the
air was hung with the grey veil
| of Illicit traffic in the thorn of the
laughing red poppy field.
But now there is great change.
1t settled into a more normal way
of living and swung into a social
life and fell into step with the
business activity of the Bowery.
With the coming OF the Rubeerneck
Wagon, Chinatown saw Amerioans
closeup. Old customs slipped away
An American church sprang up,
an American movie raised its head,
Chinatown newspaper hurried
to the press, a baseballe team of
young Chinese boys defeated neigis
/ borhood teams. Women of China
town went in for club life. Then
at last-Shades of Buddha.-came
| the Y. w. c. A.
The dives of Chinatown are be-
coming a memory. The police club
/ mas "TOuknk lnls II NANAa'
Loafing gangmen have been ousted.
The Chinese are never loafers. In
New York police annals only one
/ Chinaman was ever arrested for
vagrancy. He was character
half witted product of the opium
dens. And when he was arrested
$1,000 was found sewed in his
clothes.
Tho iconocla!sm Of this war mas
no limit New York was stunned by
the news that Delmonico's was IN
the hands OF a receiver. Dear OLD
DeFs"-as its patrons called twas
as rockribbed an institution as Man
haitian Island iiEclf No rival ca
tering TO the ep.cu-ean public ever
gained the same currency in the YER
beautiful feastinB
The failure of Delmonico's means
one thing only. and that is a revo-
luton in impending not only in the
gay life Cf New York. but in the
most orG.hary habits Of the people.
It Is becoming more the thing TO
dine TT home.
The manager OF Delmonico's told
of wedding parties bringing checks
as high as $4,000. The last we'd
ding at Delmonico's was a military
affair There were ten present at s.
plate and the only drink served
was a pitcher OF sweet cider at y. 70
| a pitcher.
The average New Yorker is slip
ping into one of those spick- and =
span centers of food distribution
where one just feeds, but doesn't feel
very proud OF himself. In the av-
erage chop house, inn. cabaret or
| lobster palace, he is and feels that
| he is given over 10 the cooks to be
| plucked as bare as the poor roast
! ing rooster. High prices have driven
customers away. 1t will be many
years before New York will return
( to the cafe life