The Washington herald., 1919-11-30
$3.50 STOCKINGS
GOTHAM LATEST.
Other Sprightly Gossip Of
Dry But Still Giddy
New York.
BY o. o. MCINTYRE.

And they are being sold with rare
ease to Christmas buyers. II Is said
that one famous theatrical angel
purchased a dozen pair for his bright
particular star.
Perfumery at s75 bottle Is dis
| played in those gorgeous perfumery
shops and at one quaint little mems
haberdashery silk necktics are going
at s12 each. Any Fifth avenue sales
men will tell you that the silk worms
are on strike. They have been
touched by the Bolsheviki atmo-
sphere and practically blighted-the
little dears. Consequently anything
with silk is sky high.
The Christmas rush Is already on.
The stores are crowded and the
curbs are lined with those queer mis-
fits who peddle everything from
shimmying Teddy Bears to near
pearl necklaces in satin boxes.
Manhattan Is at its best around the
holiday season. At night the theater
goers in their handsome plumage fill
the streets. New highly colored
| lights prick out against the night
sky. People rub elbows in the crush
good naturediy and even the traffic
COPS smile.
Christmas Is big time for the
traffic cops. for II is then that men
whose cars violate traffic laws all
the year make II up In handsome
| tips. The elevators are trimmed in
holly and the boxes put up by the
runners for gratuities Jingle with
coins. The elevator men always go
out early after their Christmas gifts.
And on the East Side. too. the
Christmas spirit has full play. There
are all kinds of entertainments
dances and masquerades. II puts a
few hours Of great splendor into the
/ lives of toiling young men and
women. The laundry girl reiCns for
one night as Marie Antoinette and
the little wrapper girl as the fated
Queen of Scots.
The young East Side girls forget
/ their plain dresses and the wearing
click Of the cash trolley for they are
| transformed into bewitching ladies'.
The youthful truck drivers. freight
handlers and other two listed work
men get a chance to crack the jokes
| they've saved up from constant at
! tendance at burlesQue shows
! 1t is a happy spirit that comes to
New York at Christmas time indeed.
People forget the hurly-burIy lives
they lead and become more human.
Employers OF unskilled labor COM
planned this week about the sudden
rush OF their workmen to st. Louis.
where the lid is off for 275 per cent
beer. The weak, watery beer served
| in New York, il seems. is a poor sub
stitute and even 275 brew Is well
comed-so much so that they will
leave good old New York to get It.
The few remaining beer saloons are
doing very little business and the
newspapers report that the workmen
have been doing their own brewing
at home but live in fear of revenue
agents. Beer is lost thirst shaker
Men who were satisfied with 1t arc
turning to the boot-leggers as an un-
happy substitute But whisky is
easy to eet-such as it is. One New
York newspaper tells of new drink
invented during the week-alcohol
camphor and cream. 1t is said to
have a more powerful kick than the
old Bowery "third rail- whisky
John Gre CORY. former newspaper
man, who is now a Wall street plu-
tocrat, and a member of the firm of
Durell, Gregory and Company. with
offices in Wall street and also Oh
Fifth avenue, recently purchased a
fine home in one of the exclusive
sections of Westchester County. He
has a double garage and-whisper
it softly-a concrete cellar which Is
off from the house. The other night
thieves broke down three locks and
through three doors to get into the
cellar. And all the night long the
garage was open with a French
limousine and a touring car ready
for almost any taker. II is a wag-
gish world, my masters.
Shortages of one thing and an
other have become common enough.
Coalless winters and sausageless
breakfasts are accepted philosophic-
ally. But when it is announced that
there is dearth of aspiring authors
and their great works that's
something to be shocked about.
Willing writers have always been
as productive and dependable as
that well-known mill which grinds
salt to keep the sea in good condi-
tion.
Postmen have for years been
bringing around to editorial doors a
thousand or so manuscripts daily,
and every evening the office boy nas
been starting the other 999 on the
return trip. Then came the morn
ing when the postman had only half
as many and so on till the time
when there was nothing but a pIc-
ture postal card for the steno-
grapher.
Why this terrible situation? C'est
la guerre? That's the dope. The
youth of the nation who did most
of the writing were in France. But
now the writing business is pick
ing up. But editors say that war
stories are barred. They want stories
with laughs. And they are hard to
find.
Arthur Hopkins audacious en-
ldeavor to stir up Sunday nights in
Manhattan by putting on some se-
rious Russian drama-solid and
gloomy stuff by Tolstoi and Gorki.
and no mere Chekov-will at least
cheer up the depressed and despair
ing. They find little enough in this
life since July to see them through
to the next evening. but if any
group of high-minded people begin
to work out a plan for a more per-
feet Sunday a great many whose
feet are aching to step into the
grave will be willing to stay on for
several more week-ends. If some
one will only begin to do for Sun
day what has been done for sucn
impersonal things as city zonins.
pure milk. child labor and the hat
pin nuisance. splendid changes will
come into this culture. Sad-hearted
New Workers, now more or less
suspicious that this winged gift of
life-as the optimists would call it
lis an old broken down dodo, will
think less harshly of what has been