The Washington herald., 1919-03-07


New York, March 6.-strong. red
biooded men are taking to after
noon tea. Not since Mr.. woolworth
brought one of his five and ten-ceht
shops to Fifth avenue or since Mrs.
Herman Oelrich's town house was
converted into q place for mere
tredesmen to barter or hawk wares
has the avenue seen anything like
what 1t saw the other afternoon.
Out OF Mary Elizabeth's white
and black chintz tea room there
stumbled or rather walked with the
rolling gait Of the seaman q big,
bull-necked, red-faced. beetle
browed COB. His blouse, opened at
the chest, showed a heavy growth
OF hair.
lie could be pictured entering a
sawdust place. rapping on the bar
and laundering out an order for
six jiggers of rum--but boldly en-
terins q tea place where female up
lifters, society debutantes and 9TH
ers of their ilk sip oolone seems TO
put it mildly incongruous.
Investigation reveals the fact
that tho tea rooms along the. ave-
nue. are crowded with young Amer
lean soldiers and sailors who de-
light in pouring and drinking tea.
They got the habit in England and,
like all vices. 1t is hard to shake.
Most of them seem to be abso-
lutely shameless about IT. Enter
Ing the front doors boldly and
stumbling over Pomeranians and
Spltz lap dogs with easy noncha-
lance.
Three o'clock is the paded hour In
New York. The tea rooms fill an
aching void. If one should wsite
q history of the popularity of the
three o'clock tea, the thesis could
be best explained in the language
Of n Wall Street stenographer:
Gee, it's fierce at three p. M. Ger
tie. when the shipping clerk doesn't
love you, and the gum has lost all
its flavor"
At one tea room the other after
noon: Sinclair Lewis. the writer.
who just now has a new play on
Broadway; Wilson Misner, also a
playwright: James Montgomery
Flagg. and many other of the town
notables. Seeing Sinclair Lewis is
remindful of the fact that he comes
from Sauk Center, MINI. He is
not ashamed OF 1t, either.
When Col. Bill Hayward arrived
home with his fighting sons o guns
all of en- black as coal and every
one decorated by France-some of the
best humorous stories of the war
were written. 1t gavo men like
Frank O'Malley. Of the Sun, Eddie
Sullivan. of the Herald, Don Clark,
Of the World. and Martin Green a
chance to write their best The
stories centered around fighting
Henry Johnson, a little sawed-off
black man.
johnson killed four Germans with
a bolo knife in hand to hand
fight and Killed thirty-six others with
hand grenades in one single encoun-
ter. When he walked the medals on
his chest cllnked like a performance
of the Swiss Bell ringers.
The troopers had a rough trip home
and all were sea sick except one. He
lOnged for ham three times a day.
He rushed in from deck one after
noon and called out:
Hey. you Nose. Come out here.
We'se passin' n ship"
To which Nose. who was almost
green with sickness. replied: ship?
Huh! Don't you call me until we'se
passin' q tree"
Seen and heard around the town:
The new Pennsylvania hotel will not
page anyone unless he Is registered
there. Charles Darnton. the critic.
going to a first night In a low
necked hack Influenza has given
three understudies their chance on
Broadway and all will be starred as
a result. 4 Westerner taking a silver
flask from his pocket, drinks a gen.
erous swallow in a hotel lobby. Edna
Ferber serving as a newsstand girl in
hotel TO get color for story. An
angry theatergoer kicking n ticke
speculator out of a foyer while the
crowds Cheercd