The Washington herald., 1919-11-06
NEW YORK CITY
By O. o. McNTYRE

New York. Nov. 5.-The busiest
man IN New York is Tim. the wig
wag man at Herald Square. It IL
Tins job to see that the street carr
coming in six different directions
every. few minutes do not dispute
the right of way with each other.
He keeps them running smoothly by
waving red and white flags from
morning until evening.
watched Tim the other morning
with more or less fascination for, q
half hour. Then walked up Broad
way and saw a curb-stone photog-
rapher. Jobs patience seems
trifiing in comparison with these
Inherent camera men. They put up
their camera early every morning
and just stand until sun down.
In all the years I have watched
them I never seen them take q pho
tograph. They very seldom even So
licit business. And when they do
attempt to make a sale they assume
all the burden. They take the
photograph. your address and the
sale is conditioned - that word
ing the photos.
They're a queer looking lot, too.
I wonder what lies behind their
bored Indifference to everything.
They generally wear brown or
black derbies, blue serge suits.
shiny in spots. but well creased. and
a cigarette. rolled by hand, hangs
loosely from rather sagging lips.
One or two of them 1 have seen
also cling to the ancient custom Of
carrying the comb in the vest
pocket. They never smile. They
resent any show of friendliness. I
have tried to talk to nearly all of
them in the Tenderloin district.
They judged me queer and turned
away.
A Central ONCE man tells me that
/ so far as he knows they are not
For some man-Irvin Cobb or Harry
there is a chance to show, as
through a glass. the soul of the
Inherent photographer. the beatings
of his heart, to make plain for SIM
pie fellows like me the inner and
hidden meaning of his reserve-his
mask of Indifference.
My mornings are practically vast
ed these days looking for high
flown ads in the want columns OF
the morning periodicals.. They
abound with them and interpret the
new order of things better than pc
dantic pifhe in the serious publica-
tions. I quote from a recent ad in
the Tribune:
Chambermaid - Lady, beautiful,
sweet tempered. lovely voice. relat-
ed to best families of Hunters
Point; might accept a job as lady
chambermaid il properly ap-
house. No work only object. Wages
be damned. Will grant interview in
foyer OF Ritz-Carlton. Don't try to
phone; service rotten. Bridget.
Prohibition whiskey so-called
does strange things. A dapper
young man with a 2.75 per cent
mustache. a gaudy wrist watch and
all scented up with cologne amazed
a group OF visitors at the Bronx
zoo the other day by climbing over
into the polar bear cage and tweak-
ing the tail Of a ferocious polar.
When keepers finally got him out
with hook poles he remarked that
a drink of whiskey he had pro-
cured from a sort of blind tiger In
the Bronx had made him go in for
his geological atrocity.
William Mason has left Sing Sing
at the age of IS years-penniless
and friendless-and convinced that
crime doesn't pay. He has been a
criminal for fifty years. He left
the prison because of the laws
mercy. being too old to do further
harm. Always when at liberty. po-
lice were shooting at him. battering
him into insensibility. and of the
past forty years thirty have been
spent behind prison walls.