The Washington herald., 1920-03-30
New York City
By o. o. Mcintyre

New York, March 2s.--Two beauti-
full women. apparently living In the
very lap of luxury. were found In
Riverside Drive apartments. dying
from poison. self f-administered, last
week. They had been cast adrift by
two rich men who supported them in
elegance until the liaisons became
tiresome. Neither case was related
to tho other. but the simultaneous
actions have brought home again to
New York the tragic side Of the SAL
amander.
At the operas. smart cafes and in
the theater boxes these women are
always present. lighting boredom.
They are studies in upholstered ele-
gance, their furs and jewels coming
from the ends of the earth. Life Is
a dizzy whirl of the beauty parlors.
the shops and the restaurants.
Like birds OF a feather. they flock
together. looking upon their sisters
with a cynical smile. Each Is a ia
talist. They know that any day may
bring a sudden hiatus into their lives
perhaps n first-page scandal. IF
1t wasn't for our kind" said one In q
court trial recently, "the blackmail-
ing type of detective agencies would
go out of business"
Their names are always assumed.
and under these names they have
open accounts at the biggest shops.
They are rarely seen with male es-
corts. Now and then one revolts-
goes back to the simple life, marries
and Is happy. At fantastically
brilliant celebration of the New Year
attended by a coDglomeration repre-
senting every grade of society, a
startlingly beautiful woman arose
from a table.
She was like a flower. all perfume
and softness and color. for her career
had not yet stamped itself on her
face. "I am leaving New York to-
morrow" she said. Drink toast
to a girl who wants to be good-who
Is going to forsake pearls and limou-
sines for a little real love and pow
erty."
A man at the table paled A CLEAN
of something like tragedy passed
between them. She smiled at him
family. and his eyes remained fixed
upon her as though he were looking
upon a ghost. And at last he arose.
bowed very gravely without a smile
and departed. Every one under
stood the drama in, real life. And
the girl kept her word, and the man
who told me the story told me that
he happens to know that she is very
happy.
CanfieId's gambling house, hard by
DeImonico's, has been turned into a
restaurant-one of those small
French affairs with low lights and
two-colored decorations. 1t Is called
the Trianon. The old Garfield deco
rations are to remain. even to the
famous lambs that were carved. iron
ically perhaps, into the woodwork.
There is nothing for the men to do
these Saturday afternoons but go on
a shopping jag" The new indoor
sport Is the natural reaction that
LAYS hold of men who have been
working hard all week and are turn
ed loose at noon on Saturday with
plump envelopes. They relieve the
desire to cavort by buying lot of
things they need and a lot they do
not need.
There was almost a scene in q
haberdasher's shop the other Satur-
day. when a citizen offered to treat
a friend by buying him a green neck
tic when the latter was just recover
ing from an attack OF jaundice. In
stead of staggering home with list
to the portside, the delayed husband
now arrives with a load of shirts.
collars and ties.
Little Irving Berlin is going to
build a theater. He has bought the
plot in the Roaring Forties and let
the contract. 1t will be called the
Music Box. And to those who pity
the children of the slums think for
moment of Little Irvie. For even In
nv time l can remember when he
sang songs and thumped piano in
a Chinatown resort-Nigger Mike
nickles and dimes that
patrons tossed him. Environment?
IT was terrible. But Berlin is never
theless a genius. a gentleman and