New-York tribune., 1921-09-25
FY-TWO YEARS OF NEW YORK POLITICS

And while the salesman was n4.-
an opportunity to observe that ~ nad
my venerable host was of the latest c,,t u u
though made Of Il material as fasho~ss,. a.
hundred years ago as to-day~-a pen,a.
salt tweed. His shirt, of white cottsr -aa snl
black pin stripes, had the soft Frenoh "..a
which crept into favor only few ve.r. ~"s
looked to see If the charming cuff .t,,s aso
an earlier day held the sleeve ends go s "
But no; although Of plain gold. tbo,, s''si
the mode. His watch chain, too was Nv s,.' "a
modish, Of long, slender links, such a. a1S
twentieth century dandies affect. Ara "s
noted this [ thought at once Of oval.
inn at Newburgh, where the hotel clsrl 'a
thirty years the junior of COMMISSIONS w I''''
his, wears chain Of thick, heavy gold ,.s:'' I',
encircles his neck and falls in lordlv f.ss .'''a
over his shoulders to his waist sna I~.,Oa =,
curves upward to the capacious nocko. :. .''
fancy figured vest, where both ends moo. =
the ring of huntingcase watch. orn...,4
chased, which winds with a key. In v.;n
looks for anything in the garb Of Gu ."'
sioner Voorhis suggesting the DAYS who, =,
New York was little more than bio v;l,~s
and which he knew and loves. One r,;ss,
except the Oriental pattern of his fou. -
hand cravat, in which reposes a fiery o,.,
and, of course, the pepper and salt suit
There are politicians Of an older scbool ~.
affect the long hair Of their early davs NJ.
so Commissioner Voorhis His hair !, ~.
after the manner of college youth, parted ~
the side, and his moustache is comnrom;s.
between the close-cropped affair of to-dav and
the graceful droop of ten years ago
Ny questions next took him back tn h;s H.,
hood.
eyes," he said, 81 have lived since csu.
to New York, a babe in arms-in fact wa.
not quite one year of age when I left ur
birthplace in Pompton Piains--in one neipbh0r
hood, old Greenwich Village, which of late b,.
been invaded by horde OF cheap. commercial
lzing men and women-nostly foreigners
who open up dirty, filthy restaurants. char,s
extortionate prices, and call it Bohemian. Thew
are not hoodwnking those of Us who havs
lived there all our lives, but the ribbon counta,
clerks from uptown who want to see life. A
they call it, go down there and spend hall
weeks salary in one night on poor food and
poorer drinks. Hootch, I believe. is what thsv
call it.
AS boy lived in King Street, stones
throw from where Aaron Burr lived. and
went to school at the age of six years to
place managed by Nine. Hewlett, in basA
nent in Spring Street. Later went to school
under a master named David Stevens. and
once he caned me with a hickory stick which
he cut wood from lot on the Astor Farm, at
Tenth Avenue and Fifteenth Street. And for
year l cherished the thought of trouncing
him when | grew bigger. But at the end a
the year, was then thirteen-he made me his
assistant, or monitor, and then | began to
understand that schoolboys-you must remem-
Der | was now an assistant schoomaster-
should pay attention to their masters"
Then he told Of q stroll down Broadway one
wintry day. Broadway ended at Fourteenth
Street then, for all north of this most down.
town of cross thoroughfares was in the early
4O's, farm land, under cultivation save here
and there where some lover of country fs
had set up summer home.
Il was about twelve years old at the time"
he went on. 81 saw some clerks drop Their
bolts Of calico and rush to the street One
of them cried
There goes John Jacob Astorp
ut was the founder Of the Astor millions
himself. He was driving a sleigh Ny how
the bell jingled! He lived on Broadway,