Arizona republican., 1921-10-05
By Frederic J. Haskin

MONTREAL, P. O., Oct. 4-This city is rapidly acquiring popularity with visitors from the states. More Americans than usual are here and they are coming from greater dis tances. Their appreciation of Mon- treal is not so much due to its being a picturesque old metropolis and the fifth city of North America, of which fact Montreal is not a little proud. It is chiefly prohibition which is send ing the extra visitors and which is bringing Montreal into fame as the second most cheerful place in the western misphere-Havana, of course, being the first
 Last year. Montreal was even more cheerful than it now is. Then liquor was not restricted to beer and wines and Montreal entertained one con- vention after another until it threat ened to become the center of the continent. But even now, with the Province of Quebec limited as to va riety of drinks. it is as an oasis in a desert, Ontario next door, being quite dry.
 It is said that Montreal will take advantage of its popularity to revive it's sports, neglected since the war, when 35,000 of it's young men depart ed to the front, and that it will try to, become winter resort. The Montrealers insist that their section of the country is not land of chat tering teeth in winter, but an ideal, bracing climate. Five or 10 below zero, they claim, marks the depth of the average cold winter day and from this level the thermometer rises some 10 or 15 degrees in the middle of the day. It is a dry cold with little hu- midity to make the chill penetrating. Montreal is not the only Canadian city that would like to make winter sports the fashion and itself the Lu- cerne of America. But with it's. spe- cial attractions for Americans, Mon treal is tho most favorably situated just now. If any Canadian city can do it, Montreal should be able to start a fad of skiing, ice yachting and sleighine among the first families of the United States.
 Montreal, however, is not depend- ent on either liquor or the air castle of a winter sport trade for it's pros- perity. It is, among various other things, a center of the fur trade, and a stronghold of the convent schoo business where the best French ac- cents come from.
 The fur houses are down near the wharves. Tall warehouses make can yons of the narrow, dingy streets. A big building here and there displays a few furs as a perfunctory sign, bui mostly there are only the names oi the companies for advertising. The buyers know their territory.
 The Fur Section
 To find the furs you have to gc upstairs in one of these big whole sale houses where the buyers for the retail trade do business. A lone room is lined on one side with deer racks of expensive furs, protected and divided into cupboards by rec velvet curtains.
 On the other side the length of the room is divided into alcoves witf partitions reaching nearly to the cell ing. Each alcove has it's gray wicker chair and table where buyer can si unobserved by the others and note the styles he wishes to purchase. Be tween the buyers and racks are darl furs, the models parade, twirling and slouching, to show off the silky rich ness of the costly mink, sable and sea
 F'urs from all over Canada poul into Montreal and from here are scat. tered abroad Some pieces, compara- lively few in the bulk of the trade are carried to the United States by feminine visitors to Canada. The rate of exchange is an attraction, ana then too there are said to be allur- ing bargains in furs here. especially down in the wholesale district.
 The products of the convent schools are as interesting to a stranger as furs. Outside of school hours little bands of convent school children car be seen walking sedately along the streets. sometimes with a black robe6 sister in charge. The girls wear z black uniform with high neck ana long sleeves. and generally witt some sort of stiff white collar ana cuffs. The unusual feature of tn, costume is that it apparently i'm poses no restriction on the sort O. hat that may be worn, and the com bination of a row of somber blacl dresses topped by bobbing hats whicf are wreathed with daisies. forget-me- nots or gay streamers of pink ant blue ribbon, is striking.
 There are a great many of the con- vents. Montreal is 9 city of institu- tions. There are innumerable greai gray stone piles-hospitals, monas'