The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1921-10-05

SuSN SAdl W LdAS RAAl010SA 49,
TORS are standing all along the
shore on both the Canadian and
(, American sides. In some places
where the land puts out they are
on the very edge of the torrent. Yet
the people across the river can
scarcely be seen with the naked
eye. The camera makes nothing
of them. And even at closer range,
the average kodak view of the Falls
doesn't register the people in the
scene any more than if they were
flies crawling on the shore.
! The town of Niagara Falls offers
what American travellers seem
most to want-plenty of postcards
and an assortment of souvenirs
that seem somehow more in keep
ing with the era OF whatnots, GIN
cracks, and shattered parlors than
with this era of whatnots. GIN
cracks, and shattered parlors than
with this decade of so many beau
/ tiful and useful things.
The Gimcrack Business.
That there is a demand for the
souvenirs is apparent from the fact
! that there are so many of the
shops. A count showed II SOU
venir stores and 10 restaurants on
| two blocks of Falls street on one
side of the street only.
| These shops are far from cheap.
! The owners figure on five months
active trade. but out of the five
months they say there is only six
weeks rushing business. A good
many newlyweds come during June,
but not many vacationists. Then
after the fourth of July, the mum
Der of visitors increases steadily
and rises to a peak in August, fall
ing off again by the end of the
month After that, as winter ap-
proaches, the shop keepers board
up their store and open business
in the south or at some winter re-
sort
There is no large, well-appointed
hotel in Niagara Falls, such as
most popular resorts have. The
city expects to have one in few
years. In the meantime the tour
lists are accommodated in small
hotels of all grades and in private
rooming houses. The latter can
apparently be counted only by num-
bering the houses in Niagara Falls,
for practically every housekeeper
within a mile. of the Falls has a
sign out. The five months open
season is kept by these rooming
houses, and many of the hotels. too,
are locked up by the time Of the
first snow.
Some day, Niagara Falls hopes
~ no rocnrt Tho hoo MY
of the ice-bound falls and the
snow-covered eyergreens on the
shore is regarded by many people
as a more magnificent sight than
the Falls in summer. Compare
lively few people who work take
vacations in the winter, and sum-
mer is still the popular season for
marriages, but the wealthy who
frequent resorts the year round
may soon be out as patrons of Nj
agara in winter with the added in
ducement of winter sports, such as
skating, tobogganiRg and sleighing,
At present, this plan is merely
an air castle. Like other places,
Niagara Falls has felt the shock of
hard times this season. One res
taurant keeper on Falls street says
only half of last years crowds
have been here this summer.
There are more auto tourists"
he lamented, and lots of them eat
picnic lunches and hunt out cheap
places to eat Close! Why two
men came in here the other DAY
and ordered So cents worth of
breakfast between them-one toast
and two coffees.''
The scenes in the shops bear'~out
the story of hard times. There are
plenty of people pricing and exam
lining goods, but not so much hasty
buying.
The city of Niagara Falls dis
claims the idea that it exists only
for the tourist To be sure, the
Falls bring many visitors with
their dollars into the city. It is
certain that the hardened natives
Of Niagara Falls do not contribute
largely to the fortunes of the uu-
merous dealers IN spar ieweiry and
felt pennantS. Yet Niagara Falls
holds that as a town it is becoming
really significant as manufactur-
ing center It's power companies
are hitching Niagara to industry.
Not only is it the headquarters
from which large quantities of a
we'll known breakfast food are scat
tered daily to d waiting world, but
it has become a center of the cleo
trO chemical business, a very i'm
portant industry. So far, however,
The city is mostly famous to Amer
leans at large as the place where
the Falls is.