The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-11-17

He called down for a messenger
boy and strolled to the window to
soothe his nerves still further.
Dusk had fallen. Every window
of the high stone buildings sur
rounding Madison Square was an
oblong Of light. It was q sym.
phony Of gray and gold, Of which
he never tired. It invested bust
ness with romance and beauty.
The men behind those radiant
panels, thinking OF nothing less,
made their brief contribution to
the beauty of the world, trans
ported the rapt spectator to a
realm of pure loneliness.
A light fall of snow lay on the
grass and benches, the statues and
trees Of the square. Motors were
flashing and honking below and
over on Fifth avenue. The roar
of the great city came up to him
like a flood over a broken dam.
Black masses were pouring toward
the subways. Life! New York
was the epitome Of life. He en-
joyed forcing his way through
those moving masses, but It inter-
ested him even more to feel above,
aloof, as he did this evening.
Those tides swept on as uncon-
scious OF the watchers so high
above them as OF the soaring
beauty of. the Metropolitan tower.
Ground hogs. most Of them, but
part Of the ever changing, ever
fascinating. metropolitan. pageant.
The arcade of Madison Square
Garden was already packed with
men and he knew that triple line
reached down Twenty-sixth street
to Fourth avenue. There was to
be prize fight tonight and the
men had stood there since noon,
buying apples and peanuts from
peddlers. This was Tuesday and
there was no half-holiday. These
men appeared to have unbounded
leisure while the rest Of the city
toiled or demanded work. But
they were always warmly dressed
and Individually well.fed. They
belonged to what is vaguely
known as the sporting fraternity,
and were invariably in funds,
although they must have existed
with the minimum OF work. The
army of unemployed was hardly
larger and certainly no bread line
was ever half as long. Mounted
police rode up and down to avert
any anticipation Of the nights
battle. A loud barking murmur
rose and mingled with the roar of
the avenues.
The Warning Bell.
The great clock of the Metro
politan tower began TO play those
sad and sweetly ominous notes
preliminary to booming out the
hour. They always reminded him
OF the warming bell on q wild and
rocky coast, with something OF the
Lorelei in its cadences. like q
heartless woman's subtle allure.
poignantly difficult to resist.
There was knock on the door.
Claveripg gave his daily stint to
the messenger boy. He was hunt
ing for change, when he recap
tured his column, sat down at his
desk, and, running It over
hastily. inserted the word .au-
thentic." New York must have
its Word, even as its topic.
Authentic" loosed upon the
world by Arnold Bennett.
was the rage at present. Tho
little writers hardly dared use 1t.
It was, as It. were. the trademark
Of the Sophisticates.
The boy, superior, Indifferent,
and chewing gum, accepted his
tip and departed. Clavering re.
turned to- the window. Gone was
the symphony Of gold and gray.
The buildings surrounding the
Square were . dark and formless
mass in the heavy dusk. Only
the street lights below shone
like globuIar phosphorescence on
a dark and turbulent sea.
Two hours later he left his
hotel and walked up Madison
avenue. Twenty.sixth street was
deserted and as Uttered with papers,
peanut shells, and various other
debris as a picnic train. The
mounted police had disappeared.
From the great building came the
first roar of the thousands as
sembled. whether in approval or
the reverse it would be difficult
to determine. They roared upon
the slightest pretext, and they
would roar steadily until half-past
ten or eleven, when they would
burst out Of every exit, rending
the night with their yells, while
q congested mass Of motors and
taxlcabs shrieked and honked and
squealed and coughed; and then
abruptly the silence of death
would fall upon what is now a
business quarter. where only an
occasional hotel or little old
brownstone house-sole reminder