Evening star., 1924-06-22
BY WILLIAM ALLEN WHITE.


NEW YORK, June 21-New York is
as excited about the Democratic national
convention as the smallest American
town would be that could decently hold
the convention. St Louis, Denver. San
Francisco and Kansas CITY have well
coined national conventions in the last
quarter of a century, but none has
shown more flags, more excitement, nor
more running around in the chamber
OF commerce doing nothing in particular
than has little old New York
Hickville is Hickville, no matter if it
is on the Hudson or the Missouri, and
in Hickville-on-the-Hu Hudson flags are fly
ing on 9Th avenue and every one in
town Will tell you that they cost a quar-
er OF million dollars. In Hickville-on-
he-Hudson various committees are look
ing after hotel rates, assigning delega-
tickets to the convention with all their
might and main.
Town Not Wide Open.
The first thing that the traveller .as SKIS
as he contemplates journey to the
great city is about his liquid refresh
ment. Great stories have been spread
that New York would be a riotous and
"
That man who desires a drink would
be able to get it no one can question.
III the same man desires to bet On a
quiet game of poker or roulette that
would be quite possible Also if he de-
sires the association of ladies who are
no better than they should be that would
be easily within his reach.
As long as the world goes around
tneSe more or less wicked joys Will be
obtainable for those who desire to pay
nj no Of dri nj
cially or in terms Of coin of the realm
will be about as heavy in the case of
one wayward step as the other. Gentle
men far away from home, weighted
down by the cares of state. desiring one
sort of relaxation or another, since
Ulysses and Jason went forth on their
great quests. never had to endure the
pangs of ennui longer than they really
cared to be tornented. So il is in New
York. So it is in the original Hickville
from whence these modern travellers are
coming.
Pays Respects to Butler.
But various restrictions will make
the liquid refreshment more or less
caviar to respectful BILE family men who
are supposed TO tell mamma everything
they have done since breakfast. Pro-
hibition. one way or another. so far as
the mass of society is concerned. ac-
"a
the screams of DR.. Butler have subsided,
we may consider the facts about the
sale of liquor here. II is about upon the
plane of prostitution in New York
Yet DR.. Butler would hardly sug
gest abolishing the sumptuary there
abouts merely because there Is a gala
procession toddling down the prim-
rose path. Or again, to use an illus
tration, there is much less violation
Of the eighteenth amendment in New
York city than of the fourteenth. The
papers are filled with stories of lar
ceny, petty and grand Of forgeries,
robberies, banditries. swindling and
chicanery. and the taxes of the peo-
pie are mulcted to sustain courts that
are ponderously grinding infractions
of the fourteenth amendme Mt through
their legal processes, and even DIR.
Butler does not hint that the four
teenth amendment will be repealed in
five years. so that people can take
property without due process of
law" according to the dictates of
their consciences. if any.
Translated into simple terms this
perSifiage means that in New York
the saloon is gone. Its place is taken
by several hundred highly expensive
rather heavily protected places where
wayfaring man. though and if fool
may get a drink. The average dele
gate coming from the average coun-
try town and desiring to see the
sights of great city. will be induct-
ed into these surreptitious palaces of
more or less guilty joy He will have
his drink: he may go further. But
the common or commercial booze of
ten years ago will not be rubbed
under his nose at every corner and in
every hotel basement
The business of a commercially pro-
tected. highly organized, fairly de-
cent overstimulation of the consump-