The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1936-02-05
Squaring
The Circle
WITH
THE HoOsIER EDITOR

L VIC 1i1OlolldkJOllS OulllOI O11Gll2-
- Der Of Commerce had been, 100
years ago today, celebrating with a
luncheon the e-hundredth ami
versary of the incorporation of the
city, something like this would have
bec going on
The guests, probably Is, tie their
nags at the railing in front of one
of the better taverns, log affair
consisting of perhaps one room.
They scrape the Washington st
mud off their feet, doff their fur
caps, and lumber over to the bar.
There is a great deal of talk about
the Legislature which has just en-
acted a public works law calling for
expenditure of much money.
Everything looks good and every
one has a round of corn whisky.
Meanwhile the little women are
grinding corn, cutting venison steaks
they bought from Capt. John. an al
gonquin Indian who is a pretty good
hunter but who is thought bad of
because he lives in a hollow syca-
more stump.
A S say, the little women are SO
n busy they don't have time to
listen to the goings-on of the mem
folk who have only recently been
warned by the city trustees that
they must not, while in the streets,
swear, race horses or create RIOTS
The women, some of them with
babies slung on to their backs,
squaw-papoose fashion, are working
around trying to get the luncheon
ready against heavy odds, such as
not enough firewood. A couple of
them pick up axes and go chop
some.
Meanwhile the corn likker is flow
ing freely, as it did then at lunch
cons if they ever had them), camp
meetings, weddings and all manner
of political rallies, of which there
were as many almost then as now.
The meals cost, perhaps, Is cents.
Not that much, maybe. They ate
twice as much as the celebrants did
today, and don't even know what
the menu was today.
Il y
MEANWHILE, they talk of the
A'A ague, of which indianapolis
was the capital of the world then.
One wise guy of the, day says he
served an apprentice to ague, did
journey work with it, and I think
I ought to graduate"
Ague and the great battle of the
Irish. canal diggers, which ragged for
a whole day near the city limits,
form the topics of conversation. The
Irishmen fought with spades and
whatever else they could grab that
they thought would be unfriendly
Nobody knows how many were
hurt. Some might even have been
killed. The crowd may talk bit
about the condition of the city
treasury. It contained $124 when
the city was Incorporated. But no
one seems to worry much about
that.
jeremiah Johnson, the first to be
married in Indianapolis, and a great
corn liquor fan, is there, making
wise cracks about everything. He
is great hand at it.
Samuel Merrill is there. He's a
great capitalist, having come to the
town with $4,000 in. cash. Most of
the people never had seen any part
of that much money.
They all have pretty good time
and the women-folk clean up the
dishes. Every one goes home.
Il
TODAY fruit cocktails were
- served. People ate modest
portions and talked about the New
Deal and the public works measures.
They talked about how muddy Wash
ington-st has been in the thaw, even
though paved.
They talked about the condition
of the city treasury, and the new
sticker regulations. They talked
about the scrap in Ethiopia. They
paid their checks, rs cents a por-
ton They went back to work.