Year: 1868

The Park on Saturday afternoons Is an epitOme OF
city life Not in its manners, its habits nor its
wickedness, but in its picture Of peoples better
nature. The Park is like charity; 1t exhibits man.
kind in its nobler aspect. Who that treads the
gravel of the Mall presses the soft sod Of the Com
mon, or fingers by the cool brink Of the placid lake.
can bring with him the evil thoughts OF the far or
city present only by Its distant hum and visible only
through dim haze as II Nature at such time would
hide 1t from sights Nations are like individuals;
city is body perhaps, then, 1t is not out OF the
way call the Park Its conscience.


II so, 1t was bright and beautiful one yesterday.
The beauties which the Park develops with every
recurring week are surprising. To one who goes
but seldom the change must be astonishing. Like
the great church at Rome which 1t is said presents
some feature OF novelty every time it is inspected
no matter how frequent the visits OF the spectator
the Park unfolds with each day attraction that
was unseen before or has been born since the last
ramble Given such day as yesterday, band dis
and he was poor logician and q poorer mathema-
tcian who could not solve the problem OF his
pleasure. Coming down to statistics, the day was
vast Improvement on the concert day OF the week
before. The thermometer was disinclined to rise
beyond the seventies and so kept the weather COM
papasvey cSo nay tens OF a3nt rGu
Old professor in the observatory at the
arsenal who put down the brakes on the





from equatoriazing the little strip OF land lying
north forty degrees forty-twO minutes and forty
seconds between the Hudson and the East rivers.
Qf you would know where that is, turn to your
gazetteer, and when found take Captain Cuttles ad
vice and make note on't Speaking OF the ar.
senal, what delightful old ruin 1t will be one OF
these days when the Ivy which Is now creeping up
Its walls covers 1t all over and takes Its casteilated
shape 1t Ii certainly one OF the features OF the Park
at this time Everybody and his cousin, particularly
his country cousin make point OF going to the
arsenal to see its menagerie OF queer animals Its
aviary of rare and funny birds its gallery of scup
them as have not been removed to the
new building at Mount St. Vincent; Its
old idols and its general collection OF
curiosities. The arsenal or the museum 1--WE are
In the womb OF the future, and when the building re-
frred to was the st0reh0use for the weapons OF the
old-fashi0ned militia) like everything about it, is
constantly undergoing Improvement new door
and new gallery will soon add to its commOdious-
ness. Crossing to the Terrace we find the same cor
rective hand at work. The vault beneath It, which
for so long time was an eyesOre amid the pic
turesqueness all about is transforming into vista
OF Moorish extravaganza OF beauty. Encaustic tiles
make the door; arabesques Of quaint patterns
the ceiling while inches either side exhaust the
skill and Ingenuity Of the artist In paintings of nower
opera glass through which to view the lake. the foun
tain the espanade and the foliage Of the more dis
tant Ramble.


the enects Of the now impetus given to popular
taste BY the Introduction OF the lighter music OF the
French opera. When ia Vie Paristenne" was
French composer, and many . little foot tapped an
accompaniment. Said the Commissioners "H the
weather be fine there will be music on the Mall !"
&c. The weather was fine, and the thousands who
will thank the Commissioners that they fulfilled their
promise.