Year: 1874




ple They have for some years seen the Legis-
lature of the State waste session after session
in playing with the best interests of the city,
in trading upon its privileges and in cheating
it in the end out of all relief in the matter of
rapid transit. Yet year after year they 60 to
the polls at election time and vote to send
back to Albany the same set of legislators
who have again and again betrayed them, or
fill their places with other ragamuffins who
are certain to follow in their footsteps. So we
still go on and may go on for years to come,
suffering all the inconvenience and injury
attendant upon a want of rapid transit and
subject to the annoyance of horse car trans
portation or the extortion of hack owners.


1t would, under the best of circumstances,
take three or four years to complete steam
railroad through the city. In the meantime
we can only hope to better our condition in
the way of transit by supply of light, quick
and cheap public conveyances such as one
especially in London. Why should we not
have the hanson cab in New York, just the
same as in the English metropolis, and at as
moderate rates of fare? There is travel
enough in New York to make such venture
pay good profit. We should not at first
need the immense army of cabs which at all
hours of the day and night can be seen filing
through the London streets but we have
business enough at once to keep in activity
two or three hundred of such vehicles, and
the use of cabs soon renders them necessity
to community and rapidly increases
the demand. Hansoms in London are
run at sixpence mile, or twelve cents
of our money the minimum fare however,
for any distance within two miles being one
shilling, or twenty-five cents American. Our
people would regard twenty-five cents mile,
with q minimum rate of half dollar for any
distance less than two miles, as reasonable
enough This would be just double the Lon
don prices, and surely this margin would be
large enough to make up for the additional
price of labor, and probably of feed, here.
The great complaint of foreigners is of the
difficulty of moving about rapidly and the
impositions of our hackmen There is no
reason why we should labor under this scan
dal and inconvenience when a profitable bust
ness in cheap and quick conveyances awaits
any person with enterprise sufficient to start
the venture. Who will give supply of han
som cabs at reasonable rates of fare?


The Approaching Season of Music.


Nearly two months divide US from the
formal opening of what promises to be
musical season Of unusual brilliancy and
variety, and were it not for the admirable con-
certs of Mr. Thomas at Central Park Garden
New York would be indeed barren Of all
music save the dismal strains of the organ
grinder or the occasional toot of street
band. 1t is too early yet to learn the details
of the various programmes in contemplation
for the next season, but their general charac-
ter is one of great expectations. Mr.. Stra-
kosch has not yet completed his arrangements
for Italian opera, and to the list of artists
published in these columns some time ago
two or three important additions remain
to be made. We must be resigned to the loss
of Nilsson, as it is now definitely announced
that she will not return for a year at least,
having signed engagements to sing in Russia
and at the opening of the Grand Opera House,
Paris. The proposed system of Mr.. Strakosch,
to pay attention towards securing general ex-
cellence in every department of his troupe
rather than depend solely on the precarious
attraction of single artist, is one in which
the public should rejoice and which deserves
hearty encouragement. The iberality and
enterprise shown during the past season in
Ix,r,o vorlyc tba cto in
approaching the completeness Of operate rep
reservations in Europe have borne good
fruit The public will never again be con-
tented with the slipshod, meagre perform
ances of other days, and the manager who at
tempts to fost such upon his patrons is sure
to find his season anything but profitable.


English opera, under the experienced direc-
ton of Miss Kellogg, will be one of the most
enjoyable and popular features Of the coming
season. She has organized troupe compris-
ing the best elements to be found in England
and America and the announcement of her
intention to produce Balfe's posthumous
work, "The Talisman," is but the torerunner
of other novelties. At the Lyceum Theatre
Mr.. Grau proposes to exhibit opera bouffe in
French and English, with Mile Aimee and
Miss Emily Soldene as the chief attractions.
Mr. De vivo has secured in the person Of Mile.
lima Di Murska an admirable representative
for concert season, and the Hungarian
prima donna will, it is to be hoped, meet
with better fortune in that field than she did
in opera here. In instrumental music we are
promised series of symphony concerts by
the incompatible orchestra of Mr.. Thomas,


the regular performances of the Philharmonic
Society, which has become thoroughly organ


lied and remodelled, and the usual quota Of


piano recitals and military band soirees.


There is an abundance of promise, as may be
! seen, and the musical season of 1S74-'75 will
/ not xuo As,,nt Lo hohind INV of Ito rarnd dacac-