1 H i TOBCH o r BBAflOB. bilveb TON, OBBQOM, J O T » ” » »” »•
ies and “gals” of all kinds. There
ious IO Bee Atlantic City and some maid'a baby! He had them on ex-
Abroad.
other resorts and compare them bib.tion right there ,n 1.s Itent I were beer gardens, where negroes
sang and danced while people
wilh the great Pacific and ita many
that''w„oderful swilled beer and ate frankfurters.
BY P. W. GEER.
There were other beer gardens
, am a l r a i r t ^ e a d e r a o, the
ex p erien ce. any in ,
where a continual vaudeville en­
Torch will think by the tone of my portance was shooting the c
..
,ent tertainment was going on all the
Utters that I am out on a pleasure We followed
"dJ
"
e > the Inall what he would time, and still another kind where
trip. So far, I have only given ac- bass drum until we came to a g
ug
human dancing was the principal amuse-
counts Of the good times I have where five cents was require«^an
h =
enough ment. The week after we were
bad- in fact, that is the only kind Frank bought two tickets, which fish He quit te
g
g
to
look
at
us,
then
held
out his there this whole conglomerate
admitted
us
to
the
enclosure.
of times I have had. My whole
hand and said “ten cents apiece.” mass of dives, dance halls and
journey of three thousand miles in Once inside, we went along a What were we going to do? I merry-go-rounds went up in flames,
five weeks’ time has been one con­ street, either side lined with fakers only had ten cents and Frank did and now the city authorities talk
tinual round of pleasure. But I of all descriptions. One man not have anything. He was get­ of making the whole thing into a
want those who are interested in wanted to take our pictures and an ting excited by this time, and while park, with flower gardens instead
the Liberal University, and the old woman wanted to read our fu­ I was'about to drive a bargain and of beer gardens. That is a splen­
cause of Secularism in general, to ture. Frank would have had his get us both in for ten ceuts, he had did thing to do. It is a shame to
know that I am doing some splen­ Jortune told, he said, if the fortune­ found his father and persuaded spoil natural scenery and seaside
did work, which is also a pleasure. teller had been a pretty girl. The him to yield up a dime. The man resorts with a “Midway Plaisance.
For reasons best known to myself next man wanted us to throw rings at the door took the money, smiled It would be a better plan to put
and a few others, I will not report at some canes; another wanted us and resumed his yelling. I don t such things in a swamp or on a
what help the University is receiv­ to fish for wooden fish and get a know what Frank expected to see, desert. People don’t go to such
ing until I am ready to report all. prize, and the last man wanted us but I supposed we would be en­ places to view the scenery. Girls
I came on this trip with great ex­ ,o “get lost in the maze.” He had titled to see a real, live mermaid go there to catch fellows and boys
pectations, but my success has a high fence of wire netting enclos­ swimming about in a tank, comb­ go there to see the girls and he
even now been far beyond what I ing a place about 30 feet square, ing out her hair and rocking her “fleeced” by them, while still
expected, and I have only just be­ with a lot of cross fences making baby to sleep on a rock. I had al­ another class, and an exceedingly
gan. I had no idea that the many compartments, connected ways believed the stories of mer­ large class, go there because it is
wealthy and influential Liberals with each other by gates. People maids to be myths, hut when this Coney Island and they have heard
were so anxious to see the cause in would pay five cents to get into man offered to show us one, I of it. You can decide for your­
Oregon succeed. Our enterprise is this '‘maze” and then try to find thought he must have it right selves to what class Frank and I
an assured success and the new the way out. Well, Frank and I there and supposed it would be belonged.
building will he completed beyond didn’t bite at any of these things, alive. I suppose it would have
But Coney Island was not the
a doubt. I know this is welcome but marched bravely past them all been the same if the man had only place Frank and I visited to­
news to all true Liberals, and il until we reached the edge of a offered (at that time) to show me gether. I have described a place
artificial lake, which was
sm a ll, arvilivioi
......
-
T
tnn
gives me great pleasure to report small,
“wicked but not brutal,” but we
filled
with
water
and
numerous
an
“"g*1
or
“
*
5
”
•
such progress.
laiata floating about. At the far-! much confidence in human nature, also saw an exhibition both wicked
I have spent a very pleasan
Well, we walked in, and what did and brutal. We went to a prize
time at Homer Davenport’s fine ther end was a high structure, with
On an old box was an oh- fight. Homer Davenport gave us
an
inclined
plane
extending
from
(
home in East Orange, N. J., anc the lake to It. Peope ascend this ject not ...ore than two fee. , long, the tickets. Frank was to act as
go to New York city, fifteen miles plane by means of cable cars, get I The body and tail ^ “ bl«d a chaperon, for I had never seen a
away, nearly every day. It is a hito boats and away they go as dried codfish, while ” >e head re­ prize fight, while he had sketched
pleasant ride of forty minutes on fast as gravitation will take them semble.l that of a monkey. The many of them for the newspapers.
the train and ferry, and many of
,
,
.
.1
whole thinu was probably
I
. ; made in The first contest was a preliminary
the principal business men of New down the chute into the water he- wnoie tiling
low, where they arrive will, a China out of some kind of fibre fight often rounds between two ne­
York have their residences in New
splash (and, of course, a scream) and was supposed to represent a groes. They were so black that I
Jersey. One Sunday, my cousin,
prehistoric animal. 1 he thing was couldn’t see the effect of the blows,
Frank Bowers, and I decided to and go bounding and rocking void of all hair and had a ghastly and as no blood flowed I consid­
take a trip to Coney Island. Of across the little lake. Of course appearance. The “baby” was ered it a tame affair and nearly
course I had heard of this place all Frank and I had to try shooting built on the same plan of the went to sleep. But the next con­
my life, hut I had no idea what it the chutes, and wc reached the
bottom all right. Frank said it mother; but on a smaller scale I test was more lively. One of these
really was. (It has changed since
wouldn’t be considered a success was disgusted.
don’t know how contestants was a white man, and
our visit.) I supposed that it was
■
j
Frank felt; • I didn t look at him. j when the negro hit him he always
so we ks-t+ii
both rra,,K
a fashionable summer resort, where unless we screamed,
,
,1
. • .
W p turned and walked out
and left a mark. Before the fight had
one could go and enjoy a stroll on gave unearthly yells, which made vv e milieu « .u
progressed very far it was evident
the beach and listen to what the the tlght-rope walker fairly tremble, found Uncle P n a n arry wai
that the negro had the best of it,
“ wild waves say.’’ I had no idea the fortune-teller to lose her for- , ¡ng for us. To this day it is a and the white man was knocked
tune, and the people in the maze great satisfaction for them to joke
that it was one vast “Midway
,
us about our exploit, but we would down three times and his face
.
u
t
' Plaisance,” filled with fake shows, were greatly amazed.
looked like a hamburger steak, as
„
r
,
i
j
i,
•
u
r
k
i
never
admit
that
we
were
sold.
I
beer gardens and variety theaters,
We landed all . right, \ climbed out
Pnnpv
•
am glad they were not at Goney Frank expressed it, before he was
where one had to elbow through of the boat and sat down to view
® thev ' m ight have recalled
ronalUd “counted out” in the fourteenth
,
,
,,
x.
¡Island;
the mobs on the narrow, little the crowd and talk over times
’
, ,
...
. .
I -
«_
x *u
some traits
of character common to round. In that round the negro
streets and hear nothing but th e iwhen we were boys together.
■ i »» ’ cry tit?
i r » P» ’
I Frank’s
« , , father
, ,
ztt
, r>vi\
younger, knocked him down, but didn’t
“spielers
“ Franklurtersl
(Uncle
Phil) x took i us when were a few
*• years
« xku
r
1
• i . r n n a • i . n o S u , l o m n n p p Q l l v i l i With
the exception of this mer- quite knock him senseless. In
to a o n circus
in Salem once, and w a n m e . excel * 1
Q
We arrived at Coney Island at n us o f/A
.
t v J
maid business, I was always a nine seconds he got up again, to be
rather an early hour, and the early after the circus was over I had ten .n a tu ra l doubter, while Frank . , has hit the final blow. The negro hit
Sunday crowd had just began to cents left and we both had a great always r prided
v o l z l o r l himself
k i m y p i f i in
n
h eliev in e him in the jaw about as hard as a
believing
arrive. Frank had been there deal of curiosity remaining, so we things. As a result, he has joined mule ctn kick, and he fell like a
many times before and was going began to look about for some place the church, while I am still a dead man. That finished the fight.
to have a little fun showing me a to invest our capital and satisfy
I was glad it did, for I had seen
“touch of high life.” Ho was dis- our curiosity. I had always heard ea en*
The rest of our experience on enough of it to convince me that
appointed when he saw the small a great deal about mermaids, but
man is but little above the brute in
crowd on the Bowery, but by the associated them with angels, spooks Coney
-----„ _ Island
. was sight-seeing. We this respect, as well as some others.
time we had taken in the grounds and other imaginary beings. Of went to one of the numerous fee<
and paid a visit to the beach the course my attention was attracted stables where they feed people, and I have seen enough fighting; in
fact, too much. I never did fight
crowd had arrived and the “highland curiosity aroused, when, in after satisfying our appetites we
life” was beginning to get high, front of a tent, I saw a man who again went to the Bowery. And and don’t like to see others fight.
We also visited the statue of
The beach 1 saw does not amount was yelling himself hoarse, telling what a mob! People were walk-
to much; there is but little of it the people a wonderful tale about, ing, crowding and jamming. There Liberty. This time wc had Homer’s
and the sand is soft. I am anx- not only a mermaid, but a mer- 1 were shooting galleries, art galler­ half-sister, Mrs. Ada Martin, with
j