Appletons' Popular Science Monthly, June 1899: Volume LVVarious
Science
Appletons' Popular Science Monthly, June 1899: Volume LV
Various
Science -- Periodicals; Technology -- Periodicals
magazines during my visit, and each of these could be had for
seventy-five cents a number.
Regretfully must it be said that the female portion of the population
does not sustain the male either in character or diversity. I tried
in various ways to ascertain the number of women who represented the
community, but failed to obtain a satisfactory accounting. A large
proportion of those who are in evidence, and perhaps even by far the
greater number, belong to the "red" aristocracy, or at least to that
side where steady principles are treated with little consideration and
respect. I use the word aristocracy advisedly, for it is a notorious
fact that an amount of deference is paid to these creatures of shame
which is not given to the virtuous or self-respecting woman; and that
they themselves, recognizing their standing, are apt to look down upon
the rest of their kin, and to even question their proper privileges. A
large part of the broadly capacious Second Avenue, together with
equally conspicuous sections of the town elsewhere, is given up to the
public display of the inmates of neatly constructed log cabins bearing
such devices as "Saratoga," "Bon-Ton," "The Lucky Cigar Store," "Green
Tree," etc. The number of open houses is probably less than in most
mining camps, and far below what it is in some places. In deference to
a demand tax of fifty dollars, levied on each member of the profession
to pay part costs of two fire engines which had been brought to the
town, there was a response of only sixty-nine, and this was considered
a sufficiently close representation not to press the matter any
further.
A community of this kind must necessarily have its dance halls and
places of amusement. The latter consisted at the time of my arrival of
four "theatres" or "opera houses"--the "Combination," "Monte Carlo,"
"Mascot," and "Pavilion," two of which suspended or closed up before
the "season" had fairly opened. Ordinarily, the price of a drink at
the bar of entrance paid for admission to the performance with seat,
and many will agree with me in believing that the admission was fully
paid. The acting need not be worse at any theater, and the singing
could hardly be surpassed in its eccentricities; yet the performances
appeared to satisfy a general demand, as ordinarily the houses were
packed to their full capacity evening after evening. Needless is it to
say that the performances are not intended for women in good standing,
and few such are ever present, unless heavily screened behind the
curtains of the "boxes." The plays are all of a low order, but the
worst is not much worse than some of the plays that are tolerated in
all their nastiness in some of our own legitimate theaters. It is
singular and interesting as showing the influence of necessity that a
sacred Sunday concert in aid of the fire department was successfully
carried through in the capacious halls of one of the most notorious
dancing resorts.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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