The Story of the Sun: New York, 1833-1918O'Brien, Frank Michael
History
The Story of the Sun: New York, 1833-1918
O'Brien, Frank Michael
Sun (New York, N.Y. : 1833)
As an example of the drollness with which O’Malley has delighted _Sun_
readers for ten years, take this extract from his report of the East
Side Passover parade of 1917, referring to Counselor Levy, the Duke of
Essex Street, whose title was conferred by the _Sun_ twenty years ago:
It was difficult for a time to get the details of the duke’s
Passover garb, owing to the fact that the interior of his
Nile-green limousine has recently been fitted up with
book-shelves, so that the duke can be surrounded with his law
library even when motoring to and from his office on the East
Side. Furthermore, every space not occupied by the duke and
duchess and the law library yesterday was decorated with floral
set pieces in honor of Easter, a large pillow of tuberoses
inscribed with the words “Our Duke” in purple immortelles,
and presented by the Essex Market Bar Association to their
dean, being the outstanding piece among the interior floral
decorations of the duke’s Rolls-Royce. Beside Ittchee, the
duke’s Jap valet and chauffeur, was a large rubber-plant, which
shut off the view, the rubber-plant being the Easter gift of
Solomon, Solomon, Solomon, Solomon, Solomon and Solomon, who
learned all their law as students in the offices of the duke.
Little or nothing remains to be told about the duke’s Easter
scenery. He was dressed in the mode, that’s all--high hat,
morning coat, trousers like Martin Littleton’s, mauve spats,
corn-colored gloves, patent-leather shoes, Russian-red cravat,
set off with a cameo showing the face of Lord Chief Justice
Russell in high relief. His only distinctive mark was the
absence of a gardenia on his lapel.
He was off then, waving his snakewood cane jauntily, while the
East Side scrambled after the car to try to feel the Nile-green
varnish. And with a final direction to Ittchee, “Go around by
Chauncey Depew’s house on the way home, my good man,” the car
exploded northward, and the Passover parade on Delancey Street
officially ended for the day.
There is hardly a man who has lived five years as a _Sun_ reporter but
could write his own story of the _Sun_ just as he has written stories
of life. Here but a few of these men and their work have been touched.
It has been a long parade from Wisner of 1833 to Hill of 1918. Many of
the great reporters are dead, and of some of these it may be said that
their lives were shortened by the very fever in which they won their
glory. Some passed on to other fields of endeavour. Others are waiting
to write “the best story ever printed in the _Sun_.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account