. New York of to-day . is nocessation. Heal estate men have a curious customof counting the people who puss by a certain cornerin the course of twenty-four hours. Some of themhave quite ft respectable average, and except incertain sections uptown there are few who havenone to their credit. CHAPTER II BROADWAY The Main Street in Our Village Of all the streets which are dear to New VorkerBwe may without fear of protest place Broadway atthe head. With all its faults, with its miles ofplank roads (at present), its generally overcrowdedcondition and its intolerable hustle and bustle, thereis someth
. New York of to-day . is nocessation. Heal estate men have a curious customof counting the people who puss by a certain cornerin the course of twenty-four hours. Some of themhave quite ft respectable average, and except incertain sections uptown there are few who havenone to their credit. CHAPTER II BROADWAY The Main Street in Our Village Of all the streets which are dear to New VorkerBwe may without fear of protest place Broadway atthe head. With all its faults, with its miles ofplank roads (at present), its generally overcrowdedcondition and its intolerable hustle and bustle, thereis something about our main thoroughfare thatmakes us calmly tolerant of its once in a while some stranger comes to townand calls it an architectural monstrosity—and wugive his remarks large space in the papers. Thenwo go to the theatre and George Cohan says, Qivomy regards to old Broadway, and we applaud likedemons. Then another man who has just skiddedover the wet boards alongside a Catskill water opeu-32. NEW YORK OF TO-DAY 80 ing in Herald Square, or elsewhoro, vents his dis-gust by saying, Lets cut this jay town; I want a real city—take me back to Chi and bo it goes. The spirit is Boston has her Garden, Philly has her Zoo,New York has her Broadway—its goodenough for you, This wild, unreasoning, unmistakable pride inBroadway may not bo comprehensible; it dependsupon the point of view. We hare Fifth Ave-nue, Rivcrsido Drive, Central Park, MorningsideHeights and a dozen other localities far surpassingBroadway in mere physical charm, but the NewYorker refuses to take them to his heart in theway he docs Broadway. He does not, howeveT, in-sist that you shall see it as ho does. A smile oftender compassion iB about all you can get out of aNow Yorker in reply to a denunciation of his mainstreet. Never a peddler emigrant selling shoe-strings under the shadow of St. Pauls but hopessome day t<i his name on a big sign onBroadway, and who shall say that this is
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