CHAPTER XII.
ON SHOPPING.
A party of visitors in which there are one or more ladies will unquestionably go on a shopping excursion of greater or less extent, according to the tastes of the fair ones and the length of the purses possessed by their escorts. It is not intended to give any advice as to where to go on such occasions. To do so would be to “get oneself disliked,” as the saying goes. It is not possible to mention all the great shops or stores in detail; it would be manifestly unfair to praise a few to the exclusion of the many. There are a few great houses, however, the names of which are in a sense landmarks, and have nothing to lose or gain by being either spoken of or omitted.
It has been said that one can buy absolutely anything on State street, from a stick of candy to an elephant. Certain it is that there are some stores on that thoroughfare, notably Marshall Field’s, Gossage’s, the Boston Store, Mandel’s, Schlesinger & Mayer’s, the Fair, the Leader, J. H. Walker & Co.’s, and Siegel & Cooper’s, that contain almost everything obtainable for money. State street is the great retail thoroughfare of the city and in any of the stores mentioned the customer is certain of fair treatment and his money’s worth. These houses are all extensive advertisers in the daily newspapers and if extensive purchases are contemplated it is just as well to scan these advertisements for notices of “special sales,” as they are called. During “special sales” of certain articles the reduction in the prices of those articles is very low and much is to be gained by looking out for announcements that may save the purchaser considerable money. The first five houses enumerated are located between Randolph and Madison streets. The Fair, which is a wonder in itself, and very popular, owing to the cheapness of its goods, stands opposite to the Leader, at State and Adams streets. James H. Walker & Co. have a large building on Wabash avenue, at the corner of Adams. Siegel & Cooper’s great place, occupying nearly a block, from Van Buren to Congress streets, is one of the sights of the city, being, it is said, without exception the largest store in the world which is devoted to the sale of general merchandise.
All the leading stores have high-class restaurants attached to them, a feature keenly appreciated by lady shoppers, who find it very convenient to rest from their arduous labors long enough to take luncheon and then resume the happy pastime of getting rid of the dollars that their husbands and fathers have bestowed upon them for this purpose.
CHAPTER XIII.
CARROUSELS.
The carrousel is a form of entertainment which has grown popular with a certain class of people within recent years. The term may be a little obscure to the uninitiated, but they will readily understand its meaning when it is explained that the carrousel is nothing more or less than the old-fashioned “merry-go-round” which we all easily remember as a feature of fairs, circuses and other out-door entertainments. There are at the present writing several carrousels in the city, but it would be quite useless to specify their location, because they change places so frequently that to do so would only be misleading. They are here today, there tomorrow; but there never need be any difficulty in finding them. An inquiry of the hotel clerks or any other well-posted person will secure the desired information as to where the nearest carrousel is to be found.
Various newspapers have from time to time waged war upon the caroussel on the ground that it is prejudicial to the morals of young people who patronize it. This work does not assume to criticize, but to state facts. It is a fact that the carrousels are well patronized as a rule and that the young people who do the patronizing appear to extract no end of fun out of the whirligig process.
The caroussel or “merry-go-round” is generally situated in a flimsy building on some convenient vacant lot, rented for the purpose at a pinch, so to speak. The fiery wooden steeds that go whirling round and round in a circle, to the spirited music of a brass band or snorting orchestrion, bear on their backs sundry youths and maidens, with now and then an old boy or girl thrown in as a leaven to offset the general juvenility, who indulge in all manner of sportive remarks and jests as they go on their circular journey. It must not be supposed that the ride itself forms the chief part of the entertainment. By no means. A very little of that goes a long way. The principle part of the fun is derived from standing among the many rows of spectators and listening to the witticisms that are indulged in at the expense of the riders. These are often very pert, not to say cutting, and the lively repartee (not always very refined) that is exchanged between equestrians and spectators is always productive of infinite amusement to the chance visitor. A too pointed remark not infrequently leads to a spirited argument, which spirited argument not infrequently results in a row in which the friends of the participants are as likely as not to take part. In such an event that is the time when courtesy and all semblance of it abruptly ends and simple muscle then comes into play. This is good time for the outsider to withdraw to a safe distance, but though the combat is never very deadly—no shooting scrape, according to the writer’s recollection, ever having taken place in a carrousel—it is just as well to avoid the risk of a black eye or a bloody nose that may result from a chance whack from a too-enthusiastic pleasure-seeker who has become embroiled in the fray with or without his consent. The battle, inconsequential as it always is, invariably terminates before it is found necessary to call in the police.