Life — January 13, 1887 — page 2: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

- as @ “While there's Life there's Hope.” VOL. IX. JANUARY 13, 1887. No. 211. 1155 Broapway, NEw York. Published every Thursday, $5 a year in advance, postage free. Single copies, ro’cents. Back numbers can be had by applying to this office. Vol. I., $1.50 per number ; Vol. II., 25 cents per number ; Vol. III., IV., V. and VII. at regular rates. Rejected contributions will be destroyed unless accompanied-by a stamped and directed envelope. UR old friend, General di Cesnola, is opposed to open- ing the Metropolitan Museum on Sunday. That ought to be a powerful argument with the trustees in favor of throwing it open. It is fair to assume from the general’s expressed sentiments, that his objections to the Sunday open- ing are of the same character as the Puritans’ objections to bear-baiting. He is reported to have said : ‘*T would not heat the building and let the public go there and freeze. When they had become stiff I would set them up among the other groups of statuary.” If the worthy man carried out his threat, at least one ben- efit would result. The Museum of Art would have some statuary which was not composed of unrelated parts put to- gether for business purposes. But that would subject some of the general’s antiquities to invidious comparisons, and would probably make him regret his boldness. * * * HE trustees of the museum are gentlemen whose opin- ions are entitled to a respectful hearing. Some of them have objections to a Sunday opening ; others favor it, and among the latter is Mayor Hewitt, whose experience in the management of public institutions for the public benefit, have been as extensive and notable as anyone’s. We trust that his views, and those of the gentlemen who agree with him, will prevail. in the week. The arguments in favor of that course are too self-evident to require setting forth. * * * PINION is divided as to whether Professor Emmons or his wife: ought to be shut up. The professor thinks the lady is unfit to be at large, and the lady certainly differs with him, even if she does not reciprocate his feeling. Cer- tainly, she is a person of very eccentric behavior, and LIFE is disposed to convey to her husband the expression of its condign sympathy. Let her slide, Professor ; she seems able to take care of herself, and you will only get yourself disliked by trying to shut her up. Very few of us, you know, are thoroughly sane, but we know we have got to take care of selves, and we do, and the sense of responsibility is good or us. The museum ought to be open every day | IFE is glad to notice that the breach which lately gaped between our cousins, James G. Bennett and Cyrus W. Field, has been filled in. On the 13th of December, Mr. Field’s newspaper, the excellent Maz? and Express, called Mr. Bennett a vagabond. Now, if Mr. Bennett is not a vaga- bond it is hard to say who is. LIFE believes him to be one of the utmost vagabonds extant, and is at a loss to match him unless by the Wandering Jew. The az?, though hav- ing called him a name which fitted him, and was not espec- ially opprobrious, felt that it could afford to take it back, since it did Mr. Bennett no harm either way. So it retracted “vagabond,” and extended the assurance of its sincere regret instead. Then Mr. Bennett’s paper said it had never in- tended to hurt Mr. Field’s feelings by anything it printed about him, and assured him that when its London correspon- dent called him a horse-thief it was without intention of dis- paraging his honesty, but solely with the determination to print all the news. So now Cyrus and James are reconciled once more, and we heartily wish some other New York editors—notably Messrs. Jones and Dana— might be led by the sweet influences of the new year to follow their example. * * * HE Suz had an eloquent editorial the other day, in which it cracked up canvasback ducks as being a delicacy only beaten by one American product. Numbers of its parishioners want to know what that commodity of unique superiority is. The oyster and the terrapin have been named, but the Su says it is neither of them, and lies Stockton-like, declining to say whether it is lady or cat. This is no way for a great journal to treat its constituents, and the Swv# ought to know better. We call upon Colonel Dana, of the National Guard, whose gifted pen has made his patronymic ambiguous, to let light in upon this mystery. If America produces anything better to eat than canvasback duck, we want to know it, both that we may have some ourselves, and that we may give the lie to the rumor that the Sz is biased by a morbid gustatory passion that makes every delicacy seem second to as Stockton would say. * * * i eee President is not yet free from twinges in his joints, but rheumatism is slow and rarely’ makes flying visits. The New Year's reception at the White House showed how far Mr. Cleveland was on the way to entire recovery, and how unfounded have been the reports which sought to magnify his illness. The New Year's reception also brought out new | statements about the President's wife, who grows more and ' more like the estimable lady of whom the poet said, “ None named her but to praise.” comicbooks.com