USA > New Jersey > Atlantic County > Atlantic City > Atlantic City and County, New Jersey, biographically illustrated : a short biography : illustrated by protraits, of prominent residents of Atlantic County and the famous summer and winter resort, celebrated throughout America - Atlantic City. > Part 11
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How furrowed are the sands when the tide has drawn away from them ! There was such sparkle and glee when the pleased waters were
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swelling and glittering over this tract ; but they drew off by degrees, and now how all the smooth face is mapped out in furrows and wrinkles ! It is tired of its toys, the fickle sea ; it has left behind, little prized, these
The Tides of Life shells and seaweed, these smooth pebbles ; these round chalk mar- bles, and pyramids and cones of spar. But it cannot rest ; see it is coming back again even now ; the far murmur grows into a hoarse roar ; the silver curves hasten each after each along the level sand ; for a time it was sick at heart, and tired of all ; moaning, bankrupt, broken-hearted, weary, just now; quitting, as worthless, its possessions and its playthings ; and now the turn has come ; the old eagerness has awakened, the thoughtless, fervent pursuit is resumed. Ah ! some do indeed make life a series of rises and fall- ings of the tide ; now it is a loss, and they leave life's bare shore to moan in solitude far from men ; now another prize has allured them, and see how earnest and continuous the plashing, ever- advancing pursuit again. Deso- late, bankrupt just now ; but a second object attracts, and the old excite- ment and eagerness return. This in some cases, but not always, nor often.
O nature, quiet nature ! we cannot then keep our thoughts, ourselves rather, out of you ; you must ever suggest to us the sad or strange or glad realities of our own life ; you are ever a parable, an allegory, of which the history of man is the ready interpretation. The song of a bird ; the tint of a sunset ; the dance of the falling snow ; the thud of the waves advancing or retreating-these are but the accompaniment to which the life of man is the glad or sober song.
There was a time with most of us when we neither knew nor cared from what quarter the wind blew-when we had not the remotest conception
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that the direction of the air-currents could concern us at all. Those were the days of childhood's happy ignorance ; when we knew nothing of the contents of the human thorax beyond what others chose to tell us ; A Word on when lungs, and liver and heart, were things we sometimes heard the East Wind mentioned, but did not trouble our heads about, having very vague notions of their existence ; when the stomach was only known by its cravings, and the nerves were a mystery intelligible only to elderly people. A blissful state of things that, more permanent, it would appear, among our ancestors than with the average of mortals now-a-days. The first practical idea about the east wind that a young fellow gets hold of is that it is good for sliding and skating, because it locks up the canals and streams, and covers the ponds and ornamental waters with practicable ice. We can well recall the eagerness and the profound interest with which we used to watch the weathercock on the church tower in our skating days, and the mortification, not to say disgust, with which we saw the brazen indicator veer spitefully southwards.
As we grow older we grow more conscious of the mysterious ma- chinery within us, and the atmospheric conditions without us, and of the marvellous and ominous sympathy there is between the two. But if we are in average health it is long before we begin to quarrel with the east wind. For a time we love to face it, and even take it to our embrace, feeling that it is a mighty breath, strong to build up the stalwart frame and renew the energies of youth. We revel in it, and, rejoicing in the freshness it brings, and the vigor it imparts, can repeat with pleasure Mr. Kingsley's
rhapsody in praise of the east wind.
A Boisterous Friend
But by-and-by we find it rather too much for us-just a leetle too boisterous and rude ; and though we hardly confess to that much, we catch ourselves shirking its proffered embrace, shunting ourselves to the lee side of available shelter when it blows hard, and buttoning up to the chin when it must needs be encountered. Still, we can encounter it, and get the better
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of it too, in a brisk walk or a gay canter along the open downs ; and we do so occasionally, perhaps pluming ourselves on our hardiness. But it may happen that we do it once too often, or without sufficient care, and then the east wind gets a grip of our breathing apparatus, and shows that he is master by consigning us to the bed or the easy chair, to a slop diet and tee- totalism-to the hot mustard "foots." When a man, verging, say upon the fifth age of Shakespeare, has had one or two experiences of this kind, it is truly marvellous to note how learned he becomes upon the subject of the east
WHEN THE EAST WINDS BLOW
wind. He need not look at the weathercock for information ; he has an index with him-a sort of weather-gauge-that tells him when it is coming, as sure as a gun ; he scents it afar, even while sitting by his fireside ; can tell of its advent twenty, thirty, forty hours before its arrival ; he will wake up in the night and say to his wife, "The wind is getting into the east," and, turning under the blankets, go to sleep again to dream of it and the plagues it may bring with it. He does not indorse the poet's invocation- " Hail to thee, north-easter!"
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-rather he dreads its approach and only hopes to have done with it as soon as possible.
The east wind caroms upon Atlantic City at an acute angle, and although it may come to us laden with the fogs of Newfoundland its effects are felt less than at any other place upon the coast.
Nothing else so strongly appeals to the imagination of the frequenter of the sea-coast as the mysteries of its myriad victims-the countless ships which are scattered upon its sunless floor, gone from the ken of man and forgotten in the limbo of time past and blotted from memory. the Sea
Che ffloor of
The idea that ships are likely to be buried in the accumulations which are forming on the deeper sea-floor, rests upon a mistaken conception as to the speed with which sediments are laid down at a distance from the shore. These deposits of the open oceans are so slowly made that we must decree it excessive to suppose that a depth of a single inch can be formed in a thousand years. It is likely that in no case, save near the coast-line, or in the rare places where the showers of volcanic waste bring an unusually large amount of detritus, can a ship be buried in the accumu- lating strata so as to be preserved in a recognizable form. If the creatures of the far future, to whom it may be given to scan the rocks which are now forming and are hereafter to be uplifted into dry land, are to find a trace of their remote ancestors in the deposits, they will secure it not by finding the hulks of great vessels, probably not from the bones of men or the common implements which serve them in seafaring, but from the objects composed of glass, or more likely those made of the rarer metals, such as gold and platinum. Of the vast wreckage of an iron warship such as the Captain, which sank in the Bay of Biscay, the hulk, great guns, shot and shell, the timber, and all the forms of its crew will probably disappear before they are entombed in the slowly gathered strata. The geological remainder will perhaps be the coal of her fuel store, the gold of the watches and trinkets and the massive glass objects which abound in such a ship ; in all but a
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small and little indicative part of what went to the bottom of the sea when the vessel foundered. It has, to many persons, been an interesting specu- lation as to the aspect of the countless wrecks which have been swallowed up by the North Atlantic since the churn of waters has been ploughed by the keels of ships. Their number is probably to be reckoned by the tens of thousands, and the greater part of them lie in a comparatively small part of that field. If we count this portion of the Atlantic which is most peopled with wrecks as having an area of 3,000,000 square miles, and estimate the total number of such ruins within this space as 30,000, we would have an average of one sunken ship for each hundred square miles of surface.
A BALTIMORE BELLE AND TWO PHILADELPHIANS
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Atlantic City. Chapter {{111.
[Angus Sinclair, in Locomotive Engineering for August, 1898 :]
"It has been my privilege to ride on a great many fast trains in America and Great Britain. I have a habit of carrying a stop watch and of using it to time the speed between mile posts, which practice has The Fastest
given me positive evidence of the speed attained or maintained. Crain
After watching the speed of celebrated trains in the British Isles, I have at certain times been moved to remark to railway men and others that some trains in America made better time than those of other countries. When I proceeded, by referring to my note book, to give particulars, the best of friends would regard me with a pitying smile which said as plainly as possible 'he has acquired skill in the Yankee habit of boasting and lying.'
A TRun to the Shore
As I am going to be visiting among railway friends abroad for a few weeks I wished to witness for myself the run of the fastest train in the world, that runs from Camden to Atlantic City, a distance of 55.5 miles in 50 minutes, an average speed of 62.2 miles per hour. Through the courtesy of Mr. Theodore Voorhees, Vice-President of the Philadelphia and Reading Railway, I received permission to ride on the engine of that celebrated train. The train is due to leave Camden, which is across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, at 3.50 P. M., and I was there in good time to witness the preliminary touches given to the locomotive before starting upon a trip that must put a severe test upon various elements of the engine.
Half an hour before starting time the engine was backed up to the train, which consisted of seven passenger cars. I happened to be
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R VFREIGHT STADION
174
IT
NEW FERRY HOUSE OF THE ATLANTIC CITY RAILROAD PHILADELPHIA & READING RAILWAY
exceptionally fortunate to take notes of an extraordinary teat of fast train running, for it was the first time that seven cars had been hauled on this train, five or six cars having been the usual load last season. Each car averages 75,000 pounds, and the engine, in working order with tender, weighs about 218,000 pounds, so there were 525,000 pounds of train, making a total of 743,000 pounds, or 3711/2 tons to be moved.
Che Mig Engine
I found a crowd of interested admirers about the engine watching every move of the engineer and fireman, both of whom were quietly attending to the duties of preparing the engine to do its work without chance of failure. The engineer, Mr. Charles H. Fahl, kept moving about the engine scanning every part, and dropping a little oil on the parts that needed the greatest amount of lubrication. While I remained watching him he oiled the principal bearings twice, and then carried his cans to the cab, apparently satisfied that his full duty had been performed. The fireman, Mr. John Pettit, was engaged throwing a few shovelfuls of coal at brief intervals into the enormous firebox which has 86 square feet of grate area, and watching at intervals to find a thin spot that needed covering up.
These trains were run for three months last year on the 50 minute schedule, with the same men on the engine, without a single mishap, or without losing a minute of time. The engine never had a hot pin or bearing, and, in spite of the tremendous work put upon it, was always ready to turn round and take out another train without a minute's delay. That fine record was due to the care in seeing that everything was in good order before the start was made. In conversing with Vice-President Voorhees 1 found that he attributed the successful running of this train in a great measure to the care and skill of the engineer and fireman.
Che Stait At 3.50 precisely the signal came to start and the engine moved ahead without slip or quiver. A few turns of the great driving wheels forced the train into good speed and away we rushed out through the yards, through the suburban residences and away past smiling vegetable
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farms. On reaching the first mile post to be seen, which was about a mile out, I had my watch in hand and the second one was passed in 68 seconds. An interval of 62 seconds brought us to the following post, and then the succeeding notations were 60, 59, 56, 52, 50, 48, 46, 52, 53, 53, 51, 50, 52, 49, 50, 53, 52, 50, 49, 44, 45, 42, 44 seconds for each succeeding mile. Then I made up my mind that the high speed was authentic and put my watch in my pocket the better to note particulars about the handling of the engine.
In the Cab I was sitting on the fireman's side and could not see how the engineer was handling his reverse lever and throttle lever, but I noticed that there was no change in the point of cut off after the train was going forty miles an hour, and it seemed to me that the steam was permitted to follow the piston at a little more than half stroke, The steam pressure gauge could be easily noted, and the safety valve blew off at 230 pounds per gauge pressure. The fireman appeared to do his best to keep the pressure about five pounds short of the popping point, and he did his work well, but the indications were that he had more difficulty in keeping the steam down to the popping point than in letting it rise. He did not seem to work much on the fire. He watched it very closely, and threw in a few lumps occasionally, but there was no hard work in supplying all the steam needed to do the enormous work of pulling the heavy train at the speed noted. The coal used was small lump similar to house furnace coal.
The road is a little undulating, but the rises and descends seemed to make little difference to the speed. Out through stretches of farm lands, away through spreading woods and moor-like regions of scrub oaks the train rushed along, neither curve nor grade seeming to restrain its velocity. The engine rode with astonishing smoothness. When I have ridden on other engines working hard and keeping up speed over 70 miles an hour, there was always a harsh vertical vibration due probably to the jerk of compression, but that disagreeable sensation was entirely absent in this
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compound. The work done gauged in horse power per hour was enormous, and perhaps unprecedented for a locomotive, but it was performed with remarkable smoothness, and the impression was always present that the engine still had some margin of power in reserve which could be used if necessary.
About four miles from Atlantic City a signal was against the train and the speed was reduced to about 20 miles an hour before the signal was
ATLANTIC CITY RAILROAD
PHILA. & READING RAILWAY LOCOMOTIVE USED FOR FAST SERVICE ON THE ATLANTIC CITY RAILROAD
lowered. That was about three-quarters of a mile from the succeeding mile post. I noted the time from that mile post to the next one and the mile was run in 60 seconds. That will give a good idea of the power Over 70 Miles an Hour
of the engine.
Two minutes were used in running the last two miles through the switches. At least one minute was lost with the signal check. With these deductions I calculate that the average run was made at a speed of over 70 miles an hour."
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Atlantic City. Chapter {{10.
Atlantic City as a Winter and Spring Resort
[Extracts from an article which appeared in the Century Magazine, for January, 1898, which very aptly portrays Atlantic City of to-day and furnishes ample demonstration and proof for the now practically undisputed title of "the greatest all the year resort of the world :"] " During the winter, according to the reports issued by the weather bureau, the thermometer at Atlantic City averages higher than at any other point on the North Atlantic Coast. The fact needs no proof, for it is evident almost at once to any visitor. But the explanation requires some observation of the course of the Gulf Stream. This great river of warm water approaches so near to the coast of New Jersey that it furnishes an excellent natural " hot-water " system for warming the sea-breezes that constantly sweep over this great city of the coast.
Ube Gult Stream
One may say with little exaggeration that the waves which wash the Florida Coast are the same as those that here visit the Northern States. At no other point does the great Stream make a "P. P. C." call before setting out upon its voyage across the ocean to look after the comfort of our British Cousins. Fortunately the comparative warmth of the climate during the winter is not fol- lowed by the same rise of temperature in the summer. Owing to the nearness of the great Ocean, which acts as a
A MERMAID
regulator of heat, Atlantic City is em- phatically a resort for all the year. Cooled by sea-breezes in summer, and, strange as it may seem, warmed by the same breezes during the winter, the result is an equal climate that is
OH! WHAT FIN
exactly adapted for those enjoying good health or for invalids.
The Music of the Surf The thunder of the sea along the shore is heard at once upon alighting from the train ; and it is but a few minutes' ride to any of the many delightful hotels that the throng of visitors has caused to spring up all along the wonderful beach. Ordinarily, the journey to a warmer climate is so long and tedious that it serves to discourage the visits of those who are in good health, even if it does not make it impossible for in- valids to secure a needed change of climate. Then, too, no one wishes unnecessarily to put himself out of reaching distance of his own home and friends. It is sometimes most essential that a return should be possible at almost a moment's notice, and where one is seeking health, to go into a distant land, or to make a journey of hundreds of miles, might neutralize any possible benefits expected from the trip.
Proverbially ignorant of the advantages of their own country, few Americans know that Atlantic City is the largest, richest, most popular, and, in short, the finest watering place in the world. Its " season " never comes to an end, which alone gives it a great advantage over all resorts of the kind, for the proprietors of its hotels need not reckon upon making the profits of one season carry them over a dull time. There are forty millions of dollars' worth of property within the city limits, as estimated by the State Comptroller, and not a little of this value is due to the many miles of seaside homes owned by the well-to-do and fashionable of the world, who have discovered here advantages lacking elsewhere. As a result, houses are magnificent and the avenues are broad, clean and
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well-kept, the owners showing a. spirit of rivalry in making houses as attractive as possible. The location being so favorable, and the climate so exceptional, the railroad facilities are of the best, and the hotels are in the hands of most enterprising owners. The fastest regular trains in the world, according to the Scientific American, are those running between Atlantic City and Philadelphia. These lines, of course, connect this resort closely with all parts of the country.
A Den Picture
As for the beach itself, everything possible has been done to make it attractive. The " Esplanade " or ocean steel walk is the name given to a walk five miles long and forty feet wide that is parallel to the edge of the ocean. It used to be called the Boardwalk, but since it has all been rebuilt the name is not quite appropriate, for it rests on a frame- work of steel, and is as secure as an iron pier throughout its whole extent. Along the line of the shore there is nothing to cut off a view of Old Ocean except an occasional pavilion in which are comfortable seats where promenaders can rest. The walk itself is from six to twelve feet above the sand, and is guarded by a metal railing on the side toward the ocean, while along the shore side will be found shops, bathing houses, and booths for the sale of whatever can attract visitors. When it is said that a quarter of a million dollars have been spent in making this walk all that it should be, it will be understood that the steel walk is something more than a line of planks with which other seashore resorts are occasionally provided. In winter and summer the walk is thronged with pleasure seekers or those who have come here for health and rest. Shakespeare's "Seven Ages" each finds thousands of representatives. Here one may see the red-cheeked, bright eyed school-girl, swinging breezily along, enjoying the enfranchisement which the new time has brought to her ; the matron who, tired by the turmoil of the town, finds rest in the tumult of the sea, while about her are children, unconsciously
CAUGHT BY THE LENS
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breathing in health, though thinking only of pleasure ; professional and business men renewing their youth far from the counting-room and the court ; the philosopher and the idler, side by side, sunning themselves in the salt air, forgetting that there is to life any side but this.
As mildly temperate breezes turn winter into summer, so electricity turns night into day along this crowded thoroughfare. Truly, the throng does not seem to diminish at night. The old lady from the country who asked, upon first seeing the crowd upon Broadway, "What church is out ?" might be excused for inquiring, as she gazed upon the thronged esplanade, where all these people find lodgment. But when she had learned how many hotels Atlantic City supports, her wonder would be whence came all the people who fill them. It is claimed that no other city has a greater number of hotels and boarding-houses and the claim will be conceded at first glance. Indeed, it may be said that every building which is not either a hotel or a boarding house is a private cottage for the accommodation of visitors from the cities. One hundred and seventy-five thousand people can be cared for within Atlantic City, and besides those who go and come, there is a permanent population of twenty-five thousand. With such a number of inhabitants, it is hardly necessary to say that Atlantic City is a municipality perfectly equipped in all respects, and prides itself upon the enterprise and energy with which its affairs are conducted. There is a perfect sewerage system, a trolley line eight miles long, traversing the beach, well-paved streets, electric lights, and-most important of all-an ample water supply from artesian wells and springs, besides first class fire and police departments. The only complaint that can be made in regard to the police department is that its excellently disciplined force has not enough to do.
A Round of Pleasure
The old principle of "supply and demand " explains the excellent equipment of this seaport resort, for the people who gather here are used to the luxuries and delicacies of life, and familiar with the dainty
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THE DONKEY'S BURDEN
surroundings offered them by the capitals of the world. Naturally there is a numerous leisure class of the best type, and outdoor sports flourish, while theatres, dances, card parties and other entertainments never cease in the many hotels.
In the winter and spring, New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Baltimore send thousands of representatives to this city by the sea, and perhaps from February until June the island is at its best. The villas are filled with gay house parties, and the hotel-registers show the names of guests distinguished in the professional, political, or social world.
One advantage of this favored child of the Gulf Stream has not yet been mentioned. Although surrounded by salt water, the air of the island is exceptionally dry, and physicians agree that its climate is the most pleasant and invigorating in the world. Under the supervision of the best medical talent, with the aid of hot and cold sea-water baths and her ozone- laden air, her dry, crisp breezes from pine forests, and her wealth of sunshine, Atlantic City performs marvelous cures.
For Invalids
Not the least of the advantages offered to the invalid is that of being surrounded by the strong and healthy sportsmen, who come, with guns and rods, to enjoy the best hunting and fishing to be found along the coast. Who does not know the reputation of the great game beaches of Brigantine and Barnegat ? Who has not heard of the safe, speedy and comfortable fleet of fishing boats and other craft of the Atlantic City squadron ? The succession of game and fowl, each in its season, is varied and attractive. Snipe, plover, marlin, willet, yellow legs, black duck, mallard and teal flock here, as if, in spite of the eager sportsmen, they were determined to enjoy the delights of the climate. The brother of the rod and line will find
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schools of bluefish, sheepshead, drum, croker, codfish, herring, mackerel, sea-bass and weakfish.
When it is understood that Atlantic City has every convenience of comfort and luxury to be found in great cities, it will be seen that it is impossible to do more than refer to the many-sided attractions here collected. The schools, both public and private, are excel- Churches and Schools, Charities
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