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European Hotels are Copying American Plans
European hotels of the better class
ar* being Am*rlr*nlr*d In point of
construction, equipment and manage
niont a* rapidly a* their owner* ran
bring about a change American
patronage ha* become such an Impot
rant factor that owner* of big Ton
ttnental ho*tlerle» aa' their sucres*
depend* upon adopting American
method*, and he* de*. European* gen
erallv are learning their lesson* from
American* in thl* »•■»(>«■<• t and tegio-
Ing to add their demand* to those of
the visitor* for more modern accom
modation* A score of large hotel*
to he erected In European elite* neat
year wll he modelled almost entirely
on an American plan
Builder* of several of these struct
ure* are now In New York studilng
the biggest hotels her* and In other
cities Th*> are enthusiastic in pralsn
of what they have seen These men
are Herr Antoine Aullch. proprietor of
the Savoy West End Hotel. In Faria
had: Herr Arthur Uelsaler, proprie
tor of the Campbell, the Columbia
and other hotels In Paris and Tton
v llle. and M. I .eon Tauber, proprietor
of the hotel Iteglna. one of the liest
known hotel* In the French capital.
Ilerr Aullch and llerr (itdssler ate
beginning the construction of a large
hotel In the Champ* Khaees mar the
Arc de Trlomphe. and M. Tauber I*
building another In the Avenue Kleb
er These new plaees will be con
etructed after the fashion of the hlg
hotel* In New York, and their pro*
rnt plan* will be remodelled as a re
suit of what the proprietor* have
aeen In thl* country. Messrs Aullch,
Tauber and (ielssler have visited
Philadelphia. Washington. Buffalo,
Nlagun Kalla anil Boston, but ssy
they find the greatest degree of per
fection In New York hotels.
"American patronage." said llerr
Aullch, "has become such a factor
In our business that It la Important
that we make our hotel* meet Amerl
ran taste In every respect, even If
these changes weie not desirable to
all classes The American hotel Is
perfection viewed through any eyes,
nad European now realise It For
msn< year* I have conducted hotels
In Egypt and Carlsbad, and In these
places nlnen per cent of our patron
age comes from Americans and Eng
llahmen.
"Of course hy contact with Amerl
can* we have learned In a general
wav what their taale* and require
m*nt* are, hut we thought It better
to come her* and get otir Ideas first
hand. The vlalt has been a revels
tlou- truly a revelation of ronven
fence, comfort, speed everywhere In
fart, with few- exception* we shall.
*o far a* possible, reproduce the
American hotel In Europe The fast
elevator I* about the only Improve
Trent you have here that w-e shall
not duplicate It would never, never
do to whlak a Frenchman or an Ital
ian or a Knaniard upstair* al ihe
rate of a mile s minute Huch «n e\
perlenee would frighten him into his
terlea But in the matter of bath* In
each room, running water, pneumatic
tube*, letter chutes, ventilating and
beating rest igernttug telephone and
telegraph and In u hundred other
things we shall Imlld snd etpilp on
the American plan
■ •,'/ .i ; . ■
T .*4
«- m 4. Vj
PALACE OF JUSTICE. IN
PARIS. AS IT WILL AP
PEAR AND BUILBINCS
THAT IWUST CIVE
PLACE TO IT i
Thin de*lgn for the new Pal*|* rlr
.1 n»i!rr 1* the work at M. Journalra,
architect of the licpartment of the
Bdne It larhldN five police court*,
« hall for victim* of accident*. en
larged office* for the Procurcur of the
Republic and for the Judge* d‘ln*truc
tion. *nd will make a line addition to
the rftj'a public building*
"Pa. what are the wage* of »ln?"
"Well, the ealarte* of tho*c irn*t
Official* vary greatly, my son. - '— ;
Smart Set
There I* nothing wron* with the
Blind of » man w.,0 mini* hi* own'
fc*r« 1
"It la too bad," continued Iferr An-’
llrh. "that more Kttmpeana do not
vtalt this country, they have such Ini
irerfect Ideas of America and It* In
stitution* and there la so much for
them to learn here American* gen
erally know much of our country, but
a* a rule the European has little con
ceptlon of the marvellous way this
country has been developed or of ihe
prai tlea 1 and admirable way you
have of doing Ihitigs To Us hotel
men there la no class of people In the
world a* satisfactory to Ret along
with a* Americana The American
knows every time what he wants, and
when he gets It he Is willing to pay
for tt If the American has. as you
say. a kick coming, he leils you so
to your face and that’* the end of It.
He doesn't watt to do his sredding
after he gets awa< With other na
tlonalltles the hotelkeeper Is sure to
have trouble all the time, so many
Europeans do not know what they
want—that la in say, they have a
hear Idea that they want something,
they haven't got and then grumble If
the, don't get that Indefinite some
thing Now, I am glad to say that In
the matter of hotel accommodations
they have discovered that they want,
what American* want, and when they
get that they have got the best there
Is In the world Ho you see why we
have made this trip to America, nnd
tlie matron* that brought us here will
bring others."
Herr Aullch was asked to explain
why. In his Judgment. American ho
tela have so far surpassed those of
Europe.
"It Is all unite easily understood,"
said ha. "when you know tin- condl
Hons under which we have lived and
are still living First, I would say. It
Is a matter of money. While ninny In
divlduala snd companies who eonirol
large hotels In Europe are wealthy,
few of them are able or willing to
put millions Into the building and
equipment of a place as you do In
tills country. Another thing which
has kept us hark, and still is retard
ing our advance, I* building restric
tions llpre you may run a hotel up
twenty or thirty stories I believe
there is no limit heavenward while
til f’arla or London or Berlin or Vlcn
na a building law says you must not
go higher Ihan four or five stories.
"Just here I wsnt to say a word
about your tall buildings It Is the
accepted notion. I think, among Euro
peana who have never vial ted Anver
ra that the skyscrapers of New York
are about Ihe ugliest creation of
man's handiwork One hears some
ridiculous romments over there on
the "cloud takers" of New York.
Therefore, you mav know that w
were pleasantly surprised whin we
came Into New York and aw the ar
ehltectural harmony, the real beauty
of most of your tall buildings. It Is
quite wonderful how avniuteirleal
thev are when one stops to consider
that thev are hutll on an area that
would be required for on ordinary
door step in most European cities In
const ruction they are clever and one
Is obliged to have a great admiration
for your arehlterls and builder*
l.asl evening we were railed upon Itv
one of your engineers and he told
ip more about the practical side of
AOltjej vszu. to st+jer. wzy top ms
w\z;w' CQCter*
building In five minutes than weeould
learn In Carls In five days. That Is
the spirit of this country; you find
ways. That !* the spirit nf this
country; you find out what you want
and then find ihe quickest way to
get It.
"The remarkable facility which you
have here for dtilng things with nut
rhlnery is another advantage in your
hotel roust ruction In Europe there
ain restrictive laws against insinua
tion of eertaln kind* of machinery
which save time and labor. Just us
there arc against building higher than
five stories. For example, we have
refrigerator plants, hut they are not
constructed with the improvement*
you have here. It Is the same with
our elevators They are more like
vear* ago. The Idea here Is to make
everything a* handy and convenient
for everybody as possible. That I*
true In every part of the hotel, from
toe furnace in Ihe haseinenl to the
skvllghl on the roof l'ri Europe we
fv i >
We are still trying to persuade our
selves that what was grsid enougn
for our great -grand-fat hers Is good
enough for us. onrerleans don't think
that way. I am glad they do not.”
"How do prices charged by the best
hotel H In New York compare with
those of the same grade of hotels In
Europe?" he was asked.
“Very favorably Indeed." he said.
"Of rourse. we do not gel as gorsl
price* there as on* must pay In
New York, hut we understand that
It has to lie more expensive here.
Still, w> are astonished that prices
here are not higher than they are
when one consider* the enormous
cost of these great hotels and the
hlg dally expenses of running them
Take the HI. Regis for Illustration
One who knows what hotel equip
ment and service cost and who Is t
stranger to American hotels begins
to wonder If his hank account will
permit hint to remain here long when
ho first enters Ihe place and looks
-ihout. It is a palace, one might say.
filled with art treat tire, the best of
service, the best and moat substan
tial of everything It has cost many
fortunes to do all I his, one reflects,
nnd he savs to himself, 'lt will cost
a small fortune to remain here for
long .' Hut one Is happily dlssappolnt
ed. The rates are no higher than
In other first rate hotels.
"It Is the same with all the hotels
here, the Waldorf, the Manhattan, the
Holland House, the Hotel Aslor and
so on through the list. rjo over to
Philadelphia or to Washington, there
tt Is the same."
The size of American hotels is also
a feature that has amazed the visi
tors
"Our Country Is larger than yours
in point of population." said llerr
Aullch. "hut yon have more hotel
room. Indeed. It makes one a hit on
vlotts to think that von here may
build two or three fair sized hotel's
skyward after vv> would he obliged
to put on a roof In our country. The
hotel which Herr Geissler ami myself
are to btilld In Paris will have 20ft
r<sinis M. Tauber's new place wifi
contain about Sfttt. These are large
Hotels with ns. hut here t.ftftt) risims
in a hotel doesn't appear to be at all
out of the ordinary, and how main
THE AUGUSTA HERALD.
more may be added to that numlier
If you continue going upward Is hard
to say. In the matter of private
hath*, per ha pa there has been the
greatest Improvement In first class
hotels on the other aide. A few year*
ago a patron who asked for a hath In
hla risim or anlte waa Psiked upon
with ausplrlon or pity. Il w»s aa
tinuaual a request a* If he had asked
to have hla carriage placed outside
his dieir. I nen Americans began to
grow Inshdant. about ijielr private
baths At first little heed was given
to the demands, hut each year the
American multitude grow larger and
with the arrival of each American waa
sure to rom« a request for private
hath. In tael this request ordinarily
preceded him by ruble and telegraph
And so the private hatha hail to he
put In.
Plumbing In old atrurturea I* not so
satisfactorily a-- new equipment in a
new building, hence the neeesslty for
many new hotel*. When the demands
for telephones In room*, for running
water and all thoae things first began
to press upon us they seemed about
as absurd n* the demands for private
baths, hilt Americana will have what
they want abroad as well as at. home,
and these new things have been put
In.
“There |s, however, one feature of
the European hotel which explains
In a measure why we have been slow
In past 'ears about providing mechan
ical facilities for our patrons That
is the matter of personal service. In
that we are far in advance of Ameri
cans. ’Here when a person enters
a hotel he Is assigned to a room and
there the angel of hospitality leaves
hint Once he Is in his qilarter* the
hotel management expects him take
rare of hlntself and employ his own
way in getting what he wanla. To
he sure, he has hia telephone connect
ing with the office, he has electric
bells and other facilities or communi
cation with the desk half a mlie ot
such a matter beneath him, but there
Is an almost entire absence of that
faithful personal service which a
European hotel provides.
"With ns the moment a person en
tors a hotel he Is met by the manager
or the reception clerk and made to
feel at home. He Is also made aware
of the fact that we must know all
about hint, who he Is. where h« came
from and very much about him that
is never sought to find out here. In
fart. It Is requited hy law in European
countries that a stranger In a hotel
must, to a degree*, give an arrottnt
of hlntself. Ihe police may demand
to know all about hint if they so de
sire.
Rut while he Is subjected to a
certain measure of sernnity he is like
wise cheered bv a quality of courtesy
and alien on from nil In the hotel
that one never finds in this country.
Front the proprietor down to the
humblest servant all eater to his
needs ami dealres. so luat what we
lark in mecnanieal invention we make
up in human kindness, and It isn't
any more expensive than the service
here Yet in most hotels we have
visited In merlea We have been quitv>
anta/.i-d at tne courtesy we have re
ceived. after all we have heard on
•he other side about the rough and
ready way of doing tilings here. You
must understand that wnai. with you
here In America would be regarded
as ordinary treatment from aervanta
we would consider as rruel neglect.
It la a matter of generations of train
ing and custom. ,
"Another feature of the American
hotel which la rapidly coming Into
use In Europe la a barroom or place
where drinks and cigars are dispen
sed. These places are being made
much larger In all new hotel* —by
that I would not. have It Inferred that
people, hut the notion of a larger
room, with metre light snd attractive
decoration, has become the proper
thing with tig as much as be r e, As
to food, cooking and table, service. 1
ain not sure that we can learn any
thing from American hotels, except
possibly In certain mechanical d*v
vices whlcn come into play In these
departments, as In every other part
of -tie American hote.You seem to
do almost, everything here by touch
ing a button, and whatever Is left
to be done by hand Is done with elec
trical swiftness, even to the getting
on an«l off street car*.
"Speaking of street cars brings nte
to another subject that Is closely as
sociated with the hotel business, and
that Is railroad travel In tills country.
It seems to us as we have been trav
elling about, that you have both the
best nnd the worst passenger serviee
In the world. That sounds paradoxi
cal. atul perhaps I would belter say
that you have the best railroad ser
vice by day and the worst at night to
he found anywhere. In fact, wc are
so displeased with the way passen
gers are disposed of In your sleeping
ears that we have travelled at night
only once, and then we preferred to
sit up after we discovered the way
you have of hanging people up on
pegs all In a row. But tne day ser
vice. I admit, is pleasant enough to
make up for what one must endure
hi night. What an admirable service
it would he here if you could combine
your day service with your night ser
vice! You have the ideal method of
travelling by day—comfortable Pull
man cars, parlor and buffet cars, ex
quisite dining cars, with the best of
attendance; In fact, the American
porters here remind me Arab ser
vants. But. oh. the horror of your
night ears! I have very much en
joyed every trip I have taken over
your railroads In the daytime, hut
when night approached I fel- like go
ing back to Europe.”
A WAGNER ANECDOTE.
How He Showed His Joys at a "Parsi
fal” Rehearsal.
The following uneedote of Wagner
is told by Alfred Reisenauer, the pian
ist. who. as a pupil of Liszt, knew the
composer of "Parsifal" personally:
“Wagner was always more or less
self conscious." says Reisenauer. "and
only at rare intervals did his friends
see htm In moods that could be called
anything hut premeditated. In Rai
n-nth I saw him in a highly character
istic situation, and I never shall for
get it. It was at a rehearsal of Par
sifal.' The garden scene had just been
admirably sung and danced, where
upon Wagner, in his exuberant joy.
hugged and kissed ihe artists, and
then, quite beside himself, got down on
alt fours and barked like a dog, con
cluding his exhibition by throwing his
legs In the afr and balancing himself
on his head.
"At this interesting moment Liszt
and several of his pupils, including
myself, walked on the stage. Quick as
a Hash. Liszt, who always played the
role of Wagner's self constituted• tie
fender. said grimly. 'Well, if that's a
pose, it's the hardest one in the world
to hold, by thunder!” For the sake ot
the moist-r we tried to restrain our
mirtii. but the effort was not wholly
successful. I firmly believe, however.
| that Wagner himself was secretly
| pleased at the sensation for which he
was responsible."- Harper's Weekly.
It Worked Both Ways.
Sente years ago there came to Wash
ington it representative in congress
from lowa who was an ardent cham
pion of the cause of prohibition.
One day a friend from home drop
ped in to see the congressman. Dur
ing the course of his stay he had oc- ;
cssion to use his pocket knife, which 1
the representative much admired.
This knife had in it a hook, "design
ed." so the friend said, "to remove
stones that might become fastened in
a horse's hoof on a rocky road.”
Finally, seeing the intense admiration
of the congressman for the knife, the
friend gate it to him. When the
statesnmn had reached home and had
shown the gift to his wife, she
laughed.
“John.” said she. “any man who has
served three terms in the state sen
ate. been lieutenant governor and had
two terms in congress, must be a
pretty good man if he doesn't know a
champagne opener from a hoof
cleaner."
Somehow the story got out and was
copied by nearly every newspaper in
lowa One day the congressman met
the newspaper man whom he under
stood to he the author of the first
squib in the matter.
“You did me a great service." smil
ingly said the representative to the
correspondent. "All the prohibition
ists are taking my wife's view of mv
gnorance. and all the 'anti's 1 are in
sisting that I'm a devil of a good fel
low for imposing so successfully on
my wife, it works in my behalf which
ever way you take it.”—Saturday
evening Post,
"Mv goodness, what a fright he Is!
Ail his front teeth are gone.”
"Yes. Ho lost them plaving foot
ball."
"Oh. how perfectly grand! Intro
duce him to me. won't you, please?"
—Chicago Record Herald.
Mrs. Sax —Here’s a story ahnut one
of the directors of an insurance com
pany becoming a burglar.
Mr. Sax —Does it say what induced
him wi reform ?—Brookij a Ut, ,
All the News
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8