as regards the manners,
customs, people, and language spoken. In the thickly settled sections
east of the Bowery the Germans predominate, and one might live there for
a year without ever hearing an English word spoken. The Germans of New
York are a very steady, hard-working people, and withal very sociable.
During the day they confine themselves closely to business, and at night
they insist upon enjoying themselves. The huge Stadt Theatre draws
several thousand within its walls whenever its doors are opened, and
concerts and festivals of various kinds attract others. But the most
popular of all places with this class of citizens is the beer-garden.
Here one can sit and smoke, and drink beer by the gallon, listen to
music, move about, meet his friends, and enjoy himself in his own
way--all at a moderate cost.

From one end of the Bowery to the other, beer-gardens abound, and their
brilliantly illuminated signs and transparencies form one of the most
remarkable features of that curious street. Not all of them are
reputable. In some there is a species of theatrical performance which is
often broadly indecent. These are patronized by but few Germans,
although they are mainly carried on by men of that nationality. The
Rough and servant girl elements predominate in the audiences, and there
is an unmistakably Irish stamp on most of the faces present.

The true beer-garden finds its highest development in the monster
Atlantic Garden, which is located in the Bowery, next door to the Old
Bowery Theatre. It is an immense room, with a lofty curved ceiling,
handsomely frescoed, and lighted by numerous chandeliers and by brackets
along the walls. It is lighted during the day from the roof. At one
side is an open space planted with trees and flowers, the only mark of a
garden visible. A large gallery rises above the floor at each end. That
at the eastern or upper end is used as a restaurant for those who desire
regular meals. The lower gallery is, like the rest of the place, for
beer-drinkers only. Under the latter gallery is a shooting hall, which
is usually filled with marksmen trying their skill. On the right hand
side of the room is a huge orchestrion or monster music-box, and by its
side is a raised platform, occupied by the orchestra employed at the
place. The floor is sanded, and is lined with plain tables, six feet by
two in size, to each of which is a couple of benches. The only ornaments
of the immense hal