HIDDEN BARS IN NEW YORK

Hokitika Guardian, 25 July 1928, Page 3

HIDDEN BARS IN NEW YORK

(By W. F. Bullock in “Daily Mail.”)

MEW YORK, .June 3. '

“Wanted—Experienced drink-mixer. One wlu> has had experience dating back to ten or twelve years a,go preferred. Private family.” This advertisement is no joke, hut a serious application for a barman. Behind it lies one of the strangest and most amusing consequences of prohibition. Society in New York, not to be defeated by he Volstead Act, has equipped its own private bars. Very often the host will himself act ns barman, encouraging his guests to imitate the jolly rowdiness of the old swingdoor saloons. Hilarity is the lule of the moment. Take one example. A famous lawyer has his ora private /bar. It adjoins his law library, on the walls of which hang autographed portraits of great American lawyers and statesmen.

Frosted mirrows and lively pictures radorn the walls! The fnvourite cuspidor nestles against the brass foot rail of the counter, glasses and bottles of liquor stand gallantly in rows. The cocktail shaker is ready. The host himself, divested for the moment of his legal seriousness, may he seen with large brushy eyebrows., a long, waxed moustache, and wearing the overall of the one-time operator of drinks in the saloons. On the counter in front of him lies a lnigh rubber mallet with which from time to time he keeps in order a- too vivacious spirit by gently tapping him (or her) on the head. Pice and gambling games are at hand. It is reported, that liondon has supplied the latest novelty for making drinks: It is a top hat with the crown carrying tiny flasks holding liquor for cocktails with a diminutive shaker to mix them properly. In America the chemist shop (drug store) sells everything in soft drinks, cigarettes, food, and jnedical requisites. . . The story is told of a Philadelphia lady who came down to New York and entered a drug store to buy a particular brand* of cigarette. The shop was in a “shady” part of Manhattan. “Certainly,” said the clerk behind the counter, and opening a door he escorted the astonished lady into a private liquor-selling establishment. It happened that the name of the ci'-Oirottr she wanted was for the moment the password to the bar. Two factories across the Hudson are turning out genuine “antique” bars for private homes.