Tammany District Party

In Central Park, Manhattan, where, under the dark trees, thousands of couples play every night, there occurred last week an event innocent and charming. A boy so fat that he looked like a pudding walked through a crowd of 33,000 screaming children while he sipped a huge mug of milk.

The fat boy was 12-year-old Jack Linder who weighed 341 pounds. He was the most honored guest at the garden party given by Thomas M. Farley, political leader of the Fourteenth Assembly District. Mr. Farley's district is full of Jewish, Italian and Irish constituents. All of these have plenty of children and plenty were at Mr. Farley's party last week. As demure and vagrant as fluffy rabbits, the little girls in their white dresses went creeping about the lawns giving vent to small cries. The stags at the party chased them from time to time: there was a regrettable fracas when one of the latter, finding himself next a small female with a loud voice, attempted to stuff his handkerchief down her throat and cut off her hair, perhaps her head, with his pocket knife. An alderman took action and the party progressed without further untoward incident until the time came for eating.

This precipitated a scramble so dreadful that it is impossible properly to describe it. Generous Mr. Farley had distributed 15,000 quarts of ice cream, 10,000 quarts of milk and five tons of crackers.

Finally filled, the children sat in regurgitating placidity while prizes were awarded. William Dattner, 12, and Evelyn Williams, 13, received awards for having more freckles than any of the other little children. Eilene and Peggy Goeble, dressed like Gold Dust Twins, got prizes for the most original costume. When it came to choosing the fattest boy at the party, Jack Linder of 1340 Third Avenue* flopped up to the judges to claim his due.

Most political district leaders give such parties but staunch Tammany Tom Farley's are perhaps the most celebrated in Manhattan. The pre-eminent success of this particular Farley Fete, which produced more congratulatory editorials than Mr. Farley's fierce but successful fight to attain the leadership of his district, could be attributed largely to the admirable Linder. Jealous Republicans, who can give no such parties in Manhattan, scoffingly suggested that the fat boy would have been kept away from the party for fear of frightening the other guests, had it not been for the fact that Mr. Farley, himself a 6-ft. package weighing 190 pounds, likes to see much made much of.

*An address now famed in Manhattan.