know about "Polly's." But the Villager?

"'Polly's'? But _of course_ 'Polly's.'"

There it is. _Of course_ "Polly's." "Polly's" is Greenwich Village in
little; it is, in a fashion, cosmic and symbolic.

Under the Liberal Club, where "Polly's" used to be located, the "Dutch
Oven," with its capacious fireplace and wholesome meals, now holds
sway. The prices are reasonable, the food substantial and the
atmosphere comfortable, so it is a real haven of good cheer to
improvident Villagers.

The Village Kitchen on Greenwich Avenue is another place of the same
sort. And Gallup's--almost the first of these "breakfast and lunch"
shops--is another. They are not unlike a Childs restaurant, but with
the rarefied Village air added. You eat real food in clean
surroundings, as you do in Childs', but you do it to an accompaniment
that is better than music--a sort of life-song, rather stirring and
quite touching in its way--the Song of the Village. How can people be
both reckless and deeply earnest? But the Villagers are both.

One of the oddest sights on earth is a typical "Breakfast" at
"Polly's," the "Kitchen" or the "Dutch Oven," after one of the masked
balls for which the Village has recently acquired such a passion.
After you have been up all night in some of these mad masquerades--of
which more anon--you may not, by Village convention, go home to bed.
You must go to breakfast with the rest of the Villagers. And you must
be prepared to face the cold, grey dawn of "the morning after" while
still in your war paint and draggled finery. It is an awful ordeal.
But "it's being done in the Village"!

Quite recently a new sort of eating place has sprung up in Greenwich
Village--of so original and novel a character that we must investigate
it in at least a few of its manifestations. Speaking for myself, I had
never believed that such places could exist within sound of the "L"
and a stone's throw from drug stores and offices.

But see what you think of them.

[Illustration: THE DUTCH OVEN. One of the favorite eating places of the
Village. Some of the famous breakfasts are given here.]

II

"I can't believe _that_!" said Alice.

"Can't you?" the Queen said in a pitying tone. "Try again:
draw a long breath and shut your eyes."

Alice laughed. "There's no use trying," she said. "One
_can't_ believe impossible things."

"I daresay you haven't had much practice," said the Queen.
"When I was yo