Daily Davenport Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1864-1874, 1868-07-27
HE Horrors of New York ON "a
EROt Nfght---A Visit TO she Quar-.
rerg saf-stt< rbnor

sNOs Wig nt-.-A VISIT 10 ttc quar-
tiers oGshe Poor
Prom The View York sun ~ Tsiasy.
We went to Fishers alley, back Of OAK
street, not far from No. 2s-perhaps that
very Number. A. all events, il Is one al
Tie beat known, dirties,, and most popu'ous
Of The many mines owned and ron by "r,-
spsctab.c gentry whose agents" Play
ths pulling part Of Psnckss, whiIs ihey re-
Joiee in the riohsr sol. Of Casby. The en-
trance 70 the inner courtyard was darker
than the front hall Of Erebus. We had 10
lantern, but the officers had been thsrs be
fere, and we only had to follow behind. VS.
ttumbled along the cobble stones, over the
truck and through TIE puddlcs, until ".
reached the Little courtyard, which was
illled with people. BY the side Of the fence
was huge garbage box-ws smslt it frst
and examined il sftsrward. On the steps
OF the ricksty buildings we're whole crews
Of tenants, dodgers and children. Old men
smoking pipes, children crying, playing or
sleeping, the two extremes, but none Of
middle age. nor any youths. A sury ques-
ton from . tall. gaunt lrishman, with .
long nose and short pipe, vas pleasantly
| answered, and We entered the building. IL
| is built Of wood, and 10 20 very shsky that
We wonder hsw It westhered tho thunder
storm eta fortnight since. On the frss
| noor front we found very nice respectable
| family, from the mother Of whom Ne Dor
| fowcd lantern AMI proceeded up stairs.
| Iii one OF the rooms was an old woman, who
was about spreading on the short and mar
| row isor, tho beds for her sxpe:te locg-
ers The tire was yet burning in the stoye,
the low calling compelled us q stoop, the
apertured apology for . window IN the
slauting window admitted only 4 stencil.
and faint with the heat, the smell and the
air, We were glad TO escape
In another room We found two women
aud three children. The room WAS per
haps ten feet by ak. The story ofths pale
were dead, these children and themsslvss
GU, by the day TO board, the others did as
best they could until six at night, and then,
hot aud tired. and discouraged, the women
returned, gathered their children together.
cooked what they had been able to get,
and they sti1ed through the hot watches Of
tho night as best they could.
We went into oil the rooms, Some Of
them were dark and vacant. In others
/ INV oS,uphutss seiytuk wv w NV
adults, with from three to eight little ones,
were variously occupied. IL cannot BE- an
easy matter for our readers TO imagins the
odoridc features Of the place. The rooms
are all small, mono OF them are we'll vsn,-
lated; in some the IRE was yet burning,
aud the smell Of fish, potatoes. garlic and
whisky. intensified the iisshy efiiuva
which, ~ matter Of fact, we're simply dis
gushing.
Tho heat Of the nights during the pres
snt week drove every sober lodgsr ont
upon tho steps. the doorway, the cellar
doors. the tagging and the boxes. To live
In tho close and sickening rooms was diff
cult, to breathe without being made i'll was
a physical impossibiliy. Sleep out Of
doors was not pleasant. Bad and poor q,
were the beds aud accomm od atoms Of the
rooms, they werc preferable in point Of
convenience to the cooler stones of the
court, and they could not 20 in. So they
remained out and kept up - we'll rs they
could, and the red sun Of the morning found
scores Of them pale, weary, and difcour-
| aged. exactly where the chastc moon Of
mi inight had lett thom. II was quite clear
that the ,iagna,es Of the Health Board
know but li.tic Of Fishers alley. If We
vesc king, the whole series of rock cries
there 'hould be- pulled dowu to-day.
AS we turned to leave. an old man who
couples one Of tho rooms Of tho top floor,
was disposed to question our right thus to
entsr respectable mans castle and
couldn't quito restrain his ire ~ the sight
Of the officers shield, whilo . cheerful vir-
ago-age forty-two. native Irish. compiler
ion ilushed-wi,h one child at tho breast.
four in the step-la1der business, and an un-
certain quantity behind her, shouted out.
"Arah. bciabsrs, and what is it yez wants
in here. at this time O. the night, coming
into dacent mans house 40 II he was a
pickpocks. agh, get out o. this ye law
divil ye''-and we got out.
In the f,ar Of Nos.
81 AID 8 JAMES STREET,
We found deeper depth and a worser
worst. GA the dcwalk in front the over
heated people who had the strength to
leave their pens were huddled in groups,
but We knew that they were the vanguard
OF the vast army Of tenants in the dark.
We passed along the gloomy entrance I'M
I'll We reached little square, and in the
center of which was . little drant, some
fifteen boys, about doxsu girls, FIVE or six
women, and at iess: half dozen babies.
Borrowing y candle, we entered distress
ed looking building, the heat Of which was
unbearnble by any mortal but tenant or q
reporter, or a policeman or salamander.
aud prepared 10 sac and smell In tho
front roogi we saw three men smoking, two
women washing, one oman nursing ba
By, half Gozen children Of the regulation
ages, hct stove, \ table with recently
uasd supper service, two beds, and one or
two chars. The people arc respectable but
uncomfortable. On the floor above We
kuocksd al toor. /, was opened and
baby knosAsd o,sr. Picking the young
ster up we, saw she had been sobbing, and
a lance at the hard featured, rspusiye
locking woman, her mother, showed us
why. The floor Of the wrstchsd apartment
was brossn in many places the ceiling
was low, dark with smoke, and nasty with
dirt; the walls fairly filthy. A sullen look
ing man sat on chair, tipped on it, bind
legs, and with his Panama hat pulled over
his features. and his dress indicated that
he was visitor, not lodgsr. Fsur wo-
men lounged lazily about the room. They
were all about twenty Ave years Of age.
hard, bad, wicked looking women. Who
struck us - being about Is rough q lot a.
we had met this side Of Chicago. Eight
dollars . month" for this ro,m are paid by
the woman-sight dollars for place unfit
Tor ap'g-unsais for = dog. The chill.
dren we're me- booking little shaw.
ere and there was quite
moral'aing text in their red spotted akin.
their plainsivs sobs. and their evident LONE.
ing for rest somewhere.
On the floor above ws saw. indeed. !
sonRY siour.
Az the door opened, and frssh eust Of
smsllitc sultrinsss was added 70 the boouet
We already had, We glanced INTO The rem.
which could not have been more than "a bv
feet. On the floor lay aud snorsd nd.
faced woman. whose unfas.ened clothing be.
tekcned familiarity with ether localities.
- her whisky laden breath indicated 4 too
great fondnsss for the 20, be joyful" In
the corner on table lay and snorsd apo.h-
er person., . woman At least sixty wears of
age, lean, long, gauns. bronzed in eheek.
with knctted arms and knobby knees And
emsciatsd limbs and sunken cheat. she
was doing big job in the way Of suoriec
sleep, and her contributions to the eenar.,
noise Of the apartment came regularly at
the rate OF one each second. A pretty faced
/ .irl Of eiphsAep ar fwsrtv -;,h . 49,.