Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1869-01-12
PUBLIC LEDGER,
once. No. ls Madison street
LARGEST CITY CIRCULATION.
New York by Gas-Light-Ths Haunts and
Homes of the Low and Degraded.

The New York Tribune of the I'd
instapt has several columns, giving a
sad picture of low life in New York, as
seen by one of its reporters. Appended
is brief extract:
To describe with truth and sufficient
force those dens in cellars which are
termed under ground lodging houses re-
ouires the artists brush rather than the
pen. No words can convey an adequate
impression of their utter wretchedness
for it is the accumulation Of little details
of misery which renders these sleeping
places so horribly repulave to any one
accustomed to o civilized mode of life.
3 Imagine yourself descending through
sort of trap-door entrance into an under
ground cellar, only seven or eight feet
high. Its dingy walls and blackened CELL
ing dimly lit up by the filthy kero-
sene night-lamp which the old hag, who
is proprietress, holds over her head to
enable you to look around. At first you
can see but little, but becoming sccus-
toned to the gloom, you find that you
are standing in perfect maze of beds.
Ranged around the room, as closely
packed as possible, with narrow open
space down the middle, are thirteen filthy
bads, all full. Look at the one nearest
you. 1t contains an elderly man and a
woman of at least five and twenty years
of age. The old bag, who is inclined to
be communicative, tells you that they
are father and daughter. Yeu shudder
and pass on. In the next bed lies fine
handsome looking laboring man OF forty,
his brawny arms stretched out at right
angles on the dirty bundle which does
duty for pillow, the head of sleeping
bow resting on each arm. Neither
father or boys have any other covering
on them than the bed clothes. He is
awake, and in tone of voice which i'm
niles a certain feeling of shame at being
seen in such den, be informs you that
he once had comfortable home of his
own. but my wife, sir, took to drink
ing; she sold my little bits of furniture,
one after another; then all my clothes,
with the exception of what | had on;
and, finally, she stole my tools-and here
lam. But, fortunately for me, she died
last 30ih of July" And, with deep
sigh, he added" Alb sir, she was bad
woman" Beyond this poor fellow are
three strappiug young men, all sleeping
heavily. Aud then there is another
shocking sight-a man, his wife and their
grown-up son, fast asleep in the same
bed. But why continue this dreadful
tale of misery and unnatural degradation.
It is The same sad story all around the
room, and all around the neighborhood-
men, women and children, many of them
in state of nudity, sleeping indiscrimi-
nately together.
We visited place after place, cellar
after cellar, with infatuated persistence,
hoping that we might at least 6nd some
few rather better than the rest But it
was not so, and in one of these dens hu-
man misery seemed to have reached its
climax. As we entered the door of this
particular cellar, low, thin wall struck
my ear. / turned quickly to our detec-
tive, saying, "Surely that is the cry of
new born baby" Eyes, sir2 said the
woman who lighted us in, an unusually
well-spoken Irish woman, at the same
time pointing to figure on a bed, in the
farther corner of the room, that poor
woman has just been confined, not ten
minutes ego" GOOD Godw l ex-
claimed, ain such scene as
this" swell, SIR" she replied, poor
folks can't afford to be as perticklsr as
the Fiji Avenue" sand that's true, sir,
quietly observed the poor creature of
whom we were speaking. We hurried
away. In one Of these wretched dens
young Irish woman, who was sleeping
near the entrance, suddenly sprang out
o. bed, and planting herself 10 the door
way, made a grab at one of our party
with tiger-like ferocity, at the same
time pouring out torrent OF abuse
against us for coming in. Her whole
demeanor showed that she was quite ca
pable of mischief Without taking the
slightest notice of the infuriated Irish
womau, our detective turned to the pro-
prietress and quietly remarked: If
there is the slightest disturbance shall
report this house to the sergeant" In an
instant the landlady aud her husband
were busy pacifying the angry woman,
implering her not to get them into
trouble She soon retired sullenly to bed,
scowling fearfully at US during the few
moments we remained.
The detectives professional instinct
told him that had he attempted to pacify
this fierce woman, she would in all prob
ability have become still more violent
He knew that these lodging house
keepers are in the habit of exercising
considerable influence over their ledgers.
As we emerged from one of these
places, our attention was arrested by the
sound of many footsteps rapidly ap-
preaching As we stepped off the pave
ment to allow the crowd to pass, we
were shocked 20 see that they we're
carrying the apparently lifeless body Of
a woman. We stopped one of the crowd
to ask what was the matter. "Oh, only
a woman poisoned herself; they're taking
her to the hospital" And away our in
formant hurried, vexed to think that by
stopping to answer our inquiry his fas-
cinated gaze npon this poor creature of
misery had been for moment inter
rupted "Only woman poisoned her
self" 0nly poor human being, who,
tired of battling with life of sorrow,
unable any longer TO make head against
her sea Of troubles, had thought by self