Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1871-05-31
Our saturday Night.


uAi1 foE ruE NonEoW.
Tonight wc have been in one of ihe queer
est dives OF cellars In the city.
If our little fricnds-the boys and girls
who have good homes 10 rest in and loving
hearts TO care for them will sit all about us--
OF sit on their little stools or chairs in the
corner while mamma or papa read to them,
we will tell them ai about H.
The poor people OF New ork don't live like
the poor people TO the country, where food is
cheap and fuel plenty They have a hard
time Of it here, and 60 many a day without a
decent meal. Every morning for ID mouth or
more we have noticed q dirty old woman, with
an ola, dirt-colored ragged and patched dress
dragging about her feet, with "a great bag
like a coffee sack on her back, walking along.
looking and poking with crooked wire in
the boxes and barrels filled with rubbish, set
out on the sidewalk each morning for the
scayengers OF ash mon 20 load into carts and
carry away.
Out in the country housekeepers throw their
ashes, bones, old boots hoop-skirts broken
dishes, bottles and such rubbish, into the
street or the back yard. In New York this
etuf l. nnt in a how or A., h,rral e,ch d,,. tben
o,rI, in ,bo r,or,i,,, bor,ro or by g,,n.r;s,
set ON. on Tho side Tslk Men 90 sll abont
Win car,. em,ty;n, bo oon,onis ~ thoso
boros or barreII ;oio ,bcir c,r,s % bo' ,.orr;ed
owav 10 tbe eJ,c oc tbc river dnmnoJ ;rto
eat bo,ts or sco7y. and bon qoo,od ouav 10
some i.l,oJ ar distant r.ioce ~ bo prloo5ed
and cot ant or tbo wov
Intbc ,noruino boforo t}o e,rtr,en MP scov.
en,or. co,os ro.,.r.i,.,.cr. and None. .b,ntor. 10
ab5u, l,olinq INK IN ,hcso boves 10 ,,;cl. o1,
little bits orco,l NOT burned in tho rate bnt
emitted out with the ashes. homes crusts of
bread. niece. of meat. all dirt pototoes and
otbor raw or cootol ycrct,bles tbrovn avay
bv servant. old dishes c,s. varc dirty
rae. and All spcb stnf continn,llv being
thrown ,yr,r Tho olJ J;sbes oro 1,ondof
oId hottie cIesnoj n, and solJ ~ Irpg',;sts-
ol5 hone. crrsts nieees or n,oa, and Seoot,
bles cleaned and modo INTO .onn for cbeon
boarding.bopsos or tho moor Who live in 1irty
collars ar overorovdod tenement bopscs
One Of those rag.nielers as tbev orc call.
ed is an ola wom9p-one of Lurdreds or ola
women in This business I'M over tbe citv az.
ten have we noticed be~ Abop, s;vfy roars
ola. She never stors to talk to anvbodv
She poe. from box to box-from barrel to bar.
rel-from door 10 door. pokipr looking die.
pinr into and picking out what She can find
Tin her old sack. which holds about three
bushels. Is filed with her legitimate plunder.
Then She lups II off to a cellar where the
rag-pickers 20 to sort their stuff. sell that
which is of use TO rar-bnver.. to old Junk or
rubbish dealers. Sometimes these rag.picker,
mako two shillincs day-sometimes two or
three dollars. as they fni stuff IN tho rnbbisb
they hunt over
i few mornings a,o we followed one old
woman more than an hour As she trudeed
along, till her sack was full. Then She lifted
it on her shoulders, and with back bent al
most to breaking she started down street to
sorting cellar.
Tonight we have been in that cellar nearly
two hours, seated on an old nail keg, talking
to the dirty old man who is the . merchant OF
misery here doing business. Saturday night
he pays off f-settles-fxes up his business
counts his gains aud then goes to sleep in hi.
rags happy as a king, aud dirty as happy
Here we met again the old woman. Aud thi.
is what she told US, after we had asked hun.
| hiAu Hutetluu.Y llNullNtl utl u buuNlt Oh
good rags if she would come for them. and
got her to talking
Said she, in a squeakng, garruous voice
as if her throat was lined with horse hair and
coal ashes
Yes, its worse nor a dogs life, COS it,.
longer But It's nothin' when you gets used
to it, and settles right down to it The hard
est is to settle down tot, but it's the easies
when you do it, There be lots Of us in the
business
As you say, 'twant aller so. Once wa
belle. You needn't smile-it's 50. | liveC
on Fourteenth street, and had servants ant
carriages. Lots of folks knew me then. NJ,
husband was a politician. lIe was an Alder
man, and then a specuator.
"Yes, he was ioyial fellow with the bows
They drank and euzzled. and he paid for il
But he was popular. OF course il killed him
Men in public life have to drink so.
"He was in debt so | eould't save any
thing. | tried TO. but the LAWYERS oot bol,
Of some Of his pronerty-his friends and re
lations fought for the rest. and so | lost m,
home.
oNo, | didn't 20 to rap.pickinr at first. bu
| might as well. 4 drunkard's widow don