The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-09-28
A Sunday Spent i'm Petticoat Lane,
i'm London.
The Old Clothes Exchange The Jew
ish Quarter of HoundsIitch-
Second Hand Shirts
[London Cor. N, 7. Tribune.I

Across the front was the inscription, "PhiPs
Buildings; Clothes and General MART" and
at one side was sign-board intimatlng that
the public could find rest and refreshment at
the neighboring "Montefiore Arms" It is
through PhiFs Buildings that you enter one
OF the strangest places in Londen.
1t is said that on bright Sunday you may
see here, In network Of houses, lanes, and
alleys, no less than three miles of old clothes.
dare say that Is true; but although / spent
q great deal Of time In Rag Fair / confess that
| never had the courage to go to the end of
1t. found the first building fitted UP with
rough counters, shelves, racks and trays for
the accommodation OF various classes of deal
| ers. Thousands Of calico dresses danged
from aloft, at fret sight giving the impress
sion that about an acre of the loveliest OF
Houndsditch had simultaneously committed
suicide. Mems coats and trousers were heaped
upon planks laid across trestles. mountain
VI old hats rose IN one corner: and In another
voluble young Hebrew, with O brush and a
bottle OF backing, was working, as II for dear
life, to give a presentable appearance
TO load OF dreadful old shoes,
snatched, one would say, from the cutters
and dust bins. Here, however was ONLY the
beginning Of the fair The building has sew
eral faces, opening into courts and alleys, all
crarnned with cast-of apparel, and these
communicate with other sheds like tue first.
! Over their fronts Is painted tn large letters.
| Entrance to the Exhibition: Clothes TX.
| change" One quarter Of the mart Ii devoted
to somewhat tresher class OF wares. for here
are cheap trinkets, the poorest sort uf imita-
| ton Jewery, the most gorgeous of colored
handkerchisfs, and So many pairs 81 suspend
eTs that 1t would seem to be a habit In
Houndsditch to have all pantaloons made too
big in the waist. The articles displayed In
this quarter being, 50 to speak, new, and con
| sequently ratable at some certain commercial
value, We're not In great request, for the fire.
luenters Of Rag Fair love The excitement of
desperate and protracted bargaining in-
teleetual exercise only to he enjoyed In Its
perfection when there are no means OF deter
mining what tho goods In dispute are worth. or
whether they are worth anything ut all The
advent Of a possible custom en- threw the whole
shed into cOmmotion. A young lady with
very heavy eyebrows and red cheeks, who
stood In bower of prlsmatic handkerchief,
addressed me in the tone Of Jenny Wren nd
dressing Fascination Fledgeby Good morn
then as did not Yield to soft persuasion two
muscular mothers in Israel tried sterner
means. and selling me, one by tho coat-taIl,
the other by the arm. began to pull with all
their might. | owed my escape after short !
but severe struggle, to the lucky accident Of
divided counsels among the adversary, for
while one tried to drag me into shilling era
vats, the other put forth her strength on be-
half OF red stockings. and between them got |
away, and fell into the arms Of a male dealer |
u suspenders Buy EN-, shouted the man,
Hereby shaking a bundle of them In my face; |
why don't you buy 'etnP You aren't fright |
ened OF EN-, are your" A shirt, q military
jacket, pair OF red plush small clothes and |
whole row OF gowns were In turn COM
mended to my attention as the very things |
appeared to need.
The most remarkable part OF Rag Fair,
however, is not the CLOTHES Exchange
proper, which is held under roofs, but the much
more extensive, crowded and bewiIderiDg
mart Ia the adjoining streets and lanes. Pet
tiooat-lane, which gives It's name to the whole
Fair, is called Middlesex street. On recent off
ctal maps. but it retains Its old designation In
common use. This is the centre OF the Sun
day traffic. Gravel-court, SaDdys-Tow, Tripe-
yard, Fryingpan-alley, Partridge-co,lrt, are
some OF the other passages, foul and narrow,
which are given up to this curious business.
Nearly all the transactions are conducted In
the dirty open street; but there are small
shops besides, incredibly black and vile, In
whose dark recesses commodities of some
humble SORT are kept for sale-I certainly
cannot say are exhibited. Wherever the court
is vide enough you will find an untidy Jewess
seated on the ground amidst heaps Of goods
a piece OF sail-cloth, or fragment OF
an old awning, being spread upon the
muddy cobble-stOnes, becomes the sole substi-
tute Tor shop and counter One dame | saw
surrounded by odd stockings which she was
DANGEROUSLY Offering to the public at the rate
OF two pair to the bob" Another WAS dis
playing on the cloth around her variety OF
much-worn dresses, Of coarse quality but
snowy pattern, which may have done duty In
music hall Of the lowest class. A third was
debating with possible purchasers the value
of sundry secondhand chemises; and
fourth had barricaded herself within q double
circle Of shoes and CATERS, mostly cracked
at the sides trodden at the heel, leaky at the
soles and lnfrm rs to fastenings, but ali new
" polished. In the piles OF mems clothing
there were scarlet uniform coats (shed per-
haps by deserters) and livery suits, and
lowered cretonne waistcoats worn by negro
mlnstrels Purchasers were not lacking and
mad not long to wait before witnessing the
1ull operation OF the system OF CLOTHES Ex-
change" Workingmen, after animated NO.
gotiation. took off ragged and dirty coats,
and put On others little better cripple
rested on his crutches and effected an ex-
change OF one old shoe.
Undertaking as a rule seemed to have been
submitted to rude sort OF "dOing-up;" q
heap OF shirts, offered at eight pence apiece
had perhaps been through d mangle though
10 was long since they had seen a wash-tub;
crumpled collars just as they had come from
the necks OF the last wearers. / do not think
the buyers, were particular. They were ex-
ciusiveiy Inc very poor, but by no means OK
became 80 closely packed, from house wall to
hOuse-wall, that movement was at times al
most impossible. and the matrons encamped
~ the roadway, were 10 immediate danger Of
being tTampled upon. Here was to BE- seen
the traditional old clothes man of novels and
picture books, grim person, with long
skirts and gray beard, and O. bag on
his back. Here were to be seen deal
ers not only In old clothes, but In
every variety OF article which. having been
used once, might possibly still serve another
turn. basket was filled with secondhand
spoDges- which can hardly have been nice.
On walls and fences hung the most amazing
collections Of old leather straps, relics OF
abandoned trunks and fragments Of rotten
harness. There were scraps Of eathar; there
were millions OF rusty keys; there were stray
door-knobs, and odd furniture casters, and
broken hammer heads and all the litter OF
brass and iron rubbish which is usually found
In the bottoms OF tool-boxes. There were
trays full of old spectacle cases. There was a