The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1880-09-16
NEW YORK MENDICANTs,
Where the street Tramps Pass Thei
Nights.

|
Where the street Tramps Pass Thei
Nights.
When the wind blows cold and th
air is crisp with frost it is not an un
common thing to meet at evening in tn,
streets OF New York, especially below
Canal street and in the Bowerv. bepoar,
whose claim to consideration is eithel
hunger or the assertion that thew hav,
no place to sleep. The plea of hun ger /,
perennial, but the request for money tf
pay for nights lodging is one that i,
seldom or never preferred at this season
by the sophisticated or professional beg
gar. He does not now Sigh for t6f
shelter of a lodging-house, but is wei
content to forego the accommodation,
which later he will beg to secure. The
lodging-house keeper is not at nresent
the person to whom he must look fo,
such disturbed slumber as, in winter. he
can snatch in the brief truces between
himself and the predatory insect band
whose name is legion. 1t is the police.
man who is the autocrat of his bed.
chamber in summer, and the canopy is
the sky. If he can only manage to escape
the notice of the man with the club and
off hand manner, he is willing to insure
the rest and to discount the worst
|
tan island.
Where does the homeless beggar of
New York sleep in the summer-the
beggar whom the attractions of green
fields, babbling brooks, henroosts and
potato patches cannot seduce from the
city to be q country trampP The re-
porter whose duties lead him about the
streets at midnight stumbles upon him
in many places; sees him curled lid in
a doorway, stretched out in some hos.
pitable truck wagon that has been lett
in the street, or wandering away in
search of some secluded spot where
neither the light from the street lamps
nor the policeman's eye will find him
out. And he may be found on the
benches in the public parks, where he
enters upon possession at the witching
| hour of midnight. 1t is curious to note
what classes of people enjoy these parks,
and when. Of those who make use of
the seats and shade for the leisure
hours of the day nothing need be said,
Tor it is patent fact that the old men
and children under the charge of their
whlte-capped bonnes are then largely
in possession. AS evening approaches
the children go away home, and their
places are taken by variety of men,
many of them young and well-dressed.
These do not, as rule, remain long
enough to decide where they will go to
seek amusement. When the last meal
OF the day has been eaten, and the
dishes have been cleaned, the servant
girls and their male friends begin to ap-
pear in the parks. To watch them
closely is to discover that the poor girls
are invariably so wearied by the labors
OF the day as to need the supporting
arms of their escorts, which are never
denied them. After an hour or two
spent in the mildly exciting pleasure of
talking and being hugged, the girls 60
their ways to rest, and a little later the
beggar begins to slink into the parks
and to court forgetfalness of his daily
wretchedness in sleep. 1t may be that
honest workingmen have been in the
parks to breathe for few hours purer
air than they can hope to find in their
hot lodgings. These begin to go when
the beggars and tramps come, in order
not to be confounded with them.
Where has the beggar been since the
sun setP Walk in any of the streets ad-
jacent to the park and the question will
answer itself. AS you go along you will
become conscious at times of shadow
even though it be at night; shadow
that is erect and walking. If you show
that you are conscious of its presence,
the chances are that you will hear the
shadow muttering some words, among
which may be distinguished ga few
pennies " and mot bite to eat" This
shadow is the beggar who, unlike the
wise husbandman, strives to make hay
while the sun does not shine, and who
wearily "moves OF" through fear of the
police, until he has moved with the
hours to midnight. He then goes to the
parks and sleeps, unless the park police
man, who must remain awake himself
maliciously decides to keep him awake
also. And this is usually the case, for
1T is an every-night affair for the man
in gray uniform 10 fit about through the
parks and roughly shake into semblance
OF wakefulness the wretched creature he
finds, and admonishes him not to sleep.
With growl that is an oath the beggar
declares himself awake, and straight
way mods again. This is often repeated
during the night. At earliest dawn the
policeman makes final round, and with
the voice of authority announces that
sleep must positively have ending. This
time he is obeyed, though with the
slowness of unwilling acquiescence. The
beggar sits sullen, blinking and yawn-
ing, until he finally becomes thor
oughly aroused, when he rises and dis.
appears. Usually, as he sinks away,
he seems like one who is drunk many
times a day, if not many days entirely
drunk" He is sad specimen OF ruined
of an utter mental and moral
waste.