National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1881-11-12
KEENE,s WAsHERWoMAN.
How She Became Rich by washing His
shirt Cum.

"The fact is" said Jim Keene, the great
New York rival to Jay Gould, as he relaxed his
usual tacturniy under the genial influence of one
of Sam Wards dinners the other day, "the fact is
that no matter how clever and thorough q mans
system of stock operations may be- there is always
occurring some little unforeseen and apparently
insignificant circumstance that Is forever knock
ing the best laid plans into cooked hat"
"As how2"
"Well for instance, about a year ago was do.
ing good deal In Lake Shore, and counted on
making a big clean up. discovered however
that there was some hidden influence in
the market that was always against me. II didn't
exactly defeat my plans, but 1t lessened the
profits. soon saw that there was some operator
who was kept well informed as to my movements
in time to make me pay for his knowledge"
ibid the broker give you away p said several.
"Not all. never gave an order in advance !;
and besides, used, as now, half a dozen brokers.
and also gave cross and dummy orders in
plenty One day while 1 wasstanding at the win
dow Of my up town place cogitating over the
STATE of affairs, an elegant private coupe drove
past and stopped just around the corner from my
'oor. 1t contained richly-dressed lady and
Tagged-looking girl. The latter got out, rang my
bell and was admitted. sent for my man
want and inquired who the girl was"
She comes for the wash, sir" was the answer,
" Docs she generally come in copper in
CURED.
"why, no, sir" said my man. very much sur
orised "her mother, the washerwoman, is very
>coor."
-ust then my own carriage drove round for me,
rad as passed the other ! could see the lady
eagerly sorting the soiled clothes in the coupe in
her lap. This excited my curiosity, SO l had my
driver follow along behind. Pretty soon the
coupe stopped and the dirty little girl got out
with thebundle, and went into brown stone
front on Twentysninth street. The coupe then
kept straight on down to.WallStreet and stopped In
front OF brokers' Office where the lady alighted
with my entire lot OF soiled shirt-cuifa in her
hand"
"Your shirt cufsg' cried out the entire com
pany.
"Exactly; shirt cuffs I saw through 1t all in
amoment You see, amor rather was-a great
hand while at dinner or at the theatre in the
evening, to think over my plans for the next day,
and TO make memorandums on my cuffs 10 consult
before starting down town in the morning. My
washerwoman had found this out, aud had been
quietly coppering my game for upward Of a
year."
"well, by Jovel" said Sam Ward, pausing for
q single instant in the sacred mystery of salad
dressing.
cts the cold fact" continued Keene; ain less
than eight months she had cleaned up over
100000, and was washing my clothes in $4,000
house. She had plenty Of diamonds and horses,
until you couldn't rest"
"You didn't make any more cuff memorandums
afler that. We warrant" said several.
Well, not many-just a few" said the great
operator holding his Burgundy up to the light
81 believe kept II up about a month longer al
the end of which time had raked in the washer.
woman's bank account, and even had mortgage
on the brown stone house It was queer CO.
incidence, wasn't III But, perhaps, the informa'
ton she found on the cuffs after that wasn't as ex'
act as It had been, somehow, nor as reliable"
And the "King of the Street" emptied his glass
with an Undesirable wink that made Beach
who was short on Harlem, SILVER like cat who
had just swallowed live mouse.--SdH francisco
Posi-