Daily Kennebec journal., 1882-03-06
TralnpinR Tail0r.

| uuiio. There's the first tramp Jour I've
1 seen LOT SIX months" exclaimed Iaw;sto,
'aior clerk, as the door swung onen ,b;s
ihorhing and man came in SHAKING the
snow from him. The tailor looked mn and
sure enough 1t was a tramp ssiour. or a rov.
ing Journeyman tailor. There are unmistak.
aole marks which characterize this unioue
| ype OF personality, and by which one of the
| glance. NM d. 'he hrst
Inc tramp Jour" almost invariably dress.
Ia ni,er one peculiar fashion. His trowsers
VIII De baggy, his vest will ALWAYS he sbo,,
| and between the the upper limit Of his xais,'
band and the lower boundary of his yes, w;lI
M pe narrow strip of contrasting color. betting
| ms oody, and suggesting unlaundered linen
| MS coat VIII be cutaway frock and will
| nave probably one surviving button. No
| matter how veteranish the ssiour" NAV look
Ills coat Will be of the extreme cut in yopue
Oh broadway for the nobbiest trade. The
| tramp VIII have no overcoat even if the
piace be Maine and the time be February
ne Is equally guiltless as to dickev. and he
aonors paper collars. But in cold weather.
ne ulssulses his neck toilet in large wooden
scarf. Imagine man with an unsuppressed
beard, foreign accent, long. taperiny f;n-
gers, weil'mulched nails, ard almost any-
'hing tor hat.-and you have the complete
sketch OF the typical tramp Jour"
r, 'hls new conner was philosophical rover
lie warmed himself and allowed snow accum
uiations to melt, by the stove. He took Oft
ms hat, and gazing through the numerous
holes remarked:
=" hat Is mighty convenient at Hit suits
me hexactly. There's fine chance for the
fresh hair to get in and the warm hair to get
hout.''
A year and half ago, he landed at Hall
lax ana began his trampings, walking from
town to town through New Brunswick and
Maine, getting short job where he could. but
never staying more than a week or two in a
place. He was about year in making his
way to New York, working in innumerable
places from Skowhegan, Augusta and Port
land and kennebunk to Boston and the me-
tr0polls. He remained in New York little
while and is now on his way back to Halifax.
lie said he had owned three good suits during
the time, but when he got ready for another
tramp he sold his good clothes for money to
purchase the wherewithal for a spree The
tramp could find no employment here, and
went on his way toward the rising sun face to
the wind
The journeyman tailor's race has not been
rendered extinct by the inroads of the sewing
machine, and there is still limited demand
for this class of workmen 1t is probable
that although bor-saving machinery may
displace entirely hand artisans in some
branches of manufacturing, the Jour" tailor
will never be dispensed with. He works on
the finest classes of goods, in which nearly
every stitch is still taken by hand, in the
more fashionable city shops. The '.iour" is
able to take the goods right from the bench
and finish them before they leave his hands.
Two of them are employed in this city. Both
are Swedes and have been here two years. 1t
Is rarely that American Jour" can be found,
and the demand has to be supplied by i'm
portation. In the large cities, there are shops
where '.Jours" hire seat and heat at say
30 cents IA week A dozen or more of them
will thus cOngregate and sit cross-legged on
the floor. They take out work from the
fashionable tailors. In the early days of
shoe manufacturing shoemakers used to do
the same thing. But the shops have absorbed
them, and left the Jour" tailors.-LeTiston
Journal