Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-08-16
GREEN HOUSE OCCUPANTS.
NOS Fruit nor Tropical Piants-People
who do Not Pay Rent, but Always
Lave In New Rows Of Houses and
vanish with the Dampness Of the
WAlls.

From the Philadelphia Times
There was something Of wonder in the mind
OF the quiet, med:tative old gentleman who
stopped on tile corner of 59th street and Yort,
avenue In the middle of his yesterday afternoon
walk as to why Hat Box row had found tenants
SO soon.
'Oh, they, answered the contractor OF another
block. hurrying by; they're green houses.
Here, d-n you, that mortar won't mix with
out elbow grease, he continued, chucking halt
| brick in the direction of lazy laborer. who
was tenderly fondng the staying power OF
another Hat Box row with hoe
but don't see any glass in the roofs" re-
pleu the meditative old gentleman. standing
curously on his tip-toes to look at the states.
What do you mean?"
Green houses amt no places where you raise
niSnt-oioomln serious or CatamaiaTa grapes =
continued the contractor. chucking the other
hall OF his brick at an Italian workman who was
dolce far nenting foundation. Green houses
are new houses that beats live in / have built
five hundred houses this year" continued the
first place by families who took the green OH the
houses"
''What dose that mean?" queried the mild old
gentleman
wIPING THE 'GREEN' OFF.
"Gettin' the damp off 'em. of course" an
swered the contractor. scornfully .'Of those
five hundred houses, 1 was goin' to say before
you interrupted me, there amt two hundred
that amt bought or rented by responsible par
ties to-day. BY responsible parties" repeated
! the contractor. There are ten thousand peo
pie. guess" no continued thoughtfully lin
Philadelphia to-day Twin in green houses Most
of EN- hez aus lived in green houses Most OF
EN- alus will live in green houses. I've got a
family that has lived in forty green houses In
twenty years. They got married to live in green
houses. They reared their children to expect
green houses for their homes They live in
green houses to-day. A daughter of one OF
their families was engaged from one green
house and married from another one Hang me
If one man didn't die in Allegheny avenue and
had to tie buried from Dickinson street You
see the wife had to move to keep a roof over
the chldren's heads
But what's the sense Of it?" queried the
mild old man.
well, there's some sense in hayfn' house
TO live In, answered the contractor, with
quiet refinement of sarcasm of which the milo
Old gentleman had not thought HIM capable
'OfcOurse. OF course to them" the mild old
man fastened to say, apoiogetically; but whats
the sense to your"
THE OWNERS GAIN.
would You like to be the first man to buy
into square?" asked the contractor mo. Of
course you wouldn't. But the minute YOU sec
one house occupied. the kids sprawing about
the verandy-I mean the pizarro-the close
lines flynn the family wash in the wind the lit
tie red flannel shirts, and SO forth and SO forth
yon want to move right I'm where man can live
| so happily. Now. I've noticed" continued the
contractor, sapienfly. THAT house amt house
IN most peoples estimation till somebody'sliv lived
In 1t. These ere rows Of brick and mortar amt
nothin' but brick and mortar till some one gets
into one. He sort o. gives the place life when he
comes see? That's one advantage OF O green
hOuser It's better than the fanciest kind of an
advertisement and it don't cost nothin'. An
other thing is it actually does dry the walls
gets the damp out OF EN- Unless man build.
house himself he'd much rather buy one t.
live in which some one else has occupied, 'spe.
cially man with croapy children"
"How far does this honeycemb of sham house.
holders extend in this city of homes?" asked the
mild old man, hat disilusioned.
Il Know forty green hOusers on Diamond
street, answered the contractor categoricaly
Il know ten in West Philadelphia on eight
squares of Lancaster avenue. Where do you
lye:" he asked suddenly, turning to the old
gentleman.
Cambria street." faltered the old man, q
horrible suspicion crossing his mind.
1.-The worst one in the lot" chuckled the con-
tractor There's whole blocks of green Houses
there. How do l know you amt green houser
YOURSELF"
Appalled, by this suggestion, the mild old man
fled and abandoned the idea which he had lar-
bored OF buying one OF the contractors houses.