New-York tribune., 1884-12-14
IN THE SHADOW OF TRINITY.
POOKEYlES or THE FIRST WARD.
DEsTITUTION AND DISTRESS FEW sIEfo
FROM WALL STREET.
nv CHARLES r. wINGATE.


,rbe po,ulat,cn is made up of longshcrcmen. Jam
tors small store keepers aud cmierant house-iun-
pcrs The proximity of Castle Garden s"ppnVs
trade to numerous lodging and boarding houses anu
to many drinking saloons There were io,mo,s
sixty low sailors dancc.houscs In tho tifst ion'e
Precinct. but they have NIL been clcarcd OUT ino
extension Of business has madc serious ihioa"s
upon the criminal aud tenement ropn'a,""' wv" uV
.re only 900 tcnement. with population of u. ~"
now aud before long the whole dstt'et VIII wv
nonopol,sed for business purposes
Some of tho worst rookeroa Ia tho city arc 10 10
found IA Washing ton'st. aud ita vicinity,
AtNo. i3i Libory-st. IN the rear of building
which Is daily passed by thousands on theii way !"
aud from the Commnnipaw Ferry ionhdh iesie''
able Young English woman with two niue ohil"ien
oeeupyina basement room opening on marrow
yard. Ii was winter. and the light was so dohoiehl
that Kerosene lamp necessary at noon ana oy
its dim beams the poor woman was trying 10 "li'o
n letter TO her friends in the old country. An
inncr and totally dark closet contained STRAW
tick on the black mouldy floor, which reSted III
rcctly on the damp ground, The family had no lur-
nituIe excepting two Tickety chars, smal Hpe'
n cool,n p-stoye and a worn horse-har sofa, on
which the children lay hy day under tae cotton
Quilt which the sole bed covering OF the lamiiy'
Everything had been pawned, even necessary cioih-
ing as the womans bare arms ana thih
outer garments testified. Her husband, she
said was brickayer and had been long ont OF
work because he could not raise the $40 necessary
TO become a member of the Union. The yard was
damn and the prvcs. though fairly clean, were
only five feet distant from the single window. Ny
sympathies were naturally moved by the condition
cf tho place especially as the woman did not re-
pine and obtained an order for relief IN groceries
from leading charitable society. About fort-
night later on a bleak February day, when the bit
Il tha Of
md fonnd the family in the same state and learned
that they had been without fuel for two niFhts.
An appeal through the press brought prompt ana
liberal contributions for their relief, but shortly
after the infant was taken sick and died. As 1t
was laid out in its simple white gown on the lapie
near the window If seemed like a lily IN cellar
The father afterward obtained work and the fam
lily have since been able TO get along despite thef
miserable accommodations
rXPI NsIvE FUNERALS.
just around the corner IN Greenwich-st. fu-
neral was in progress. A dozen coaches stood
along the sidewalk with crowd of idlers looking
on A room on the third floor was filled with
mournors, the windows were covered with bIacK
muslin and the usual cross aad lighted candelaDra
stood at ono side The deceased, n youag man.
Aad died of pneumonia. aad was the main support
of his widowed mother who was tho houSekeeper
of the building. As tho coffin. rather gaudily or
namcntel with imitation silver handles, was with
great difficulty being taken down the narrow
stairs the mother in deep black, followed IN
paroxysm of grief Her wailin9 was almost
stacd by physical exhaustion, and her
raspinc exclamntoas were the moro traric
In contrast with the Indifferent looks OF the
spectators gathered around. The poor woman c0uld
i'll afford such funeral yet the lnsh consider 1t
religious duty 10 bury their friends decenty. A
poor woman in another house in Washngton-st.
told n.e on the same day that she had been two
wears NJ ng i'm insaments for the funeral of her
mother and child aud she seemed to feel pride IN
this great sacrifice. Clergymen and undertakcrs
speak of the gance of the poor in this Ie-
spect but they cannot be reasoned with especially
with the example of he Ostentaton and exttava-
gance of the rich constantly before their eyes.
In The same building aged crone, who had ap-
plied for city coal from the Commissioners OF Char-
Ties was found wholly destitute IN wretched
apartment without sion of furniture excepting
sonie rags snd ruined chair. kindly neshbot,
who was weeping a the lnss OF the deceased young
,.an, inairilv described llis rcat creature 80
a. seeided ~ bfokeii-heaited and she was cef-
iainlr miserable aud vot-b" ieHe ~ the estfe1ie.
tieithtsptr hilAPibAiioF'
thp foai Hf iis hnilint Wds titinte'ihs ~ ito
diispiaiian Tho walls Wpir ih4ea WITH nufrh
iu0s hf aga and damn iiiae rats tiainhri.l
fam au,iei thn slHb heie iha saps were ihnWhi
aai tha mace was Yeritahle roab cry Ia these
houses thn lowest ara ie of p0YeriT 10 soen iiiii
and d. stress go hand ia hand aud Il Is rare o meet
with clean or tidy roam. Inc sIar"dfs are
worn into ruts aad knobs lho wmdoW-sashos
arc warped aul the glass Is Grimy and oobwebbed,
where there is any of II left The plasterlng Is
broken and dscOlorcd aud everywhere are ram alvi
wreck. The inmates are mostly given TO drink.
Many are old and decropt Half the women havo
black eyes, always ascribcd 70 "colds" and
bcdrdden and disabled people frequent.
Man, dogs and starved eats abound while the
children are hs fnakel. dirty and uRkempt Those
Of the tenants who work pick up precarlous liv-
ing by cleaning Offices and doing Old jobs. The
cellars damp from the rising tide and the yards
and prives show neglect. Yet there was little
whining or complaining even among those who
said they had not eaten that day. Tho constitn-
tional hopcfulness Of the poOr showed Itself with
nearly all "A poor man." said one mast have
poor wedding" And another, German woman,
added, poor peoples must live poor"
A rudy checked lass of fourteen struggled up
the steep stairs of one house with huge bag Of
wood on her shoulders. singing as she went. and a
buxom wench of thirty. the picture of health.
said that she had lived since she was nine
years old in this locality and never had
been sick. Many other tenants of this locality de-
clared they had resided there for twenty years or
more. Their continuous good health must be as |
crbed 10 the nearncss OF the Battery and the salt
breezes from the bay An industrious and thrifty |
German woman on an upper floor who was knit |
ting vigorously in an exceptionally clean room |
amid group of little ones, said she had seven |
children none Of whom had been sick IN long |
while. in the very next house., however. several
deaths were reported, some after but IA few hours
illness while the older people complained Of rheu
matisin pains in the limbs and as expressed it,
smotherng in the throat" Opening a door