Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-08-23
A SATURDAY MIGHT SCENE.
The Pickering Lights and Moving
Thron& at the Mnrhet-E'he Country
People and Their Customers.

On Saturday evenings the pavement along
the south side of K street for about a square,
up to 21st street, and nearly as far again up
2lst. is double row Of little dim lights. pre-
senting curious and picturesque scene. By
the Pickering and itful light of the nnumerable
little tallow dips and smoky torches. exposed
to the freaks of the wind that frisks down the
little hill, around the corner blowing them
almost out and then letting them brighten up
again like lot of flre-flies in dark swamp
the observer at a short distance sees moving
mass bObbing up and down and push
ing and showing here and there, as if
In great hurry without an aim; and
prolonged and meaningless buzz pours forth,
discOrdant and perfectly uninteigible
Every moment black forms extricate themselves
from the general mass. and men and women
WITH Well-flied baskets come down the street
passing other men and women with empty bas-
kets going the other way. Drawing nearer the
mass becomes an asSemblage of human forms
with market baskets, and the incoherent sounds
become: This way, lady; nice fresh tomatoes
apples, onions. sugar corn. beats cabbage and
cantaloupeS Or Fresh eggs butter. honey
Hma beans, peaches and Observation-Disclosures
out IN different voices Eager honest
country faces are stretched out from behind the
candles and torches. soliciting BUYERS for their
produce, which is heaped In little piles or i'm
prcylsed stands OF boards and boxes or on the
brick pavement. Men. women and children
but mostly women. with big baskets ON their
arms, are leaning over the heaps of vegetables
examining them critically and asking all sorts
OF questions, while between the double row of
Hghtstoo dim to cast a glmmer beyond their Ow n
immediate little pile. the black. squirming, lost
ling mass is eternally in motion. On the inner
curb are the more pretentious hucksters, with
their wagons backed up on the brickway pre-
pared for them; and on the outer curb squat the
humber country folk surrounded with their
small stock of potatoes corn. eggs, or what
ever Ii may be-eenerally little variety OF
every thing from peaches to cabbage.
The buzz OF Voices
What's yer beans?" Sweet sugar-corn!"
This way for yer sweet cantaloupes." Fresh
peT-dozen," ''Sellin' out cheap, this way."
Soft peaches" Ten cents, mum; have q
quarter" sold out yet Jim?" "All-aboard
Tor the country" .'Dem's spring chickens, lady:
| 10 sho' deY AM" Amy butter?" "Free-stones.'
! Hard heads!' Have quarter NUM-" ''Right
here. sir, quartz Tomatoes five cents a half
peck. and thousand other shouts questions
and eXclamations rise up with the smoke from
the torches.
woman with baby carriage and a man
with corn are trying to make their way
through the crowd with comfort. Women are
! stopping to gossip where the crowd Ia thickest
Angry calculations are rising, but are lost in the
general buzz.
Two lriSh women Win huge market baskets
are standing in the middle of the thoroughfare
which makes it mo thoroughfare." The crowd
are pushing and showing on either side. '.And
oil III almost dead entirely, OF am, along o'.car-
ryIn this basic Of a basket. And orve
murther in me heart OF haye for that boy q
| mine, who's home only on every Saturday night
and then amt home ut all, at all, but OFF sky
| larkin' wi the girls-the blatin' huzzies in
stead o. carryin' this basket for his mother,
which Is the only one he ever had"
Yes. ind oil was thnkin' the same thing me-
self, when me Maggie"
But the crowd thrusts them apart and they
"addie and jostle off in opposite directions,
While another pair of gossips talk about their
neighbors wife ut the corner
This Is Saturday night at the market THE
STAR man went through and joined with the
fhrong OF buyers In asking prices. The country
| people from Maryland and Virginia bring their
/ truck here to market every Saturday-and some
on other days, too, but saturday is the day.
1hey bring apples, peaches, grapes. tomatoes.
potatoes, cabbage, corn. watermelons and canta-
loupes, and about every variety of vegetable
/ that can be had anywhere this time of year. and
ali have peculiarly fresh appearance.