The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1885-12-11
NEW YORK NEWSGIRLS.
The Tricks. Charms and Dangers
OF their Trade.

Sitting in comfortable downtown
restaurants on these chilly autumn
evenings. with the grateful fragrance
Of good dinner pertaining the a,moS-
phcre. the man Of business witnesses
an occa>ionalsight outside Of the doors
and windows in the cherries street
that sometimes fills his heart with pity
and perhaps takes away some Of the
exuberance 81 his appetite. II j. the
sad and wistful face Of one q the in
Vulnerable little newsgirls who sell
papers in the lower part q the CITY.
and who now gazes wistfnlly and hum
grily from the outside cold AZ the
picture Of good cheer within that she
may not share. Perhaps. II the wait
err are not near the door. she ventures
y open II. come inside and offer her
papers to the men AZ the tables: but
she l. generally driven into the street
again before she l. able a. effect 4 ale.
But he i a hard-hcar:cd man. indeed.
who, coming out well fed and content
e.. can resist the appeal: y. Mister.
please buy paper i've only got two
Down az the ferries. about Park row
and the Post-Oflice. IN Nassau. Wall.
al the downtown business streets and
~ Broadway. scores 81 little girls arr
engaged afternoon and evening in IN.
sale q the papers. They are in MI de-
grees q rags and taticr- and they rep
resent almost every nationality fur
nlshtd By the tencment-house popnla-
tion, with a majority II Irish and Ital-
ian children among them. They are ~
All ages and sizes. from tiny mites az
even four and five wears. III 70 we'll
grown las~ies u sixteen and seventeen
Years. Many Of them are careful ana
ndy u dress and person. and some Of
rs Older ones compare fayorably in
appearance with the pretty New York
snop glrls. but there are Others who are
uiFtN, careless and abandoned. Not 4
lev q them are gentle. sweet and pretty
"nen 'hey begin their career A. news
'enuers, but contact with the others
anu me life they are forced to live in
We streets. soon rub on the bloom.
ahu IN most cases harden them into
premature little termagants. They are
vonged 70 take their own part in the
Struggle with the rough boys Of their
o"n class; they fight their own battles.
'egaIuiess Of sex; they frequent saloons
Wv oar rooms late Mt night and listen
= y me vile jests Of brawlers and rougi.s
~ wonder that they lose their gentle
MANNERS and girlish traits and become
,lnSeNeu and depraved: that their faces
w. the innocence Of childhood and
oltencr than not become impressed
MN the unmistakablc stamp of low
cunning and vice. Nevertheless. there
=. NJ exceptions 10 this rule and few Of
~ little ncwsgirls retain their pretty
49, and modest manners through all
~. years they run about the streets.
'he newsgirl il differently situated
,'"m NE neWsboy. Not few III lie
x,-a'eT nv homeless and fnth,rie~- liisie
.omads who drift about from one CITY
y another. living At the newsboys'
,v',es, q sleeping in the streets But
~ q the little girls have homes 70
~ W squalid and humble though most
Y hem are. and few even attend
.nvoi N the morning and leave in
~'"e 70 begin the sale u the afternoon
faPeIs a. soon a. the first editions are
sued From this early hour many ~
I'm remain out until midnight. in
arm Or sunshine. heat or cold. until
We last paper Il sold.
me hackncyed story Of the little girl
w = beaten when she returns home