Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1885-05-02
UNDER TIE. HAMMER.
Street scenes Around n Washington
Auction House.
A TALK WITH THE MAN WHO wIELDs THE HAM
MER-TlIE PECULIARITIEs OF PERSONS WHO
ATTEND AUCTIONS, &c.

"Going,-go-ing,-gone The gentleman with
the wart on his nose The auctioneer brought
his hammer down with bang; the fortunate
| gentleman with the distinguished nose walked
| triumphantly up to the cashier to secure his
prize, and the lady with a green feather in her
! hat, who had been bidding against him. looked
disappointed, and said there was moth in it,
1t was at a Washington auction house and
THE STAR man stopped 10 contemplate the
| curious scene for lew moments. The auc-
/ tioneer stood Oh box outside oi his ShuD. The
corner was crowded with peopls and old furni-
ture. Every body busy looking at the
/ things scattered about or eagerly watching tie
man on Tie box. The shouting oi the aurtinneer,
! the goSS.l OF tiie eager looking crowd-womeu,
mostly women; and Ihe dusty pile of furniture,
] croriler;, Old pictures and odds and ends Of
houSe-iurnShings, made II look like a country
! 1tir-or ire. More like Il fire, maybe; with all
! the furniture thrown uuI doors, and the pe,,ple
pressing eagerly around the man on the box TO
/ hel: how II All happened. There Was AN old
picture OF George Washington Il white horse,
with the glass broken; tlTee-iegged cooking
/ stove. aad a religious chrome. There Was a
spindle-egged piano, a higlI-;rost bcdsiead and
afive-drawer bureau, With little swinging glass
on top that YOU had 10 Stan,, on your titto,.s IN
look into. Then there were old -l;,shionGd gable
| rooied desks, straightforward chairs, blue
china Old rugs, bits OF carpet, grand
piano that had been doing concert duty,
aud what not scattered every where,
on the pavement and even beyond the
some smart. new modern furniture with an air
of gentiiity and even luxury, that seemed 10
/
personal afiront. ANA gather up Its velvet on
silk cushions, into is carved cherry or imita-
| ton ebony frames with cold disdaIn for its
! surroundings. Scattered in with the furniture
Were women, pOling the pillows, sitting i'm the
chair, shaking the tables and tumbling about
/ through the rub ish with eager interest,
There WAS a blg lat woman, with fan, who was
/ trying 10 sqeeze ia between two plies OF shuck
! mattresses; little near-sighted woman who
was looking tor moth in the velvet upholstery
! and the thin, sharp nosed young person in
! black gown and specs who was telling the
/ L. "a W rod har
! bonnet, that she had seen the same old piano
sold there six times 10 her own knowledge, and
| that all the old fashioned tunes were rusted I'm
! 1t. There were some men in the crowd, but
! they generally had female attachments and
were acting as purse-bearer To the queen. The
most OF the people were crowded close about
| the auctloneer. They looked like "A troop OF
eager sportsmen al a ioN chase, and when they
! got TO the heighth oftheir eNcitementtheyw would
chase the price OF a high-post bedstead or a de-
lapidated warming-pan away out of sight
Who II make it a half" shouted the man on
the box in one prolonged breath, as fast as the
ciapper OF an alarm clock; and the crowd
| pressed closer about him. In front of him was
| an old mahogany side-board that looked II
| and had a good deal OF old-fashioned mahogany
| pride over its superiority and experience.
HALF? Five-and-a-hali!' shouted the auo-
| tioneer "Solid NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. Think OF
! it. Think of ii. King George III drank of it
when he visited George Washington after the
hal, hal, hal, hal, half 0n-ly-fve-and-a,
half make IT six. It's foot's a little out of
| order, but that IS the result of high living i'm
early youth Its soaked with wine for over a
century. The last man who owned IL died
from dissipation. He was a temperance man,
| but the side board intoxicated the whole fam
steamed. Buy it, my friend; you'll never regret
your bargain-six! have 81, ST, ST, sikh To
the fat gentleman with the red face.'
Hell have to build a house to put IT in,"
said some one behind him.
"Curious people-interesting," suggested THE
STAR man, who caught the auctioneer just after
he was relieved by his partner.
"a "A q "a fhn
time" he replied, as he jumped himself up on
to the counter and beat h,s heels against the
so. There's sort of fascination about aoc-
ton that draws people-partcuiarly women.
years and there are women here to-day who
have never missed a week since IAN recollect.
Some of them never bid; some OF them bid
nearly everything, but never buy IT, because
they have no money. They lust bid right on
until they get their houses so numbered up that
they have TO hold an auction themselves. Then
they sell out and begin again. I have sold some
sions have amounted TO two or three times the
highest price It ever brought
excitement of the chase and afterwards come
to me and say, Il don't want this. What could
again. Sometimes we miss some very good
sales this way. People out bid everybody and
Sesn ne sells To almost sons and
some little-no-account rattle-trap that no body
ayes, sir" he added after a short pause. .the
auction business is very interesting. When
one gets in the habit of IL, it's like drink: it's
hard to break OF. Some folks would rather
spend their money going 20 auctions, buying
and selling again and paying commissions
than TO 60 10 the theater. 1t used TO be that few
but common folks attended auctions. II amt
SO now. The incest ladies In the city attend
now, even at the street sales It's very inter
esting, very" Then he slipped of the counter
TO I get glass OF water for very fat lady, who
after the blue satin parlor set
Charleston yesterday became the capital Of