The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-01-03
NO snow FOR DoGs AND CATS.
Remnants of Fashionable Feasts Gathered VI
and Sold as . Regular business.

anu SOlO as y 1seSular ASuSlueSDs
| New York sun.
| some house on Madison avenue last evening, for
| the canopy still stretched from the door to the
| curbstone. The hour was 2 A. NJ Adilapidated
| wagon stood in front of the house, drawn by an
| aged horse. A belated reporter CHANGED TO pass
| by and noticed two men hurrying from the cart,
with empty pans and pals into the basement OF
| the house, and returning speedily with the same
| filed to the brim. For moment it looked like
the nearest corner was assurance to the contrary
| One OF the men paused as if to rest for a mo-
ment and the reporter accosted him:
whats the racket
1.-THE same old thing. Free lunches, cheap
| restaurants and Eyetaliansp
Il don't quite catch on. What are you doing
| in the placer
why, don't you see, they've had a party
| there tonight and big supper. They've left
| three times as much as they've eaten, and we're
| buying it up from the steward. Wen take it
around to our regular customers and sell 1t all
| before o'clock to morrow.'
Regular customersP Why, is this regular
| trader
"Of course it is, and has been for over ten
| years of my own knowledge. You see, there
are hundred parties and over given every night
| here in New York. Nearly all of them are sup
| piled by regular caterers. About half are no
tlced in the daily papers. Now, at these rackets
| they always put up a lot more than they want
| They can't help themselves, because it would
never do to have just as much as their guests
| needed and no more. 1t would look just as if
| they were dead broke. Old families order gen
| orally twice as much as they're going to use,
| new families about three or four times as much,
| and shoddies five and ten times as much
! Why, last week we took in a swell place
| enough grub for FIVE hundred Now, what
| happens2 The party or wedding is all over,
and there's all that stuff left untasted All they
can do is to throw it into the swill barrel That's
NJ 010 t,rxr
up Sometimes we buy it from the caterer. 1t
| saves him trouble and time, as we clean off all
the dishes, and leave them ready for his washers
| Sometimes we make the deal with the cook or
the butler, and sometimes, but not very Often
with the old man of the house. Anyway we
manage to connect and get the stuff"
Nv hat do you payE
| "Well that depends. With a reliable caterer
| we can find out what will be left over, and can
make fair bid. With cooks and servants we
generally stake them with two or a five-dollar
note Almost always we come out ahead. but
now and then get left. Cooks getting too
smart and want too much. With the head of
| the house, though, its easy work, and a will
| satisfy him every time"
What do you do with the stuff"
''Sell it to our customers There's, first, the
cheap restaurants. They're always ready to take
| anything cheap If they can get chicken salad
for So that would cost them So to make they'll
take it every time. You see, they can afford
| then 20 sell it at twenty cents a plate and make
money. Why, one time l sold lobster salad
| thirty pounds for S. %. It cost the restaurant
| keeper three cents plate, and he could sell it
Tor ten and make money. AS a matter of fact
| he sold it all before o'clock for fifteen cents a
plate Then there's the free-lunch saloons
They want sandwiches, pickles, bread, cheese,
| olives and ham. They don't pay much, but
they'll take all you bring. There's one place
down town where they give fried oyster, a
sandwich, or something with every drink That
| man is one of my best customers.
| lunches you can always sell out what's left to
| the Eyetalians. They'll buy anything, if cheap
| enough. I've sold them ice cream of different
colors, halfeaten charlotte russes, chicken bones
| and broken cakes. At street-cleaner's res
| taurant in Marion street, last year, | sold the
| leavings from the plates of a big wedding recep
| ton for one dollar They made about three
| pailfuls and had fifty different things in
| them"
| what do you get mostly from parties?"
| "First, leavings from plates; then melted ice
cream; next sandwiches, and then cake. Occa-
| sionally we get charlotte russo and candies.
| In the old days we almost never got Salads but
| since theyve used veal and boiled beat in max
ing chicken salad, we get good deal On warm
! nights we collar good many fried and picked
! oysters; cold nights almost none at all. When
| they put up cold ham, corned beef, turkey and
| venison, people don't eat a quarter of it, and
| then we come in solid.
| "But you see, it all depends on the kind of
| party it is. Literaries are the worst of all;
| they only have Douillon coffee, sandwiches and
| salad and there's nothing LETT over Musicales
| are almost as bad. Kettledrums and afternoon
rackets are not much good either. The best is
| wedding. They send out thousand invites
| and set up for 700, and then about $50 come.
| Receptions to public men are next best Then
come birthday, christening and tin-wedding par
| ties. Wakes, too, are sometimes boss. The
! only way to size them up is to know the caterer
| and get all the points from him."
do you ever get any wine?"
MAO! The old man of the house always
comes down and collars what's left If he don't,
| the walters drink it, and they're always helped
| out by the servants. I've been in the business
| ten years, and 1 never got even half bottle.
| That is, didn't get any wine, although / did
get the empty bottles. They don't pay, though,
unless you get more than fifty, and then they
bring you in about dollar. But I've got to
stop, as I'm off now to Washington Market for
| our first customer"