The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1885-01-30
AFTER THE FEAST.
WHAT BECOMES OF THE FRAGMENTS
WHICH ARE LEFT.
Remnants Of Fashionable Bsnluets Gath
cred Up and Sold rs Regular Busi-
ness-working the Restaurants
and Free Lunch Places.

CouulS evening, Ior The canopy Stul stretched
from the door to the curbstone. The hour
was u. m. A dilapidated wagon stood In
front Of the house, drawn by an aged
horse. II belated reporter chance TO pass by
and noticed two men hurrying from the
cart, with empty pans and pals, into the
basement Of the house, and returning speed
lily with the same filed to the brim. For
moment it looked like burglary, but the
presence Of a policeman on the nearest cor
ner was assurance 10 the contrary. One vf
the men paused as If to rest for n .noment
and the reporter accosted him:
"Whats the racket
The same old thing Free lunches, cheap
restaurants, and Eyetalians"
"ldon't quite catch on What are you do
ing in the placer
"Why, don't you see, they've had party
there tonight and big supper. They've
left three times as much US they've eaten,
and we're buying it up from the steward
Wen take it around to our regular custom
ers and sell it all before 0 o'clock to-
morrow"
Regular customers. Why, is this regu-
lar trader
"Of course it Is, and has been for over teu
years Of my own knowledge. You soc, there
are hundred parties and over given every
night here in New York. Nearly all of them
are supplied by regular caterers About
half are noticed in the daily papers. Now,
at these rackets they always put up 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 Lroke Old fam
lilies order generally twice Us 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 where they
had fifty people, and they had enough grub
for 500. Now, what happensa 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 where
we come in. We come along and buy itup.
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"
what do you payp
swell, that depends. With q reliable
over, and can make fair bid. With cooks
and servants We generally stake him with O
81 or IS note. Almost always we come out
ahead, but now and then we get left. Cooks
are getting two smart and want too much.
With the head Of the house, though, it's
easy work, and V will satisfy him every
time"
What do you do with the stuffp
"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 81 that would cUst
them S. to make they'll take it every time.
You see, they can afford then to sell 1t at
20 cents plate and make money Why,
one time sold lobster salad, thirty pounds
for g. Is. 1t cost the restaurant keeper cents
plate, and he could sell it for 10 and make
money. As a matter Of fact, he sold it all
before o'clock for Is 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 town
where they give fried oyster, a sandwich,
or something with every drink. That man
Is one Of my best customers
@After you've worked the restaurants and
free lunches, you can always sell out what's
left to the Eyetalians. They'll buy anything
IL it's cheap enough. I've sold them melted
ice cream of different colors, half eaten
Charlotte Russes, chicken bones, and broken
cakes. At a street cleaners restaurant in
Marion street last year sold the lesvings
from the plates Of q big wedding reception
for 81 They made about three pailsfuls,
and had over fifty different things In them"
"What do you get mostly from partiesl'
"First, leavings from plates; then melted
Ice cream; next sandwiches, and then cake.
Occasionally we get Charlotte Russo and
candies In the old days we almost never
got salads; but since they've used veal and
boiled beef in making chicken salad, we get
good deal. On warm nights we collar
good many fried and picked oysters; on
cold nights almost none at all When they
put up cold ham, corn beef, turkey, and
venison, people don't eat q quarter Of it, and
then we come in solid.
"But yoa see it all depends on the kind Of
party it is. Literaries are the worst of all;
they only have bouillon, coffee, sand wiehes,
and salad, and there's nothing left over.
Musicals are almost as bad. Ksttledrums
and afternoon rackets are not much good
either. The best Is a wedding. They send
out 1000 invites and set up for TOO, and then
about $50 come. Receptions to public men
are the next best. Then come birthday,
and tin-wedding parties. 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 winei"
"Na-ol The old man Of the house always
comes down and collars what's left. II he
don't, the waters drink it, and they're
lways helped out by the servants. I've
been in the business ten years, and never
got even a half bottle. That is, didn't get
the empty bottles. They don't pay, though,
unless you get more than fifty, and then
they bring you in about $1.00. But I've got
10 STOP as rm off now to Washington market
Tor our first cistomern