Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1886-11-10
QUEER BUSINESS.
How q Peculiar Little New York Man
Makes n Comfortable living.
IN Natl oud Erprassl

Makes a Comforta BILE tviug.
IN. Y. Mail and Fxpressl
On q much travelled uptown thorouvh.
fare a little, half-story wooden shop
stands letween two big business blocks,
for oil the world like diminutive chunk
Of ham between the abnormally thick
slices of bread in a railroad sandwich.
The little shop and ground on which 1t is
built are owned iy shriveled old man.
He hos refused every Offer to dispose of
the property. no withstanaing the exorii.
tant prices repeatedly proposed by nei III
boring merchants, who desire to rid tae
street of the shabby little shops disfisur-
ing presence. The old mans mode Of
gaining livelihood is fully as peculiar as
his refusal to part with his real estate on
the terms thatha been OF cred him. Tue
shop has two from. windows. In one
hangs card bearing the legend "Button-
holes inside" and in the other is another
with the inscription, "Any button
matchei-ten cents only"
Within the It'll. shop ara shelves aui
counters covered with pasteboard
trays containing a larger collie ,tion of
buttons, probably, than can bs foun any
where else in New YORK. There is every
Oue
from the plain white shirt button, whose
absence has caused untold miseries in
many family circle, to tbs bold-faced
metallic military button which saves life
every now and then in war stories
by turning bullet from it's
deadly course; buttons Of Jet, Gilt,
ivory, bone, glass and wood, plain
buttons, parti-col ,red buttons, enameled
buttons. plush-covered buttons, buttons
with shanks AMI without shanks, rough
buttons and smooth buttons, buttons ia It
were invented yesterday and buttons that
were made half a century ago.
In the back of the shop is b.nch like a
cobLler's, where the old man sits all day
cross-legged. A pretty faced little Girl,
who looks cid for her size, waits upon the
customers. She Is the little old mans
granddaughter. Neither the oil man nor
his gran daughter is inclined to tai fre, ly
about their business. To n reporter, how.
ever, the little giSl said: I'VE match u.
ions md sew them On the &C ats and vest.
of gentlemen ana on the dresses OF ladies.
| oh. yes, we have COOL mrnY customers 8,
principally young men, who have lost a
| tutoa or two 2I Sa-n'. :: CT 20 ea
| .l,em on or en-, match the iu.tons in he
cul1: stoi es. We often have cali from
seamstcessss also, who nsei a few but.ons
they cans find elsewhere. You see cur
oliec.;oa is SO large that we cGn su; ;'lly tho
missing buttons in almost any SET. Where
did we get such large coll otioni Granl l.
pa has been gathering it for wears He na
= numl:er of tailor shops and dressmakins
est b! shr1 nts " Eich lie visits regularly.
From these he gels odl iuttons by tie
hunireds, very cheap. We CHARGE only
tsH cents for amy Luton that may bs do
sired. o. couis. some of tben are worth
gooi deul more than shat. but as the lie.
nland is creates for tho cheap kin IS We
Eaa ke a fair prc fit in the long run. Huw
did grandpa conceive the ide a of the usi :
ness! don't know, I'm sure. I never
asked him; int suppose from sesipg so
many persons with buttons missin. ir, nj,
their clothes, who would have them re-
place II they di iu't have TO go to any
troui'le-. In addition 10 supplying oil Lut-
tnns and sewing them on while the cus-
toner waits, we also mend ragged button
pores or make new ones where they have
been torn on :"