Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1886-11-23
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THE RAcPlCKERS OF PARIS.
Ths Daily PickinSs-visit to the Eoir
of a Noted Dc.,nicEer.

Ths Daily Pic1inss-Visit to the Eone
of Noted RaSpicker.
in the daily pickings," said the ragpicker,
"ffrst come the bones; we dry them, and then
sell them for SO much pound for manufac-
turing common buttons and making pow
dered manure Hair was formerly very
valuable but since women arc satisfied with
their own there is 10 market for IL; rags Of
every color and description gro carefully
picked; several years ago wo used to get
much more for these, but now tho market is
flooded with them, especially since some
paper manufacturers set their rags from the
east. Then glass, old bottles, old iron and
TIE rinds and Feelings Of vegetables for cur
hors and rabbits. In very hard times my
family and have eaten the meat T-a found
in the boxes after cleaning it carefully, but
now we give it to our cats and dogs; cooks Of
our big houses reserve the soup meats for Us,
and y7o lriz il with vegetables Ge raise to
make stCTs.
"You see tho5o immense sacks leaning
against the wall Trey ere filed with cTllsts
OF bread; my wife takes the best Of them 10
make Gread-pap for the children, and the
Others go toward feeding the chickens and
other animals about tho house. Al those
sacks are what we have picked W last winter
to use in The summer. Summer IS our dun
Season, because Uo pick in rich quarters;
most Of our people lca.c for the summer and
earbac,e boxes are empty. Ii quarters where
the Working classes live summer IS better
than vi.it...: they mover leave the city, and
in winter they burn ell taeir garbage to add
TO thor fuel. The commercial parts Of the
city ere the best of all; ono collects there al
the rcI;sc mater Of storcf, beside ell that Of
the tenants living in the higher stories.
& person who has never visited rag
pici.er's home can have 10 idea Of Its soruid-
ness. lis stencil, It's responsiveness to all the
senses. Il Laluisiere'S house is in Colonies,
a suburb .ituatea-about five miles from Paris;
It is bulls on 4 road that is lined here and
there OILY with raCpickCr, huts. On enter
ing the g;at, at tie front yard Of II. Lalui-
siere's property my eye fell on a pile Of
manure, Oh whicl: were resting two pigs, a
dog, a cat and two of the younger children,
too thinly clad t. cover their nGleo,nes5. BY
the side of this was st2gn2lt pool fcrnc1.-
ing i'll the sunlight and cinanating & horrible
odor waved TO the surface By tho motion Of
two or three swimming ducks Near by WAS
a rest Of rabbits groycling in the mud busy
ealil1 U-tOJtI tsiDJet5p i--''tf'. Sii'AtA an
opcn shcd sat the three oldest boys picking
and sorting that mornings harvest from
the garbage boxes. The odor arising from
that harvest Lad no resemblance whatever b
that Of new mown hay.
Picking my way through all that fifth. /
ventured into the house; it consists Of tho
rooms; tnc parents bedroom has = scmblanca
oc cleanliness ard deccncy, but the other
81 rves rs = kitchen, dining room and had-
.oom for The boys, and depository Of q monn-
tain OF damp ra.gs which probably have served
for al purpos-s il the world. Now those
Grc children sleep CT filthy, sheatles5 beds
Ueyt 10 that mountain of oifoEsivenlsS, 9nG
there ) never anything the matter with them;
ihey have Hoyer been Ill ~ hour; no doctor
has ever catered that hous.; tie boys ere
hearty, Strong add rosr. Perhaps we can IL
fer fro3n thai that cultured children Of cul-
tured families are really too vel token caro-
of; that If they were les packed il cotton,
less Watched in their little q jnEs, their pulse
less felt b. The doctors, allowed 70 run moro
loose Of All TIE restraints Of refinement and
education, Lae ra-o would be les5ICrvou5 and
suffer l-s5 .ro,l poverty Of blood. Ncil-to-do
French families l know, on an average haTo
but ore and two children apiece, and they
spend their lives IN killing them with care
Paris Cor. brooklyn Easle,