Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-07-20
LONDON LODGINGS.
PLACES WHERE MANY OF THE GREAT
ClTY'S POOR FIND SHELTER.

ClTY'S POOR FIND SHELTER.
The Common Lodging House OF Today
Clean and Fairly Comfortable - Tho
Various Glasses of Patrons-view OF An
Interior-A Valet.
The common lodging house Of today Il
clean and fairly comfortable. Each house is
licensed 10 receive certain number only;
every man must have bed to himself, and
each bed must have much space given 10
it. The difference in this respect may DO
judged from the fact that in one common
lodging house with which / am acquainted q
room now licensed fy eleven beds formerly
contained twenty Moreover. the law
conpels frequent scrlbbinss of floors and
whitewashing of walls, and the slightest case
of illness must be at once reported to tho
nearest police station. Seeing the class OF
customers the proprietor has to accommo-
date, you may ialaein that the floors of tho
dorinitories get d terrific amount OF scrub
bing, with the result that they are far
cleaner and more wholesome than the car
peted rooms of many moro pretentlous estab-
lishments. where an overworkcd housemaid
carpet with brown and sweeps the dun
under the bed.
There Is very keen competition in the
trade, and some houses are naturally much
better than others. AS consequence tho
class OF dodgers differs also. One proprietor,
by keeping his house IS dirty as he darcs, Sc
cures the patronage OF one class. while an
other, by making ms house as comfortable -
possible, attracts men of superior grade.
But to thoroughly understand what the
common lodging houses are You must SEQ
one. Come down this narrow, unswept and
under the weather looking street. You sec
that Louse when looks as though it were a
double fronted shop with the shutters still
up That Is a common lodging bouse. Tho
door III the center is q swing door. Outside
1t gentleman in tho unpicturcsque tatters
of our national costume Is smoking clay
pipe, and with MS hands thrust in his trou-
sers pockets is looking fxedly at nothing.
Over the doorway at which the gentleman
stands is the inscription in white letters on
biacl; board, Registered Lodging House
Beds, 3l4d. aud =. Night"
Let Us push the swing door open and walk
in. It is broad day light outside, but directly
we have passed the swing door we find our
selves almost il darkness. The room we are
in is the Kitchen" or common room, in
which all the guests sit and take their meals,
and amuse themselves until it is time to go
up stairs to bed | cannot say how one OF
these kitchens would look Ia the glare of day.
There is nothing TO show sunbearns that they
would be Hospitality received, and so they re-
main outside Ard even there they are
snubbed. for, lest they should be inquisitive
and try and peep in at the lodging house
windows, the said windows are kept as grimy
as possible outside, and inside they are COW
cred with a coat OF some dirty looking prep
aration.
The light in these kitcheris, then, IL gen~r-
ally OF the dim, religious order. II suit tho
scene. The people who are sitting on the long
forms at the table, or crouching together
before the dull red fire, would, Sonic OF them,
look hideous in the fun light Of day. In tho
red glow that the fire throws on them, as
they sit In the darkened room, they look al
most picturesque.
The worknen who live in these lodging
horses ere not home yet. They will come in
about O'Clock There viii not be many in
this house because it is n low housc-that is
10 say, il is house frequented by tramps
and loafcrs and shady customers, and more
over IL is family house." and that means
women and children 10 disturb the harmony
II tie evening ia the common kitchen Tho
'act that theso common lodging hou.as.
where beds are let out at fourpencs a night.
arc largely patronized by workman In regu-
ar employment may astonisb people who are
rot behind the scenes But know in some
4 these houses workingrnen who have lived
here for twelve an: si1teou years
These men ere single men sod widowers,
nd the houses which arc for "rylen only"
UT them much better than private lodgings
would. FiIs: Of all the house n OPEN night
nd day; al day and all night he red fro
,lOws and Is ready for a man 20 cook his late
upper or his carly breakfast at Teen there
: the socioty Of tSs other men, pipes and
and always a pal trs take a
land az eri5bage, which IL ths fashionable
oIa1aoa lodging house game. Moreover,
ach man has q bed to himself. which In pri-
'ata lodgings for workingussD il not slways
'btaiHahle. And there Is always sosss 90,
o call hiIa early IN tho morning. Ia order
bat be may get up and 20 % bis work, with
ut having n pay toe policeman ca duty TO
brew stones at his window end ysil out that
; is half past -
The COMMON lodging house ia % thes~ men
one and Cub eorabined, and the proprietor
sho gets this class u r1en-rner fn steady
znplcysnsn. tries 20 pleass them. and
raduAl!y snsy gu hsz hoase, aid then be az
iudes chance crs.orners ard 'roczhs" ard
In house becomes . regular vorkinyrsaas
one.
One sysa. advantage that r-san with re~,-
AZ wages finds 10 tsess places IL that hs 10
fSIe 20 saeo a ~al~s Tsx n x.i~s .uc<
nese common bdsfng houses there are mn
no. for . copper 90 % weed. ..valsss for
&c sr1s.ocrs:e For svcp>nos . week paid
, roorer fellow l1gsr the arsssocr.s has
Is boo.s biacksd <sad bis ssppsr cooked In
ddisson 20 sAls, the vaIrs runs his Ea.ssers
rrarsds and kseps his fayoriss ss&s By shs
re I'll ee wants ts. and vhso there 10 dis
1.<sos On aay matter the faithful vASes
hines In With k.s master and IL aivays
sssy 70 back h.,n in say szsertsoa be may
'sooss 70 rraAks--CeorSe K sazs In PA0s-
saph2A Tines.