Wichita eagle., 1888-11-23
--xzsssSMliIzsq
9ailu - EaSse
OUR NEW YORK LETTER,
THE DARK SIDE OF THE METROP
OILS FOUND BY STRANGERS.
Tho Once Terribly Vile Five Points Wis
tied and Described at Some Length.
Other Localities Found to Be Interesting
by Our Commissioner
Especial Correspondence.l

Especial Correspondence
NEW YORK, Oct. If there is a pecu-
harlY dark and noisome corner of this great
city, any district to which the streams Of
poverty, vice aud crime continually flow,
you may trust the visitor from the west to
find it. Nine-tenths of the men from Indi-
ana, Illinois, Missouri, ETC, who remain a
fortnight in the city see more of its dark side
than the average native sees in a lifetime
L confess to weakness in that direction
myself Having spent my early life in the
village, the woods and the fields, there is
strange fascination in those districts OF the
metropolis where six or eight story houses
shut out the brightness Of the summers day:
where restaurants and saloons are located in
dark cellars; where men, women and chill
dren eat, drink and rest on the sidewalk, and
where there is babel of tongues and
swarming, sweating mixture of Poles Ital-
fans and Hungarians, sailors, peddiers and
scavengers, ragpickers and cheap laborers,
with many barefooted people and occasion
ally free fight
Once the Five Points was the type OF all
that is vile. 1t was to New York what ST.
Glies was TO London. From ocean to ocean
there was not reading person who did not
know something OF the Five Points, and very
few who did not want to See it, But It's glory
In misery has departed 1t is almost respect
able, and the area OF extreme poverty now
begins little beyond it, with its central dis
trict in Mulberry Bend. Nevertheless. the
Five Points is Still place of great interest,
The first surprising fact about the old sink
hole Is, that it is so very near the heart Of
business New York. From the roof OF the
old white block known as down town Stew
arts "-thescenter of fashionable trade before
the war-a BenJaminite could have thrown a
Stone into the window of the viest rooilcry
Oh this continent. The postofice and City
Hall park are sill the heart of down town
New York. From the park, 90 six short
blocks up the east side OF Broadway, and
you are at Worth street, which turns east at a
right angle. at the corner you are in the
throng of business, fashion and healthful life
Go one hundred steps eastward and you are
IN another world.
The contrast even now is startling What
must it have been in 1S50-55! First, east of
Broadway is Elm street, and next to Elm is
Centre; go five rods beyond Centre, turn
round the corner to the right and you are in
Paradise park, within the points" really
there are six OF them but one is not conspic-
uous), all converging on the little breathing
space. Worth street and Park street here
cross at acute angles, like those of a slim y;
Baxter street comes in from the north, and
the result is four sharp points, and one ON the
south that is an obtuSe angle, though beyond
it the continuation of Baxter street makes
another point not quite in the group. Here
was the focus of New YorB's misery, suualor
and crime; and here is still the western en-
trance to one Of the poorest districts
Here I took my seat on the hard bench of
Paradise park, on the afternoon of Sept 20.
an Italian holiday-to note the changes since
j first saw the place nearly thirty years
ago. The change has been great and tho
names clearly Indicate it. On y orth street,
north, is the immense six story red brick, its
long front lettered Five Points House OF IN
dustry." Beside it Il somewhat smaller brick
bears the words, "ILtirmary of the Five
Points House of Industry" On that spot
once stood a mass of tall and rickoty wooden
buildings, crowded with people of every age,
race and color, in every stage OF moral and
physical decay-an atrociouS nest of the
worst sneak thieves and beggars, drunkards
and disreputables III the world.
1t was place of innUmerable murders. No
policeman ventured into it alone In its
back rooms and dark corners many an out
cast was choked or beaten to DEATH many
a worn out and pennilesS debauchee died
alone: and in more than one instance corpseS
lay unknown in little dark rooms till decay
revealed their presence TO the wretched neigh
bors A single room sheltered two or three
families, their respective territories defined
by marks on the floor. It WAS called in a
general way Sow Bay" but minor divi-
sions and the narrow alleys opening into the
lower stories were called Jacobs Ladder"
"Rogue's Rum" Dead Fall" ''lTurderers
alley" and tho like. To look into these
inlets and up the dirty stairways was like
glimpse into the mouth of he'll.
On Park street, south, is another solid
brick structure, labeled on the front Five
Points Mission" On that spot once stood
the noted odd Brewery" a JoJtering stone
structure with great seams in its darkened
0alls, with indeScribable 6 LII in Its Railways
and poverty glaring night and day with
hungry, hldeous faces cut Of its dismal old
windows. Its history is a long detail of mis-
cries, diversified by some of the most appali-
ing crimes ever perpetrated. Among the
crimes, infanticlie was, of course, very fire.
quent The ward was then known as the
Bloody Sixth Il is now comparatively
lumism is now claimed for the Fighting
Seventeenth" Business has encroacheI on
this district, and rowdyiSIn has moved up
town
Charles Dickens is credited with the honor
of having been the first writer to explore tho
dark corners of tine Five Points. He did it
very thoroughly, too, in 1872, and wrote it
up in lis inimitable style When his work
Wac ram, Dlishaj I'm Arneri>a The Five Points
at once became famous. He set the fashion
Of stunning" and soon had 50 many ini-
tators that the contributions of visitors be-
game an important source OF revenue 10 the
Five Pointers, and the man who wanted to
See misery got the worth of his money. One
method was TO leave all valuables az ones
hotel, dress in rags and stroll into the dens
as habitue; but soft hands and clean
healthy skin coU.d not be lett at the hotel,
and 50 the explorer was liable TO be detected
and hustled" Even now a rudy and
faI7ncrhke man is as quickly noted there US
Chinarnan would be il an Ohio village.
A better method was to go with a police
man in citizens clothes and with enough
small change 70 pay ones footing But al
this was done in tao daytime; at night the
quarter was given zap to its own cirizers ex-
clusively. Even row should not select the
Sixth ward for an evening stroll, nor is il
quite safe 20 drink anything in some of the
cellar saloons. They are LOADED fer BEAR
in many such localities; and though You
take only lemonade or water, or your beer
be drawn from tie same faucet as that for
the regular habitues, there is liable 70 be
something in the glass in which it is served
that viii ''conjurer the senses. As soon as it