Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1889-12-06
WHERE MANY RACES MEET
A COSMOPOLITAN NEIGHBoRHooD
IN AMERICAS METROPOLIS.
There French, Italian and Spanish
are Mostly Spoken, and Strange
Dishes arc Goncoctcd.

There French, Italian and Spanish
are Mostly Spoken, and Strange
Dishes arc Goncoctcd.
The Eighth Ward, or that portion OF
it lying west of the dry goods districts,
presents features that are to be seen
nowhere else in this great city. 1t IS
cosmopolitan neighborhood. More dill
fercnt customs and habits are to he me,
with there than in any other part o
New York. A greater variety of race
and types of people are to be seen and 81:
wider conglomeration of languages are 70
be heard.
What are called the Latin races abound
more so than elsewhere French, Span
ish and Italian names and expressions
are very plentifully mixed with the Ger
man. There are greater number OF
natives of France located there than IN
any other quarter, and it is because they
aud the Spanish-speaking population OBJ
serve and maintain the customs and ways
of their native countries rs far as posi-
bic that makes the ward characteristic.
Business signs in French, Spanish and
Italian are everywhere.
The butcher shops are designated as
WBoucheries Franchise" boarding houses
bear the sign "Maison Privee" and the
dry goods dealer calls himself "Mercier
Franchise The hat "Chappelerie.
It is a common sight to sec on the signs
.sBon Marche. ""Nouvetes, Lingerie,
over shops. Blocker street, once the
fashionable place of residence of the
I.attings the Depaws and the kettletonsI
Madrid OF Barcelona. There are all sorts
of trade places even to French-American
fish market.
The oyster saloon connected with it is
described as a "Depot d'HWtreS, . and
"Fresh fish daily in use is made to read
"Pousson, Erals, chaQuc jour sur glace.
! Beer, wines and liquors sold in the cafes
and cabarets in the neighborhood are de.
scribed by the signs "Bicre, Wins ct Lii.
queries" The painter styles himself in
his bushes card ''Peintrc," and schools
are termed 'ecoles
1t is in the Eighth Ward, too, that the
bulk of the Spanish-speaking population
of the metropolis is settled. Like the
French they maintain the customs Of their
native countries to a great extent. The
Spanish population is recruited mostly
from the West India Islands, the Cubans
predominating.
Mixed with this population are the
immigrants from the Danish and French
West Indies. They are of one color
(blacl>), but the types vary from the
shiny, ebony black to the saffron color
and mulatto. Their dialects differ and
it is sometimes difficult for the Cuban to
understand what the other West Indians
are saying. They follow the trade OF
cigar making to large extent.
A favorite congregating place of the
Spanish Eighth Warder lisa restaurant in
Blocker street, kept by former slave
owner of Cuba. Here former masters
and bondsmen Of the Spanish West Indies
meet and mingle, and Haytiens who were
lately opposing each other, either as adj
herents of the victorious Hippolitc or the
defeated Legitime, shake hands, ano
quaffing a cup Of chocolate or othel
beverage, converse on the merits OF the
past conflict. There arc nearly as man!
colonies and majors to be encountered IL
the resort as at a Missouri crossroads
They saw service in the Cuban war fol-
independence, and spend much time IL
talking of the exploits of the time.
The place is the only one in town, it il
said, where cooking after the Spanish
style is used. Green corn is known tC
almost every one, but black corn is no
common here. It is of purplish black
color and is very sweet. When in season
it and black beans form some of the fooC
products of Spanish Eighth Warders. 4
peculiar dish, of which they are quite
fond, and which is not found in the Del
monico menu, is the famous ola pud
ding, or the oily pot. 1t is a mixture o
black beans, rice and garlic, with oil a
the main ingredient. 1t is palatable tt
many.
Among the other unfamiliar foods an(
beverages peculiar to the Eighth Ware
is Chianti wine, an Italian decoction OF {
yellowish color, that comes in long, thin
necked bottles in glass castings. The sail
of it is extensive The italian grocerie
and bake shops, of which there are many
display novel sort of bread. 1t is yer.
long and crisp and not thicker than tn
finger, and sells for sixteen cents
pound.
There are many romances and strang
tales to be heard among the Spanish
residents. In Washington Place, nea
Washington Square, is household o
Cubans, in which there is a girl who act
as a servant, and who was brought b.
them from Havana when slavery still ex
listed there. She still works withou
pay. Her master whips her sometime
and she cannot be made to understand
that she is free to go or stay,-Nel0 Y0r
NelcS.
"Hard- Winter" Signs.