Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1890-12-26

ty-stflcsen cabin the desolate bog
are herded in such barracks today
In New York. Potatoes thew have:
yes, aud meat at four cents-even
seven. Beer for a relish - never
without beer. But home: The home
ina, was q home, even In a bog,
with The love Of itthat has made
ireland immortal and q tower
Of strength in the mids. OF her suf-
feribg-what Of that? There are no
homes in New York's poor tene-
ments.
IN THE BEND.
Down the crooked path Of the
Mulberry street Bend the sunlight
slanied into the heart OF New York,s
Italy. Ii shone upon handannas
anu yellow neckerchies; upon
swarthy faces and coriurov
breeches; upon black-haired Girls
mothers at Is; upon hosts OF bow
legged children rolling in the dirt;
upon pendlers' carts and ragpickers
staggering under burdens that
threatened TO crush them at every
step. Shone upon unnumbered
Pas4uaies dwelling, working, idliny
and gambling there. Shone upon
the filthiest and fUulest Of New
Works. tenements, upon Bandits
ROosi, upon Bottle Alley, upon the
hidden by-ways that lead TO the
tramp's burrows. Shone upon the
scene OF annual infant slaughter.
Sh0ne into the foul core Of New
Works. slums that is shortly to go 10
the realms Of bad memories because
ciiilized man may not look upon II
and live without blushing.
IL g.anced past the rag shop in
the cellar, whence welled up
stenches to poison the town, into an
apartment three flights up and helc
two women, one young, the other
old and bent. The young one had
a baby at the breast. She was rock
ing il tenderly ia her arms, singing
in the son Italian tongue lullaby,
while the old granny listened eager
j., her elbows on her knees, and a
stunpy eiay pipe, blackened with
age, between her teeth. Her eyes
We're set on the wall, on which the
mus;y paper hung in shreds, fit
frame fOF the wreiehed, poverty
stricken room, but they saw neither
poverty nor want. her aged limbs
fell not the cold draught from with
out, in which they shiyeTed; they
locked far over the seas to Sunny
Italy, whose music was in her ears.
"Mia cara, she nsumbled between
her toOthiess jaws, ''fnia-"
The song ended in n burst OF
passionate grief. The old granny
anil the baby woke up at once.
They were not In sunny Italy; not
under Southern, cicudless skies
They were in ''the Bend" in Null
berry street. and the December wind
ratified the door as if 1t would say in
The language Of their new home, the
lind Of the free: LESS musiei More
w0rs, Root, hog. or die"
IN CHINATOWN.
Around the corner the sunbeam
danced with the wind into Mott
street, lifted the blouse OF q China
man and made il play tag with his
pistail. IL used him 80 roughly that
he was glad TO SKIP from II down n
ceilarway that gave out fumes Of
opium strong enough to scare even
the north wind from its purpose
the soles o! his felt shoes showed As
he disappeared down the ladder
that passed for cellar steps. Down
there, where daylight never came.
groop Of yellow, siinopd eyed men
were bending over a table playing
fantan. Their very souls were in
the game, every faculty Of the MUD
bent on the issue ami the stake
The oae blouse that was Indifferent
10 what went on was stretched on "A
mat ia the corner. One eud OF a
clumsy pipe WAS ia his mouth, the
other held over little spirit lamp
on the divan on which he lay.
Something sp!utterei in the flame
with a prugent, unpleasant smell.
The smoker took long draught,
inhaling the white smoke, then sank
back on his couch in senseless con-
tent.
Upstairs tiptoed the soiseless
felt SHOES, zen. OH some house
er-aId, past the shrine OF Joss
on tine floor above, over which in old
English letters stood the motto OF
the trade dollar, I'm God we Tggst, -
copied bodily trnm ihe coin in deli
oaia international compliment TO the
Mclean joss, the almighty dollar;
TO the ''honsehold" floors above,
where young white girls from the
tenements Of the Bend and Eas. side
live in slavery worse, II not more
CALLING than the galley with ball
and chain-the slavery Of the pipe.
Four, eight, sixteen, twenty odd
such "hOmes- in this tenement,
disgrscing the very name Of home
and family. for marriage and roth
are not Ia the bargain. And ell
about in Mott street, in Pell and
Doyers streets are taller tenements
even than this, honeycombei with
tie like.
In Zone room, between the half
drawn curtains Of which the sun
beam works its way in, three girls
are lying in a. many hunks, smok-
Ing ALL They are very young.
eundersge, /" though each aud every
one would glibly swear In court TO
the satisfaction OF the police that she
Is IL, and therefore free to make
her own had choice. OF these, one
was brought up among the rugged
hills Of Maine; the other two are
from the tenement crowds, hardly
missed there. But their companion:
She is twirling the sticky brown
pill over the Lamp preparatory to
filling the bowl Of her pipe viii 1t.
AS she does 50, the sunbeam dance
across the bed, kisses the red spot
on her cheek that betrays the Sc
cret her tyrant long has known.
though TO her IL Is hidden yet-that
the pipe has claimed its victim and
soon will pass it ON to the PoIter's
Field.
"Neli, " says one OF her chums in
the other bunk, something stirred
within her by the fiash-ssNell, did
You hear from the old farm to home
since you came here"
Nell turns half around, with the
toastlng stick in her hand, an ugly |
look In her wasted features, a vile !
oath on her lips.
$40 he'll with the old farm, y she
says, and putting the pipe to her
mouth inhales IL all, every bit, in I
one long breath, then falls back on |
her pillow in drunken stupor. That
Is what the sun Of = winter day saw
and heard in Mott street.
IN POVERTY GAP.
II had Travelled far toward the
West, searching many DARK corners |
aud vainly seeking entry TO others,
had gilt with equal impartiality tn.
spires Of 500 churches and the tin
soEnices OF 5000 tenements, with
heir more than 100000 tenants:
had smiled courage and cheer TO pa
lent mothers trying 10 make the
most Of life in the tseming crowds
mat had too little sunshine by far,
hope to toiling fathers striving early
md late for bread to fiji the many |