The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1890-08-08

NldO HOL llS LI1CS W 10 WHY POL-
susave in his pidgin-English, and re-
sents demonstratively the interruption
of the little black-eysd Dago boy whS
runs up his hand-cart of hot peanuts
and takes his stand, vociferously call
ing his wares.
A fat. yellow man, as greasy as his
own plucked geese, is chatfering by his
cart with slip of a girl, who be-
lieves, and rightly, that he is cheating
her in both price and measure as she
buys from him supply of okra for gum
DO on the morrow.
Here is little German woman, face
sharp and puckered into innumerable
wrinkles; but her balls Of hand-cheese,
strewed with caraway seeds, are white
and appetizing. She has put some away
in can, which she tells you ''schmech
gut" but when uncovered they are as
yellow as gold, and smell to heaven"
yet these her German customers prefer.
This thin-faced Italian has wagon
laden with game, all killed close by.
Mule-eared rabbits and notifications
tails;" squirrels, red, black and gray,
some skinned, some not; punches Of
partridges, braces of prairie chicken
and dozens of snipe tied together by tho
neck; some wild geese; ducks of all
kinds, from canvas-back to didapper;
and here is single sand-hill crane
fine eating the bird is too, and hand
some fellow to shoot. The owner is a
good salesman and an eager. He calls
to each passer-by, and knows we'll how
to praise and show his stock. Small,
swarthy, 1.-the and dirty, he is type of
his class, always asking higher than he
will get, and dropping little by little to
the offered price at last
Many others are in line, but they arc
but repetitions of these, if we except
the strapping brown virago, with her
poultry and eggs, turnips and cabbage,
who is too busy joking coarsely with
the colored men and abusing the ven
ders around her to pay much attention
to her trade.
Within the building stretches quad
ruple row of vegetable stalls, all tended
by women, German and Irish exclusive
ly, clean dressed and hatless. Their
wares make pretty show; no hot-bed
products are here, no garden truck from
other States, but all home-raised. Tho
fresh green and white of the succulent
spring vegetables are seen in the midst
of December, tho pale pink radishes
lying in the crisp, curly leaves of chic
Dry; the purple kohl-rabi against tho
piles of creamy, wax beans; the long,
slim pods of Carolina okra" are heaped
next to golden carrots and red spring
beets; piles of purple cgg-plants are
ranged between cabbage heads, pro-
verbally hard; while great lunches
of cool, white celery keep company
with baskets of fresh green pease and
pink-sklnned new potatoes. The women
are very artistic in their arrangement
of these things, and they make fine
display Of color; but fruit they do not
touch. Here again the Dago comes to
the fore. You find him in stalls stocked
with West India, Northern, and Cali
fornia fruits; only what other States
draw from the Antilles, Mexico supplies
to Texas.
''Lemona tawenta centa donna; ap-
pelay, banan, grapa-all cheepa." they
assure one as he goes by.
Very foreign they look, with gold
rings in their ears, men though they be,
and red muffiers around their threats.
They seem to give endless amusement
to the respecta ble-looking colored man
and woman opposite, who keep stall
where they sell cold food-fried catfish
and tender chicken, hard eggs
and heaps of golden corn-bread and
roasted potatoes, with thin-sliced sand
witches, all appetizing indeed, and
where many darby stops to eat meal
and treat his dusly 'Dulcinea."
Beyond is the meat market, the
butchers nearly all Germans, with
Frenchman and an American or two, to
mix the nationalities. Passing through
that, we enter what may be called the
bazar-little stores of rcady-made
clothing, both male and female, tin
ware, cutlery, baskets. fancy articles.
candy, all separate, and the last-named
stalls presided over by handsome Italian
and pleasant German girls. 1t is very
ola pod-ida of merchandise.
Back of this again, the fsh-market
and game Of various kinds; and here
once more does the Dago find an occu-
patton. There are shrimps, crabs,
oysters and all sorts of fish, but the cat
fish, in infinite variety, stanGs out in
marked prominence, for it is the favor
ito of the negro race, and they are rare
good customers.
In and out of the building surge the
crowd, for all of Houston is here. 1t is
a singular custom, this making fash
ionable promenade of the market, yet
it obtains, and tho fine ladies do not
seem to mind the mixture of peoples or
the place itself, but dress in purple
and fine linen" for the occasion The
dude is in force, and the "masher" is
not wanting; the men who stare and
the girls who love to be stared at;
sober matrons on housekeeping
thoughts intent; flirtatious maidens
who push through the crowd, and seem
to have no idea that their manners are
not of the best; natty negro wenches,
pert of tongue and loose of demeanor;
respectable colored ''maumus." ample
of girth, in spotless white aprons; strap
ping negro men and saucy bootblacks;
merchants, LAWYERS and physicians: