Los Angeles herald., 1891-02-17
DEAD PAUPERS GOODS.
- ING At AUCTION THE ODD
PROPERTY OF SUICIDES.

AGrsWsome Scene-What Becomes Of the
arsets which Paupers Leave Behind
When They Take Their Own Lives.
fhey Fad Their Way to the Bowery.
"1fisery's auction sale" took place
Thursday. It was held at Duane street,
I'D though that is not its official name
Is occurzcd to reporter who heard it
c61led 50 as most appropriate one.
The auction has an odd and grewsome
origin. When man commits suicide
BY pistol or knife the coroner takes pos
session Of the weapon. If the man has
no friends or relatives, and leaves no
win, hisclothes and any personal effects
that he may have go with it.
After the unfortunate is laid beneath
the sod of Potters field, and all the legal
formulas have been observed, the coro-
ner hands all these things over to the
public administrator. The large num-
Der Of suicides IN this big city, the,mys-
teri0us desths Of unknown men and
women and the-deaths in the poor gar
rets. serve to swell this officials interest
ing collection of estates and heirlooms to
such . size that special man is kept
busy looking after them.
Should any Of these articles be valu-
able they are placed in the-ofice safe or
ease.sant to. q s2fe-deposit company. But
the bulk Of the, stuff that falls into the
adndmistrator's hands is of little value,
consisting mostly Of cheap furniture,
caethHs bedding, revolvers, knives and
odds and ends, of which every man pos
sesses his share. These things are sent
to the storeaouse at Duane street, ad-
joining the Newsboys' Lodging house,
and there they accumulate until the pile
grows too big for the place, when they
are auctioned of to the highest bidder.
THE AUCTION ROOM.
When the reporter entered the place
the sale was in progress. The auc-
timeer's pulpit like stand was in the
middle of the room, and that function
aEy, in silk hat, was deeply engaged in
overcoming the objections of poorly
dressed, stout Irish woman to buying a
cheap watch that might have been silver
oa.steel. The room was filed with a
naof1ey gathering of men and women. It
was q poor looking crowd, although
here and there a scintillating spark be-
t<ayed diamond on the person of a
Chatham.street curiosity" dealer. Many
people who daily pass the curiosity shops
on the Bowery have wondered where all
the odds and ends displayed in the win
dows come from. Had they attended
this auction they would have known.
There were perhaps a dozen of these
dealers present, and they bought largely.
Then there were many women, poorly
dressed creatures, who stopped bidding
when the article passed the dollar point.
Where they came from, or what they
wanted the stuff for, nobody knew save
themselves. The auctioneer got his
m0ney-he didn't care. The curiosity
dealers shrugged their shoulders-it was
none of their business. The stock Of
fered was scattered about the room. 1t
included knives, umbrellas, old clothes,
bedsteads, rusty bayonets, billiard balls,
carpenters rules, peddlers' outfits,
chromos, revolvers, chairs, tables, stove
pipes, etc., all mingled in rusty, dusty
confusion. The sale proceeded after
this manner, the auctioneer saying:
"How much dye bid? Forty, forty,
erty-forty-fve? Fine silica umbrella.
Maybe a duke owned it; maybe a
duchess; maybe bum stole it. Forty
fivel Once, twice, down she goes. Mrs
MuIhgan, that's the name, isn't it?
Forty five cents. Now we have lot No.
S58-a saber. How much d'ye"-and
30 On.
There was story connected with
every one of these articles, a romantic
one undoubtedly in many cases, but no
one there knew it or evinced the least
daGzeto learn anything aboutit
UNROAANTIC BIDDERS.
A suit of clothes was held up by the
boy.
''How-much dye bid?"
Those nearest the stand felt the cloth
ADdsex2mined the clothes CAREFUL y, then
q bid was, offered, and another, and so
on until the hammer fell. Mrs. Multi
gan must own a second hand clothing
store, for she bought great deal of
c1Cthing.
slot No. 347-One coat and vest. How
much, dyesb bid?' came the monotonons
termnaas of the auctioneer.
'sLemme,see, cheviot orwhat2 What's
H4made of" asked Mrs. Mulligan. She
examined itclosely for a moment with
an eager face. Then. she said in dis
appointedrway:
s9esgotsa hole in it,"
Yes, sure enough, there was small
hole in the coat, right above the upper
outside pocket. The auctioneer pressed
his finger on the spot for a moment and
then remarked in o matter of fact voice:
II guess that's where the bullet went
through"
The coat and vest were sold, and when
some poor fellow buys them he will
never know that bullet once.pierced
his.coat.and reached.a mans heart.
where's lot 3S0Y' asked the auc-
ti0neex.
The assistant handed up package
wrappedsin adirty piece Of yellow paper.
It was united, and with clattering
noise alot of revolvers and knives fell
out on the table. Big revolvers, little
revolvers, old fashioned ones, self cock
ing affairs, Colts, Smith & Wessons,
bulldogs, American and 'Europe makes,
daggers, bowie knives, stilettos, bright,