The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-06-21
VIRGIN ALLEY.

Virgin alley had its virtues. If not its viz.
tuoRs There's much in s'name. it is said,
and in this case am bonnd TO confess that
the subject was well nigh exhausted in its
title, SO far as thar locality was concerned.
But when once this street had wonits ironic
title it ceased to be particular on the score
of its nomenclature, and the barefooeed
urchins who dangled their Punched legs
from doorsteps had names as abbreviated
as their stockings.
Just where this Rue de Sodom stretched
its dirty length shall not be particular to
say. It is not in the nature of my subject
to be particular. Enough said when ex-
plain that is was the lazar spot of certain
small town near this city; row of low
wood colored cabins little bigger than
boxes, where the cannaiile, the I'M
washed, swarmed and hived. II was bare.
Earth, houses, children-all bare. No
grass, no paint, no clothes. And like the
bald spot on the small head, its barrenness
was all the more conspicuous because of
the smaIlness Of the village that contained
il.
The male inhabitants OF Virgin alley
lived by fishing, hunting gambling and
stealing in small way. When they drew
the line at that the town was satisfied.
The female portion of the aAey-hved.
draw the kne there
Now and then some one OF the three or
four wealthy men of the town would begin
TO talk about cleaning out Virgin alley.
This was the only way these local aristo-
haA Nf "a
for president of the town board. / only
mention it because it is so refreshing TO
find an instance of politicians boldly cater
ing to the virtuous and respectable part OF
a community. But when these politicians
began to boast of how they would ''clesn
out Virgin alley" they were reminded
that, as for the alley, fire would not burn
it and that greater than Mr.. So-aad-so
had been swallowed up ia it's depths. This
latter allusion was intended to convey TO
Mr. So-and-so that he would better let well
enough alone and tread Lightly on virginia.
toes of the alley if he hoped TO triie with
town politics with elaborate success.
The little aIlusion, however, concealed
far more than it revealed. Ii Is this con-
cealment that now concerns us
A tradition spFaRg up in Virgin alley
and was banded about the town generally
that once upon a summers day gay youth
struck the little town and made the most
Of 1t. He WAS not colporteur for the
tract society nor the agent for afoundlings'
home, bat he was as well dressed as either
Of those philanthropic gentlemen, and like
them. soon struck his gait" and emerged
INTO Virgin alley. The moon was ia an
other quarter when he left il. lie went inn
mediately 30 the railway station and thence
to>the big city.
II was soon whispered that this gay
ysath was a real live lord. Inazmuch as
he had not condescended 10 make the ac-
quaintance of the remainder Of the town,
no one outside the alley was prepared 10
dispute the rumor, So the alley had its
own way ana say as to the genIIineness OF
his lordship. Lord or not, neither his com
ing nor his going seemed to make any one
in the alley or ont of it the happier The
virgins rested their bare bows
on their window stills and fence tops and
seolded, cursed and spse nj each other as
spitefuRy as ever. and their faces were
just rs freckled, dirty and deviiiSh as be-
fore mis- possible lOrdship came and went.
One person, however, seemed visibly af-
fected by the innovation of the gay yoHih
into alley society. That person was Little
Lisette. She was sad. Those who had
known her from childhood had never
known her to be sad before. Whatever
else she may have been, sadness Was net
one of her vices Naturally her beauty
would have made her hated by every female
in the alley, but her irrcslstibiegoed nature
made them forgive her for her beauty and
love her for her sunshine. Even the lazy
hounds wOuld leap Upfrom their lars under
the wagons-whieh always stood for lack
Of better shelter, ranged along the alley in
front Of the habitation of their owners--
and wag her hearty welcome. She always
stopped to stroke their pointed noses and
pull their hong soft eaxs-a familiarity
hat few dare attempt
Yes, happy Little Lisette WIS irrevocably
;ad. Not so with The other virgins When
Lisette passed by looking her saCidest they
smiled wisely and seemed TO see something
Iuite laughable in the girls dsjection
Little Lisetts was seventeen. and As girls
nave been known 30 be ia love at seventeen
hat might explain her sorrow werr u not
or the fact that no one in the alley had
,ver been knownto eor1aait that weakness.
place, aBd piece of nonsense not TO 10 tsl-
rated. In fact. the presumptlsa of fsliiag
n love WIS received AS an assumption a
and was treated accordingly. /
= did net do for daughter Of the alley 70
,eeOme stuck up" Even favored L1sstts /
ound that osat
Afser q time Little Lisette dropped tho I
5ele OF Little" and became simply la /
ette, for the very good or bad reason that /
hat dlBsnatzue prefix Wa needed To Dc j
critic smaller Llsette.
six years psseed ard stfil Lissste was 4
unhappy, tbosE1 for the Efe al them tne
-irgius Of the alley could not teal what 1
<ssesse hssd TO u5aks her 20. To Dr. sure,
he was not - handsome - AZ seventeen. I
'ut she was sxiA the haBdsomest vTomsn +.
4 the zIIey-@Hd hat ought 70 be eRGn IN 4
CT fenrE4ins ambition in that locality. More
han that, Listle iSsstts was t1e hansOmesf (
la ID In the aliey-2nd q tbs toxr. FOR lat ,
nAttex- TIE highly respectable % TIE 4
oxn would stop tbs eh1la Oh the Htrest. 4
raw bsx long, EoAlen curls through fhslr
myers, and SIGH. What pssry.'
IL DO one waz hooking thee lsdie. would
vea KISS LIZ enisd's brow. ScsDdzIons. %
< SUR De1 tss-y das = They eOzld nos
,eip il, tAs ehsld drew taen 50
Another summers day. ADo4a~- rra-
se-nan eHerEes Ezsto Virgin Ai<J be q
Ct KS ccspoEteSF. nct tke azeEt for Tie
Dzuasrnzs' h%zse- Bztlse ~os1ld pzzs. tie
'orid over. fsv a -ss&n q tEs CsOth." ne
nockz Al L1-ssss's &ser ans. b &&usE.esd
here n AStasns EGr1zEs AD0a. tEzx- Il
- SocETrsd before Bat the strange th4az
ocnt IL - sk@s sse Man q TIE Gath n As
~ - LAse<zei
Z: - lot ~ soon. bGs L&zstss z5A ia
lzn q The CzS.h are A<tsing IA re saaafso-
a Deserted cDcpsr shop. taxing s4rress-
:. Tie o<ksss Fsr<szs are wa-eEs4zg -
. III frr.ra nar.a....a I'D r.. go