Fairhaven herald. [volume] (Fairhaven, Wash.) 1890-????, 1891-06-12
WHERE FAKIRS MEET.
THEY HAVE AN EXCHANGE QUEER
ENOUGH IN ITS ODD WAY.

Convenient to the Busy Fart OF the
Metropolis-somet hing About a Class
of Men Who Push Novelties.
When you visit the fakirs' exchange and
come to know it you will be able to under
stand at least one circumstance that must
have struck you as being a trifie queer.
Now. many persons have at some time
walked from the city hall through Park
row and down Broadway as far as wall
street. and have noticed that the streets
were strangely clear of peddlers. Going
over that same ground couple OF hours
later they have encountered horde OF
bowling, hoarse voiced men and boys, their
| cries arising far above the noise OF tine
streets as they fairly assaulted the passers-
| nv to compel them to buy the trinkets they
| had for sale.
| II Won have noticed this you have per-
hans wondered whence all these fakirs have
80 suddenly sprung. The key to this mys-
terv is not hard to find and is not great
distance away. 1t is to be found at the
fakirs' exchange.
Inst strike down Ann street from Park
row and halt at Theater alley, short nan
block away You will see nothing there
that will remind you of the Produce ex-
change or the Cotton exchange or the heai
|
You will see on one side of Theater alley a
liouor store. on the other another The
Fakirs' exchange is right about there.
In the windows of one of these saloons Is
a small crystal lake, in the center OF that a
smaller island, and on that bullfrog al
D most as large as the island He is the
/, tutelary genius of the exchange. When he
was first put into that aquarium he was
4 brasb sort of bullfrog He started in to
: make things hum at once. In the same
r Mace were several catfish. III you have
ever attempted to toy in careless manner
with a catfish you probably know that he
: has a very decided way of making himself
t felt This bullfrog ought to have known
d this and perhaps he did, but as has been
said. he was brash. So he fooled with the
l. catfish and they fooled with him.
10 THE EXCHANGE.
q Then one day he climbed on the Island
y before mentioned and began to wonder why
u it was that catfish were allowed in a CIVIL
j. lied country to carry stilettos behind their
Of ears. That was two years ago, and the bull
n frog has spent about all his time on that
II island ever since. This biography of him
y NAV seem irrelevant but it isn't The
members of the exchange treat him with
large consideration. They call him Robin
son Crusoe, and they claim that his power
ne of hard and persistent thinking entitl'
81 him to respect. So If you want to get alont
"a | with them YOU will cast no reflection oil
or Crusoe, the frog
nd The exchange is unique. There will b
he days and days when it will be to all II
tents and purposes closed, when you wi
see scarcely a member about. On thos
DAYS they are scattered all over the city /
every place where men and women congr'
H. gate selling with greater or less succes
~, such wares as they have to offer. The
NJ YOU will see them drifting back to heat
ew quarters and on another day when you &
IN through Ann street you will find handcar
after handcart about Theater alley an
IN, men lounging about looking at Crusoe an
la' talking in groups. 1t is an exchange day
IL is not proper to class these men wit
-, the small peddlers who sell shoestring'
nd matches and the like. These are but worE
Nv. ing on what is practically the system {
ir- the Italian padrones, albeit in this case
i've Ia worked by Hebrews These peddlers /
62l Ann street are usually either individui
merchants, so to speak, or members OF
combination, and in a general way with s
me much unanimity of form that their heat
tch quarters may really be termed an exchang
cot or at the very least a market.
ks They have capital within certain limit
; IL and credit too They will not deal in thinl
nd that to their mind will not strike the pu
He lie as either bargains or novelties. III
zen class of peddlers who deal in bargains bu
,ht unsold stocks of magazines, books or
nly Illustrated papers, hats just gone out OF sc
ner son. second hand articles that are east
by transferred by means of a handcart or Wi
of the assistance of an ancient horse.
abb HOW FAKIRs WORK.
=. nha daaia~o In novelties form the crpa
,oQ- of the exchange They work on combin
ery tions. They watch every toy and novel
manufacturing house in the busine:
They have scheduled novelties that
course change from year to year for eve
holiday, whether it be Christmas or Lab
Day. It was mainly through the efforts
these men that the Fifteen Puzzle"
came popular. When they heard, a
they did speedily, that the "Boulane
a March" was good thing, 1t was but a d
- or so when they were selling it by the te
of thousands on the streets.
They watch every theatrical hit, eve
success of a public man, every great eve
and in fact study the public taste mu
more closely than much greater men
/. They are in touch with all the wholes
houses in this city that deal with mech
ical TOYS and novelties, and the manag
of these houses have no hesitation in s.
ing that so far as New York is concern
and that means good deal, these str
fakirs are rare good judges Of what will
and what will not
II you could see all the members Of
)oro- exchange at their headquarters you wo'
see an interesting throng But that
,ften hardly possible
,ause They do not congregate at any speci
en- it time. But If any new thing comes
any that Is likely to sell on the streets of
York the manufacturer has but to let II
known at Ann street and Theater alley
will be speedily tested, and If it is wha
Is claimed to be by its inventor it will
. loss twenty-four hours be on sale in every
portant point in New York, and thous
IL II men and boys will be shouting in its pr
nh In and selling 1t.
-. For this and other reasons the spot
w w, Ann street is unique, and for the same
'n'n sons it may justly enough be called an
change.--New York Recorder.