The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-06-11

lAtA commit suicide COmpOscQlN. This
very curse OF their character enabled me
% become one of them for SO long as
liked. had un3vailiurlv tried an means
OF which was capable a. become familiar
with them, While cherry and friendly
enough they would never be their real
selves ia my presence But kept among
them doggedly about "the Joyous NEIGH
borhood of Covent Garden market.
where irom 1900 10 1000 may daily be
seen, until opportunity at last came
J. used 10 sauntcr for hours about the
famous market in the early morning. On
a certain May morning OF last year j
FOUND among the peas-shellers under the
market colonuades, opposite the ancient
IaNlStQck hotel one of the women.
comedy enough for wonder among these
who are generally indescribable hays,
ShelIlng IN desperate sort of way and
crying as though her heart would break
More tears than pennies fell in her bowl.
ana the Old Jezebels about her were,
after quite the fashion Of women, adding
TO her misery by haunting her with the
robustness Of her marriage, which had
evidently gone amiss. When these
taunts became insutferable she would
quietly punch one or another of their
heads, when there would be a little
savage scuaiing and then she would re-
sumo her tears and peas. / could see she
e
waiting l gathered enough 10 know that
the weeping peas-sheller had run
away from cOster father and mother,
married cOSter youth of fancy or
sporting proclivities, and that the latter,
possessed of frenzy over some chaitinch
or dog had stripped the pair, time after
time, of donkey, cart and home belong
lngs, as often lost all; and, worse yet, had
become so Infamous among his kind that
! he could no u hal
crown to start anew, usually au easy
thing for a coster to do, nor 50 much as a
"thr penny Bit with which to quenCh
his thirst and drown his dependency.
That very morning Becky, the weeping
peas-Shelier, had tragically left her incOr-
rigible husband "for good and all" and
at that moment the latter. known as
"slunpsy Jem'' for his i'll luck and iucOr-
riglbiltty, was turning away from gliding
coster groups, one after another, the pict-
ure of irretrievable despair.
The language of these folk is simply
mprintablo, not because of the costcrs'
intentional obscenity and profanity, as
they have the deepest pride in their own
speech and ways. "Slumpsy Jem" him
self quailed under the fusillade that morn
ing. He skunk away like one pursued,
and l followed him. Hall way down
Southampton street he made a last effort
to retrieve himself by begging a loan from
Jenny Williams, the MindCr"-a mlnder
OF whips for the last thirty years for all
the green grOCers' carriers who crowd that
thOroUghfare between the Strand and the
market. Jenny was up to snuff" and
beat him of with her whips. Then he
plunged into the Strand at a run:
SQuirmcd among and through the thun-
dering vehicles, St. Pauls way, to Water
loo bridge; here halted moment or I
could not have OvertaRen him: and then
started dOggedly toward the Surrey side.
He afterWard told me it was for "a head
CIR into the Thames.
But l soon ran alongside him. and be-
fore he was half way 10 the middle Of the
bridge had him BY the shoulder, and then,
telling him he could attend to the little
matter he had in mind Just as well later
in the day, marched him, willing and
wondering prisoner, to "A cheap grill house
in the Strand for breakfast. Even an
Outcast cOstormOnger filed with good
food and in company where the Clink of
silver is, is a different sort of fellow than
ono just on the point of ''tGkinga header
off Waterloo bridge But he could do lit
tie else than bulge his eyes, and after
much emotional effort squirt out his as
constituent in,
Cor bl me, but 'ero's a GO"
It was a still greater go when. half
hour later | had him help me rausack
every foul pawnshop in the Minories and
we gathered up all the poor shreds of
their hOme-belOngings, even to his own
brilliant Sunday 'kingsman," or neck
cloth, the veritable 4-shilling 'pegging'
chafiinch which had been his downfall,
aud Becky's famous ostrich plume, the
erst pride and envy of Shoreditch, and
after such a charwOman's scrubbing and
securing as the place had never before
known. got the broken home together
again in the self-same spot before st.
Paul's bells had struck the midday
chimes.
''Gawd strike me lucky, hits a lillelicr
pallus than the Lud May'rs. One gaze o.
h'it'd put h'out poor domains darling,
mistress, wife) h'eyes-Gor bli me, SOFT
would - was Slumpsy's parting
apOstrophe as we mounted 4-peuuy bus
cityward way, though the dazed coster
was still ignorant of our destination
We We're soon at Drury Lane I knew
an ale house, hard by Long Acre, where
the peas-shellers drowned their woes
when their work was done, and some
times danced and fought. Sure enough
Jenny was there, still weeping over a pot
of four ale and a cold sausage; but the
greatest ego of all was these costers'
meeting, drenched in tears, drowned in a
full gallon o. bitter for parting cheer
among the now enthusiastic peas-sheller
companions, and stOrm-swept with
"GOr bli mesl" Strike me deads, or
luckeys" and other still more unctious
cOster Oaths. The poor domains h'eyes'
were quite put OUT on seeing her little,
and loved if little, home rebuilt as if by
magic, ana all the rueful prophecies of her
naggiug companions so marVclOusly put to
naught and TO do the poor soul justice
her gratitude and delight We're mex
presSibly greater to discover that the
hot