The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1893-12-03
RENTING In A BIG CITY.
ovFor rHr NUMEROUS TRIALS OF
THE"MoTBRON."
rhere No Places whei Refined People
can Tolerate Their Seighoors AS
well AZ ray the Rent?

US the oily Chadbanp III e''"~ '''"'''
.a q wave OF bis hand towards poor
u.,o has been brought In homeless
800, the streets OF London.
.,,,ver-on upon the face Of the earthl
,-.t a s,ckcnlng feeling comes over you
,., Won realize that you have got to
-.,o ocaini 10 makes you suddenly sus-
chat YOU have never had a real home
"a never win succeed in finding one.
r-h limitations or your income ilsS -, -"
l,rfront Won. and ~ YOU are incilncu
..t. no seriously YOU begin to feei
c,., the poor who swarm IN the
.,. toueee have q surer place IN
be- world than you have :,
,h. oorree of my own searches, 1
-. ,-.-a % the conclusion that eithcr
...ifty is af wrong. or else am ~
80 cr.,rse 90 think that DO rs society.
,,-,,, eso.ls it ho So hard for person or
i.-,t. income 90 live in any sort OF
-e..4 ,r1v in New lork city house
.-. Cd, hieh that the majority OF
-..-,io cannot afford 20 pay mem IN
v SORT OF suitable htishoothoou'
r,,or,fhirr goes hy nc.fhnoIhoods IN New
v.-k citv. no one can I'VE IN cheap
t-fh,-f11f 10 fe an well enough in
49,. br- in practice &c means proximity
81, tf,emrrt houses. noisy and bad,
-,. m sov extremely untidy little children.
-.l..rs smells cheap grocery stores, and
.... who lounge upon the sidewalks.
b, cannot ls that an the refined peo-
OIL, ore r.ah Some Of them must be poor,
- r1mr.ratlycly so.-that SIS q say. liv-
..- on an Income of a THOUSAND dollars
-r.er chat amount Such people cannot
.a.-I toray $500 for house or fiat, and
.u. tE. average rent in location such
..+f..a Unfortunate ones would naturally
.ts..a. is of course out Of ihe question.
...-s d. a good deal Of sympathy bestow-
- .r1l Che poor. 10 is my opinion that
...- suffer much less, and in much
s comfortable way. than those with
.. money who have been trained 20 as
lie cost Of good fats IS also very
r-b Here again cheap rent means cheap
..-rh1rh0ol. with an the unspeakable
-.-r1-s implied thereby. In fact. cheap
f.t IS worse than g. cheap house. Here
ta ANNOYANCE invade the establishment,
GA r4ea to your very doors. You are
Startled hv hearing soon after you move
.r rrt the lady living above you has
.r.-. NJ the good things Of life than she
f..of good reputation She justities these
.r.r|.urs by getting drunk. You distinct
f.r terrible conversations Of reproach
and r.ee az such time. addressed 70 her
husband who endeavors 10 sO0thc her.
Tho ilnitOr as a tyrant. You get into
JF.ultes with him on the subject OF
te steam heat. and sending up your coal
Ga the mornings His little children
swarm over the front steps, with very
dirty faces. and mortify you when your
trends come 20 make you a visit. The
rooms are small All the space Is given
70 the parlor which carries off trium-
raantly also. the only windows that open
-1 the outside air. A dark shaft is sup
rreed 10 furnish to your sleeping-roOm
r- air and sunshine which you. as a
refined being and a student Of hygiene.
consider necessity Of life. You sleep in
a folding bed though yaur soul rebels
a-linst it; you devise ways and means
0 hang up your possessions upon the
walls: you pile things I'm corners, in the
way and out Of f. until your progress
rom one end Of your fiat 20 the other
kind Of modified hurdle race. You
rht your IeiChbors' reaches who invade
even your bedroom. You lure them with
powdered sugar and boraX. and every
device known 90 the mind Of man. You
Struggle with poor servants. You wear
Yourself out keeping your small quarters
clean. At last You give it up and de-
eide 20 try boarding.
Then how tantalizing IS n trip IN
-earch OF q fiat TO a person Of small
mcconnell You cut out a long list Of adj
vsrtisements from the paper. choosing
such locations as YOU like, and which are
within the bounds Of n,-choosing
aIs0 taught by bitter experience. "a few
m locations you don't like. Armed with
ibis list, YOU put on your best chothes,-
always put on your best clothes when
sou 60 house-hunting- and you visit fat
after fat finding I'm orr the refined air.
Che quiet and the elevator, for which
your soul longs. the price from 500 20
500 a year, and I'm another the sunny
rooms OF fairly decent size. the price
beyond YOU again You decide that you
could put up with the wall paper in a
third your crushed spirit Indifferent 20
such tr.hes for he house is quiet and the
r..-hhOrhOOd pleasant. but alas you can
f.t climb all those stairs. You are worse
tsn limited in income. you are not
s-1gr. And so it goes an day; high rent,
t-H stairs. cross janitors. not sufficiently
Impressed with your good clothes; or
hopeless neighbOrhOOds 40 a lower rent,
Heryi thing YOU want within your reach.
n YOU could but pay the price You give
rr i1 despair and return home 20 recuper-
a'e wondering If YOU are the only soul
h Sew York city suffering under the
aH..tions ~ good birth. sensitive feelings.
"a modest amount Of culture, and a small
income
To there really are others so situated.
why cannot all combine and find one
place OF refuge. thus solving the prob
.,n ~ rents and neishbOrs? / have heard /
o, "a delightful place called Bohemia. |
where artists. writer's. and other gifted
tat poor souls live together I'm a happy
conrad ship, but where IS Bohemia? |
have searched for 81 diligently and do not |
IND DO Alas. these artists and writer's 1
l' uot Use in any visible community. |
They are scattered here and there in the !
.'y-i1ls one dropped down into the top /
N't or cheap apartment house. that 1
-.' '''iAlns ln q fourth story hall bed /
. '"' 'r lhree perhaps I'm bachelor |
quarters Htihg 40 restaurants. all Of 1
''..' more or less isolated and lonely.
-"e BOARD .ng-hopses at the present /
.i.'Ht seem Oh solve most nearly the |
..'eA or cheap living with the least
''Nl OF discomfort and care, though
h.lFe u very badly. / would sug
''"ned, cheap and exclusive board
N'.rs as new philanthropy. II I
should happen 10 think Il easy 10
t1ch boardiug-house. 20 forth and /
ny IT, and be thankful n YOU do not
.,-ih wholly misanthropic. remember
Hfst experience: and since then ]
-e had more like H. Ny heart sank
'Ae DAYS went on and / had discover
N'ihins but some new varieties OF
nature. and the relation which
.l'n OF bric-a-brac and gliding IS
l 90 bear 80 respectabiity. Each
y was worse than the last,-On
VA. on rising scale as II were. 1t
something Of a surprise 10 find such