The morning news., 1894-09-09

LlCAE gypsy uGALuB DOTS dtG Loe 4dlA4g
progressive. They are too quiet. They
attend closely TO work and minimize the
III effects OF the awful poverty OF London
lOwly.
] As we entered the grewsOue place and
passed the famous Leather Bottle tap,
i the resort Of all this teemIng rabDle,
& casual remark by Ikeydisclosed the social
standards OF noisome Leather lane and the
/ cosJers' opinions of its winter gypsy IN
1 haDitants
! "Gor bli me- 'Ow can hus costers ave
/ comfort hOut o. hour neigh bOrs, less nus
/ can 'elp carry 'em ONE now an Ggin from
tn Leather Bottle, Strike me lucky
II Hi doan't believe they'd rawther heat
Whites than lick pewter. Clicking pew
/ ter, it must be known. is coster Tor gu1-
| cling -four aleu- Gawd's truth, but We
awsk one o. 'em fur tn loan o. bob
| tshllllng) for few pots at tn Bottle. an
| their bloody heyes stick hOut like bleedin'
| mussels. Cor bi me- so they do"'
/ About half way from kurniva's Inn
/ 10 IneooId's Row, narrow, dlngy court
| Wrlgsled an hundred feet or more to the
east. To the right and left the ram
! shackle yet stout old house fronts seemed
| pitching at each other threateningly.
From the nOisome pavement, packed
| with donkey carts and barrows and al
! most impossible with raven-like humans,
| to the house roofs hundreds of the old and
] y p
| balconies ana tottering window sills; and
as we halted at the corner / could not but
| reject that the density of wOetul human
| life must be lncOnceivably terrible behind
| these outer hideous walls.
| That's 'er pallus !-as hodd bunkin'
| place as hever ye clapped heyes on, guv-
| ernor," said Ikey, pointing to the wedge
| like end OF the narrowing court.
| l could see, some forty or fifty feet from
| the ground, the top of stout dead wall,
! placed there as if to shut out the poverty
! OF the Leather Lane region from some
! better-fayored district or enclosure.
"Crickey! Arn't they tidy, JEST" he
murmured admiringly. AN not a bloom
| in pennorth O. remit"
AS my eyes became accustomed to the
| dim light Of the court, the outlines of a
curious structure gradually grew visible.
| Its occupants seemed to exist under a sys-
| TEN of more than partial suspension.
Some thirty feet from the ground
mass of patched bits of sail cloth and
| blankets formed the only roof Ingeni-
| ously braced bits of woOd-hotsam and
| jetsam from the markets and the Thames
had been utilized in the construction of
| three successive stories or floors, between
| the mapping roof and the pavement of the
| court. All of these were open to the
| weather and Leather Lane way save
where rags, sieve-like blankets and sail
| cloth answered the place of scant cur
| tanning.
These stories or floors, as key enthusi-
astically explained and 1 afterwards hos
| pitably found, were about eight feet
| square, except the lower or pavement
| story, which was as large as the prOwesS
| Of the occupants could make it against
the hordes OF the sitting court. An aper-
ture had been made in the dead wall
which, with g few bricks and a
little mud mortar, provided a capital
chimney piece.
The draught was perfect. There was a
good deal Of comfort, too, about this ex-
traordinary fireside The cart was
"whummeled, that is, turned bottom
side up for table. A shelf-like piece of
timber was fastened against the side
wall for a lounging bunk and bench, and
a ladder ran from this along the wall to
the second story, where cooking utensils
and food were kept.
But more curious than all was the
nightly disposition of the donkey and the
human occupants themselves On arrival
from the days journeyings, the donkey
was hauled by rope and tackle into the
cage-like third story, under the sailcloth
princess" ascended to her lofty bou-
doir beside the faithful beast; while his
! CereOuS father, valiantly choosing the
post of danger in the second story below,
| tshed as it were all light belongings up
after him.
"Gor bli me-" proudly exclaimed key,
after we had for some time contemplated
his lady's retreat That's 'er pallus. Wy
'an they Jest hall goes hup into their 'ole,
by night, IAN pulls th' 'ole hup arter
| 'emn
felt some timidity in venturing into
the almost lightless place, when keys
! impetuosity of devotion might, in the
most unexpected conceit, plunge US both
into serious trouble. Besides, the trap
doors, holes in-the-wall and hosting ap-
paratus were unpleasantly suggestive,
and the tapping of the sail-cloth roof and
ragged side limited all manner of dOleful
possibilities.
The coster OWNED my thoughts, and
| with an "Al right, guvernOr, I'll jess see
'ow TIL land lays first, Wi you bide
| erer' Strengthened himself up stil1y,
shifted his coat to his other arm, and
stepped of with an assumption of fine
! bravery up the forbidding wedge-shaped
way.
listened attentively, and after few
minutes of silence, heard keys well
known whistle, the immemorial coster
call, of
"Ta-ta-ta ta-ta ta-ta-tap'
Soon from somewhere among the ghost
lily Tapping upper regions of the strange
habitation toated down upon the court
the softly whistled answer:
"Ia-ta-ta ta-ta."
l perhaps imagined I then caught
glimpse of something like a descending
maiden's figure; but several minutes OF
silence followed which was at last rudely
broken by sound of rumblings, snOrtings,
fierce obiurgations, little screeches by
some one l took TO be the cOster' S
princess and these were succeeded by
the crashing together of opposing forces,
one of which, from the Noluble dialect
evoked, must have been attired in cordu-
roy and wealth of pearl buttons; for, a
moment later, lKey Pushbarrow, rumpled
ana painting, came Sinking TO my side.
Strike me lucky." gasped key, seat
ing himself discouragedly in an empty
donkey cart to recover his breath. wat
d'y 'spose wus tn OF coye's move2"
With apparent deepest concerned !
pressed him for particulars.
Hi 'ad me donah in lie harms. Hid
jest give er chaste buss. lkey,' says
she, hits hall hup wi hus = strike me
lucky says Hi, ii it bep 'EeIl kill ee .
says me donah. Not this hevenin'n = says
Hi. Wat an hever makes yer so bold2'
says she. Me 'eayenly donah = says HI.
Will ye be man, key, if Hi'll run away
wi ye' SAYS she. Hi up an bussed er
agin. 'Hevery hinch, Gawds truth y
says Hi. Then says she, Hive made q
ole in tn wall Hits builders storage
NN L. al