New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-07-14
SATURDAY NIGHT CARNIVAL
THE BIG oPEN-AIR MARKET IN NINTH.
AVE-

AVE.
rHRoNGs OF pEDLERs SELLING ALL SORTS OF
WARES ON THE sTREET-AN ANIMATED
SCENE AT NIGHT.
Saturday night Is carnival time in that portion Of
Ninth-ave. which lies between Thirty-eighth and
Forty-second SITS. 1t Is then that what Is locally
known the Paddy" market takes place and the
entire neIghborhood is transformed into big
bazaar.
In the morning hours there Is nothing unusual In
the appearance OF the gaudy thoroushfare as 1t
stretches away uptown in the shadow OF the ele-
waited railroad. but by o'clock a change has come
II, and by would scarcely recognize the
sleepy avenue In the new gu;se It has assumed.
Time for the wagons! Time :or the wagons"
shout group Of small boys to another group across
the way as a policeman passes their playground at
a certain hour Of the afternoon and disappears
around the corner. Other policemen disappear
around the corners. and soon the small boys and
their adult brothers. and their fathers and mothers
too for that matter are treated to stirring scene.
the weekly occurrence OF which does not In the
least stale its interest. From around every corner
wagons appear as II by magic (conjured up by those
uniformed officers Of the law. and drive with one
accord into the avenue to secure stand" They
are all loaded with vegetables. with poultry. with
fruit fish, meat, melons. merchandise, with anything
and everything that anybody and everybody might
want to buy. Some are manned only by the driver.
who makes bee line" to the special spot by the
curbstone which seems to him good location other
wagons there are. however. who make a bee line
for the same spot. Involving wrangling and con-
tention carried on In jargon Of foreign tongues
GETTING INTO PLACE.
Some OF the vehicles have women and children
perched up on top OF the marketable freight and
there Is much backing out and jerking about Of the
ed looking horses who draw the respective
The small boys are enraptured over the
hustle and confusion. and when special hitch
occurs between the drivers Of TWO or more rival
vehicles, or a wagon loses wheel in jostle their
delight knows no bounds
The storekeepers along the avenue come to their
door. to see the perambulating market settle into
place. Women lean idly from the windows OF the
crowded tenements above the stores and luxuriate
In the excitement. In half-hour after the signal
was given. every bit Of wagon-room along both
sides OF the four squares is occupied for the night
and rows OF horses stand patiently in line, each
hitched to his particular cart. facing the middle OF
the street 1t Is well that they patient. for the
midnight hour will long have tolled before they can
take their belated way to manger and STALL
where do these wagons all come from?" young
German shopkeeper is asked. who at ease In shirt
sleeves and slippers. cigarette between his lips,
stands idly watching the scene.
THEY ALL COME FROM DOWNTOWN.
mostly from Mulberry-s,. they comes Monroe.
or Hester. some Of them downtown streets. The
pedlers Jews or Italians. nearly all OF them.
Some few live close about here"
And where do they get the things they SELF
Nearly all from the Washington Market. They
have been waiting round the corners here for hours,
so as to be hand when 1t should be time TO
come in. They amt allowed to come In until the
police tell them to, and at 10 o'clock tonight the
police will go round and collect % cents toll from
-, ~ IN with their
wagons by 7 o'clock In the morning
Don't the things get spoiled standing in the hot
SUM-
Like as not. Some Of the chickens and meat
they sell rs a good deal on but them what buys
don't mind that and he laughed at the recol-
lection.
II used to be in the business myself for spell
and I know all about IT, There's profit in 1t II a
fellow manages right"
"rve this thing going on every week since
] was a boy" he volunteered. and i never get
tired OF watching IT, Sometimes they have rare
fights these pedler folks. and the policemen have
20 interfere When a ped.er comes on the
ground who amt ON to the ways OF the place. he
generally finds himself In hornets nest. That
dago there for instance always contrives to set up
In front OF this shop. II anybody was to interfere
or get ahead OF him he'd make 1t warm for them
Certain people ne sells 10 have learned 10 look for
him right there. and he thinks 1t Is to his ad-
vantage 10 De tnere always. ne a Seio''oe III
It sometimes though, and more than once he's had
a smash-up
THAT black haired woman with the shawl over
her head and the wagon load OF beans and cucum-
bers always drives up IN front OF the bakershop
Her husband was killed In muss not long ago.
and she goes right with the business. Her boy
seli lemonade further down the street. and some
friends come with her to sell gimcracks OF some
sort or other. The only thing is she can't count
money very well and is always suspicious that
somebody Is cheating her.
UNDER FLARING TORCHES.
TIL. marke, Is well attended all through the after.
noon but night time finds 1t In the height Of its
glory and the whole street is one seething mass O.
moving humanity Each wagon Is then illuminated
by two naring torches stuck up on the end oil
sticks propped against the sides. torches contrived
Of rude little OF kerosene with wicks projecting
from the top. The middle OF the broad avenue lies
In shadow. canopied by the elevated road, and
looking down from Forty second-st these flaming
yellow lights form one unbroken procession as FAR
as the eye can follow. There Is perfect Babel
OF noises the cries OF the hucksters eager TO an
nounce their wares the shouts and laughter OF chill
dren who are out in wonderful numbers the chat
terlng and tramping Of the crowd. and. mingling
with 1t all the wall of the hurdy-gurdy. pcrmeat-
ing with pathetic nsis;ence the more aggressive
sounds.
The tall brick houses all deserted: everybody
IL out on the streets Moving quietly through the
surging mass OF people are the soldiers Of the Sal.
walton Army In their picturesque poke bonnets, SELL
ing their War Crys" and getting in word here
and there OF advice or warning to the men and
women who pass in and out OF the gayly lighted
lauor saloons that line the street 1t is character
istc OF this part of Ninth-ave. that almost every
second shop should be a saloon. and that two Of the
four corners Of every cross street should be occu-
pied by prosperous barrooms. the remaining two
corners having drug stores as II by preconcer,ed
design the one profession destined to cure the all
ments created by the other.