The evening times., 1896-12-05
TALES OF THE TOWN.

Two street urchins Were passing a fancy
grocery store on Ninth street near l. yes
terday.
one of them SHE'D for u moment from
the beaten path and grabbed couple oi
apples from barrel Just outside the
door Then he started to run and oyer.akc
his comrade. who already had taken time
by the foreiock.
ont from the store door at the same mo-
ment darted youth in knickerbockers.
He was only u year or so older THAN ne
juvenile thief. His feet seemed winged,
and the fleeing spple steaier was soon
nabbed on the siiirt collar by the boy
sIeuth.
Theprisoner struggled. fought, andro1red
with fright. bud tiit young fleetfVot main
tanned his griIr and continued To drag his
captive back u, rfie store.
Several wellYHeaning people started TO
interfere but Upon perceiving that the
cantor was nc& abIrsing his bowling pTls-
oner, they desiNed!and amusedly watched
the prucccding@
Pack 10 the store the lad half dragged,
half carried, hai6 pushed his victim, and
1nce inside the latter quickly disgurged.
got Il tongue lasiTing and then was turned
loose.
The Comrade was an interested observer
from the vantage ground of doorway
nearly 4 block distant
Merchants want pennies almost as much
rs they need customers in the holiday
season.
ON bargain days when 20 DDS are marked
.9g cents" it means that l cent III ust be
returned and in sC me of our local stores
many thousand oppers daily are shot over
the wires and handed the purchasers
The problem of getting these cents for
change is cnc that tothers the merchants
not a little particularly as many customtf is
,lI Fa,r .ItYh n la
the IN broken.
me demand for small change for the
holiday seas on is giving the Treasury
officials the usual WI orry and bother Not
long ago the manager of one OF the big
department stores in New YORK thought
he would solve the difficulty by getting
at one time rLough pennies to last during
the holiday rush Tie officials were as
founded by the size of the request, and
stated that they could / OF begin TO comply
with IL.
Af,er persuasion and pull the manager
was given about $500 worth, and he had
TO return to New York very much dSap-
appointed.
The ..clickcn food as it is vulgarly
called, only lasted two days, and then he
resurted to all sorts of cxpedients to get
more.
Few customers pay in pennies, many hav-
ing the idea that 1T looks ''provinciaf' to
do so A great many cents are obtained
from the street car companies, but the
demand now is 100 per cent greater
than the supply.
The legend Fact is stranger than fiction"
was borne out on the Avenue yesterdayin
| a little scene that would have caused many
laughs if played on the stage.
Two snartly dressed boys in knee pants
walked up in front of the National Ho-
| tel horde of bootblacks always sur
round the doors and several "coachys"
and their traps are to be found lined up
| at the curb.
The boys stopped at the carriage block
| for a moment and it was the signal
| for bootblacks., newsboys and cables to
| surround them and endeavor to wheedle
| them into either buying, shoe blackng or
| riding The newsboys thrust their papers
| into the hands OF the two; the cabbies tx
| hibited their spawned jades," and the
sinners gently dashed the dust Off the
| boys clothes with their burshes as they
| insisted that the strangers shoes needed
| a shine,
1t was genuinely humorous because it
| showed a street s.iolly" scene in full blast.
The boys BIT In every direction and fl
nalIy were hustled off in a hack drawn
| by stccd disguised by short blanket
General Secretary George s. Wilson of the
Associated Charities takes issue with
Sanitary Offitef Frank upon the latter's
statement that northern cities, especially
Baltimore. shit, their paupers to this city
Mr.. Wilson declares that the truth is that
neither Baltimore, Philadelphia. nor New
| York sendanyb6siy whodoes not belong here
| or W hois not btind for some eSouthernpont.
II know Mrg Frank makes the claim in
his annual report that Washington has to
| bear other cties' burdens, but the fa cts
are just the frrrrse. He admits shipping
paupers from fhe South on to Baltimore
and other pci'its. and urges as an excuse
| that it's simply doing rs he is done by.
| II have challenged Mr.. Frank TO show
me good casdiin support OF his assertion
| but he has neyefdonc So The matter could
be regulated by proper system Of finvesti-
| cation. W hich is practiced by other cities
than this, despite Mr.. Franks assertion
| that he is only able to take the W ord Of lp-
| plicants for transportation.
| Thine and again have offered to Icok
up cases for him, as have the time, and
| the correspondents. but nothing has come
| of 1t. only say this in the interest OF CEN
| tralized and economical charity work,
and not because have any feeling against