The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1896-04-10
De MOTT STREET KID.
How BOwery Society Failed to
Come to the Front.
The Duchess Had All the Swell Points
Down Fine.


ono, I didn't, s" I replied.
Mebbe dey didn't publish nothins
on account of me feelin's stand ia wild
all de reports, ye know, and dey ain
de class to trow q man down unless he
plays 'em dirt. %
What about the party?''
De duchess gin party to celebrate
her forty-sixth birthday-see It was de
fust birthday party in Mott street fur 20
years I didn t know she had it On her
mind till one day she says to ne:
6 'Kiddy. I'm goin to bring Mott
street to de society front by givin q bay
winder blowout, and want a check fur
a hundred thous to foot de bill. -
What's a bay window blowoutg'' I
asked.
why, a swell recepshun, ye know.
Everything bulges out like a bay win
der. All de ladies hev on DER store
clothes, and all de gents grease DER
hair and put on clawhammer coats. De
ole gal got posted up on bay winder re-
ceps when she was cook in a house on
Fifth avenoo. When she told me what
she wanted to do, it struck me as good
thing. Mott street would cum right to
de front if dere was anybody to lead de
fashuns. I drawed me check fur de nun
au4 AlAA AHA u ~ aA4Clu anu 44uA6 ~
redhot His dukess was agin it. how
ever.
THAT'S your fatherg'
Cert. When de duchess fred de news
at him. he got red in de face and yelled
out;
I'm agin it'll De peelers will pull
de bloOmin cribp
But de duchess she soaped him up
and smoothed him down and went ahead
wild de bimess. Alum Ye orter see
dem keerds she got out and sent around.
Got 'em printed around in Baxter
street, and deg had gold aiges and a
pictur' of a peacock in de left hand cor
nsr and was right up to date. De print
was dun in red ink, and it made me
heart swell wild pride to look at 'em.
De duchess sent out over a hundred Of
'en. "
''Then you had a big crowd at the
party?''
Say. Gully, ye've seen a Broadway
jam of course?"
yes -
Well, de biggest one ye ever seed
wasn't in it wild dis recep Dey begun
to cum as soon as it was dark, and dey
kept cummin till 'leven O'Clock. My,
but wasn't it a swell crowd De Ouch
ess had on her best clothes and all her
jewelry and new yaller wig, and she
didn't look a day over 20. We got de
dukess to shave up and grease his hair
and powder his nose, and ye couldn't
hev told him from an alderman. Jest
made de tears cum to my eyes to see de
dukess and duchess welcome de cel-e-
braties. -
$50 you had celebrities present?''
s'Dat s it--cel-e -braties till ye couldn's
rest. Let's see. Dere was One Eyed
Mike Of Hester street, Big Nance Of
Elizabeth street, Hump Jim Of Forsyth
street, and. in fact, all de swells fur a
mile around. Dey was logged up in reg
lar Fifth avnOO style, and oh, de de
nuns and pearls and rubies De sight
of 'em jest kept me heels liftin off de
floor. Mott street won't see SIGH a sight
ag in fur a hundred years -
Well, everything went off allright?''
s'NO, Gully, as I'm sorry to say. Ev
erything was all right till Limpy Smith
showed up wild Long Necked Sarah on his
arm. Dey used to be friends of de fam
ily, but as dey didn It know how to wear
DER clothes we had to cut 'em. Dey
didn't git no invite, but dey cum jest de
same. When de dukess got sight of EN-
he broke loose and yelled:
s. W at lie bloonin blazes ar ye dom
here wfdout a keerd? Get oRt, or III
mash ye to pulp ~
Dat started de row, Gully. Every
body quit smilin and GRIMM and bein
a Fifth avnoo swell, and went in fur
to knock sumbOdy else out. De dukess
went down fust wild a smash on his
nose, and den it was a gineral row till
de peelers cum in and arrested de hull
crowd but me. When de row begun.
got out on de roof of de next house to
mediate, and so dey didn t find me A
few others got away by de fire escapes,
but de peelers walked 80 of EN- to de
cooler, and de dukess and duchess head
ed de purceshun. Ye know what a
paI-a-shuI residence is. I take it?''
eve heard Of en-.
''Well, don't ye make no mistake and
emagine dat our five room fat on de
seventh Aoor was a pal-a-shul residence
after dat crowd got out III hand ye
me teeth, Gully, if de scene Of wreck
and degolashun didn t almost break me
heart. Dat WASH t de worst of it, how
ever. De next mornin dey sent de dukess
over to de island fur so, and de duchess
to de TOmbs fur 80, and dey are doin
time dis mint. Excuse me while I press
me hands over me bloomin heart to still
de jumpin. I went up to see de dukess
dis mernin and found him standin on
one leg in de corridor as punishment fur
sassin a keeper. He was Jest dat broke
up when he seed me dat he cried like a
child.
How much to get him out7' SEE
as I hauls out me checkbook.
% T rec million bones, SEE de keeper.
81 couldn't raise it, Gully. not wild
out sellin all me bonds and losin on
'em, and so had to leave him dere.
Den went down to de Tombs to see de 4