The Indianapolis journal., 1896-09-20
POOR LITTLE CHILDREN
BOYS AND GIRLS OF NEW YORK WHO
HAVE NO REAL CHILD LIFE.
In the Struggle for Existence They
Become Merely Merchant Traders
and Have No Time for Play.

/
There are multitudes of tiny men and
women-they are ever at ones heels-but
they are not the fresh. thoughtless and
| careless youngsters that one sees else
where. They all seem concerned with the
! h4sfness of life. The unsophstocated child
| of other States and other cities is not en-
countered in the streets of New York.
But these babies of poverty are u revela
ton in their sharp wisdom. A moments
chat with any of the little news vendors
will reveal their remarkable knowledge Of
/ the passing show, the location of streets or
public buildings, the new plays at the the
aters, the ensation of the hour in print, or
any general Information that only the po-
! liceman is supposed to know
| At the news booth of the Thirty fourth
street station of the Sixth-avenue elevated
railway q clever little representative of his
| class stands on a stool and serves Gus
toners with gravity and dispatch He is
eight, possibly nine years old. His form is
| slender, giving the impression of delicacy
! but the clear, gray eyes and rosy cheeks
| denote good health Observing that 1 had
rot pushed up, along with the hurrying
| crowd, he caught my eye as he folded
newspaper, extended his tiny body far over
! the counter snatched off his cap and called:
WELL lady. don't you want a paper?"
1 waited for a lull to ask for a back num-
|
| ber.
20, yes, lady he replied as he jumped
down and disappeared for q moment, to bob
up with a bundle of old newspapers. His
little forefinger ran over the dates swiftly
until he selected the desired number.
| L asked for more copies than he had,
! just to learn how he would meet me. He
hustled over files of newspapers: then his
| face fell.
why, I need two more for you, lady.
Do you want than much?"
He paused a moment, then reached his
head out of the little side window counter,
| ard whistled shrilly several times.
He begged me to wait suggesting other
| newspapers, with just everything in
them. He ratified off the news specialties
of the leading dailies of that day handing
me one two to glance at.
He was diverted by the answer of the
whistle. Another little chap, hardly so
| large he, up, with his batch OF
newspapers under his arm, and What
de ye want?" The little news agent leaned
over, and with an authoritative tone COM
missioned Bobby to run quickly to the
big ohice-"ye know where Bobby''-and
buy two copies of the desired number He
slipped pennies into Bobbys hand.
and Bobby started on full run 1 admired
his thoughtfulness in taking care L should
not learn where the big office was.
As waited many buyers passed in quick
succession. To several he called out, upon
their approach: And you want the -
this EVENING"" proffering each time the
newspaper desired. The men dropped their
pennies without a glance smile at this
little fellow who had learned their faces
and tastes. Sometimes half a dozen coins
collected before he had time to store them.
| He used the gongmoney box with the skill
and rapidity of a typewriter. Noticing that
| turned the leaves OF a fashion journal, he
was quick to exclaim:
That bon-ton lady is just from Paris
see the new sleeves-put you up one?"
[ answered that L preferred an Amer
| We'll here's Cillett's; there's none bet
| Bobby returned to say the big office had
not the copies ordered. He and the little
| partner were positively grieved. Finally
the booth manager begged me TO return to-
! morrow; he would have some in for me;
| how many would l take? He went on to
tell me he liked all the big newspapers.
and read some things in all every day. His
ambition was to get to be a big editor
or a big newspaper duffer anyhow He
was only waiting to get big enough. AS
turned away he called up Bobby He
| slipped a cent in his palm.
Now Bobby, business has been brisk;
| you go and get us some candy over there"
| A BABY TRADER.
| Several blocks further down on Sixth
avenue I stopped to buy a morning news
paper. The querulous woman was impa-
i tient at my stupidity She exclaimed did
| l wish her to lose all her custom and pa
| pers, too. when the wagon come, and if
she did not return them she must keep
| them. she supposed, to throw away and so
on. dull dirty-looking baby fellow of
six came UP to get more newspapers Evi-
| IDENTIFY he was her child. 1 wondered that
| she could trust him on the crowded street
| He had not yet learned to talk plainly He
| iisped out incomplete sentences. She sent
him away in a hurry.
An hour later l had wandered ten or
| more blocks and a newsboy more persist
| ent than the rest. ran back and forth
| across my path shrieking out uniutelli gible
| names Merely to be rid of him I asked
Tor the morning paper. had already made
ers- With a pleased. elfish grin. he held
| up up erumpled copy of the correct number.
a,des dhe dirty IL little finger marks indicated his
asked him for two copies. He was
terribly disa apponted. Tears filled his eyes
| as he tried to explain that the evenings
| edition was now out and he could not find
copies of those I wished. At once ] recog-
| talk plainly. His little business venture
was revealed: He had run from stand to
S1and n his While keeping m ga me in sight to hunt
there his sharp business diseernment a1 exeai was
| He dropped his head, then looked up anx-
iously pointing at the spot where the price
| supreme at my purchase of his second
! hand paper. He volunteered to go to "a
| place he knew and get me others if only
L would say where to meet him.
His utterances were indistinct that
| each sentence was repeated again and
again before / could gather any meaning
| His mother and he were rot foreigners.
| The child had never been taught to say
clearly more than his paper trade demand
| ed He was off in an instant after our ap-
made.
He returned wearily in half an hour to
he GOT He hoI
| difficulty in suppressing a sob but a little
money restored his spirits. He seemed
quite able to find his way. as already he
had gone mile in the effort to sell his
papers. He then suggested that he would
try hard to reach the downtown Office
three four miles off-to get my papers
by night. But it ''drefful far he in
formed me, and then, too, he always had
to take papers at every night up to
lady on Eighth avenue and Forty-second
street / insisted that his trouble would
be too great and some other day / would
buy again. We parted good friends.
A boy of ten, somewhat neater than most
Of the street urchins. stood, hat in hand
gazing longingly into the Waldorf A
| friend. also clean. but younger, turned to
| him with a low-toned remark. They ap-
preached with sweeping bows. Couldn't
| the kind lady tell them how to find the rich
| Chnaman? Would he be willing to see
| them if they could manage to go in? Had
I met him? They had been keen to mark
! and so availed themselves of the oppor-
of af iVacr