Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1901-08-02

RAGS AND THE lACKA
changed 1lsdss1 coaditt Dsciiss q
Tie Family Raxbag,
g The ragman goes about IN the
citys streets just the same as ever, 8
said Z man who has given some atten
ton to the subject, says : New y ork
Sun reporter, ttbut he doesn't do the !.
business that he once did; things have
changed. "a. s g. BE =- s. !
There are in these days not so
many clippings and odds and ends
Of new cloth Of one sort OF another to
go into the family ragbag as there
once were to beginwith, because Of the
now well-nigh common custom in
cities, anyway, Of buying already
made-up many things that formerly
were made in the house. Thousands
Of tons Of clippings that formerly
were gathered up in small lots b.
many ragmen are now baled in TO
tories and sold to mills OF to dealers
in paper stock without any intermedi-
ate handling tall. 49,
<*Then, what with the lower p1fee
Of rags nowadays, due to the substitu-
ton Of other materials in paper max
ing, it scarcely pays the households
to bother with the smaller quantity
that now accumulates; with the 70.
suit that rags are now often thrown
away with other rubbish, to be gath
cred by city collectors of refuse.
@<Still noteverybody, by any mean4
throws away or gives away his ragA
There are still many people who COR
tinue to sell their rags for what they
can get of the ragman; and it would
not surprise me to learn that there arc
more ragmen now than ever; but tho
fact remains that under the new mod.
ern conditionsthe business of the man
with the jingling bells is not what it
once was.
In old times in smaller cities and
towns the householder, or more strict
" speaking, the housewife, sold her
rags to the tin peddler. The tin ped
der wss an institution. He had Z
route which he travelled year in and
year out. Many a tin peddler came to
be personally known and respected
by the people with whom he traded,
to whom he was not the peddler OF the
tin peddler, but Mr.. So-and-So; and
they used to wait for Mr.. So-and-Se
to come around, and dispose Of their
rags to him. :
*These rags were carefully sorted
out. There was the rather small but
valuable lot Of white rags tied up in I
white cloth, and the bigger bundle Of
colored rags, and one perhapsof WOOL
en- rags, which the peddier
weighed severally On the steelyards
that be brought in for that purpose.
How many times I have seen him,
staid man Of family, asI now realize
him, and perhaps in spectacles, shift
ing the weight sloog on the beam un-
ii rsgs and weight balanced. and he
made the announcement of the
weight which was almost invariably
disappointingly small! ID
*.He would pay cash, but he pre-
ferred that You should take it outin
trade; and commonly the, housewife
did 20. Many a dishpan, and manya
Upper and skinner, and I don't
know how many handsome Britannia
tespots and what else, have come
through the tin peddler out of therag-
bag! -
f Butnowthetin peddler- that's, the
peddler who drove horse to typical
psddlers wsgon-has receded from
these smaller cities, as previously he
had receded from the larger onea He
has moved on out into the country,
over whose hilly, dusty roads he stu
pursues his way to the farmhouse
door, vheps he dickers, o before.
But even there made-up garments 80
now to greater or less extent; and for
the rags that do accumulate the mod
sln low prices govern. And %, here
. everywhere, the family ragbag,
oaoe everywhere looked upon 40 Z 1T
tie mine Of wealth has fallen from ito
high estate. =
s&E@5.s &C., . -..---.---.- + ,-#z:s
& 81. s. No 1850 < ( II. IL
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