Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-08-03
IN THE EARLY DAYS
Some Characters Who Made Old
Washington Picturesque.
TIME WHEN EVERYBODY TIPPLED
Sad Instances Where Ruin Fol-
lowed Over-Indulgence.
DADDY GREEN AND OTHERS
Written for The Evening Star.


Written for The Evening Star.
In the early days of Washington in
ebriety was more manifest day and night
than would be tolerated or endured In
these times of law, order strikes and lock-
outs. Fifty, sixty and seventy years ago
the progenitors whom we loved, honored,
and whom we were bound and licked to
obey,
"All drank as twere their mothers milk
And not soul afraid
Some of them were -four and six-bottle
men," Claret, port, sherry. brandy and old
rye or gin were the potations of that day. as
they are now. Every householder with
any claim to responsibility displayed in
his dining room, on his sideboard, an array
Of cut glass, silverware, etc, and the ma
terials for the connection of liquid refresh
ments.
This was the universal thing and as much
expected as the "Sit down; take a seat
have fan; have a glass Of ice water?'
of today.
Queer were the sights and scenes the
muddy, dusty streets Of Washington-"the
darkest Observation-Disclosures in the
thirties Gentlemen were expected to be
lin vino veritas"-very freely translated
anywhere from 3 o'clock pm. to mid
night. There were no dry Sundays.
There's Col Johnson, too.
That veteran rumSey dumpSy,
Who wears, tbs said,
A waiStcOat red,
Because he killed Tecumseh."
How often have we little boys seen that
great, bulky hero coming down or climb
ing up the sidewalk of 9th and d north
west full as a boiled owl, taking the whole
of the way and often the gutter-the effects
of many an overdose of tanglefoot. But
he was quiet and orderly and always Beau
Brummellan In appearance. Daniel Web
ster carried his liquor like gentleman"
too In those days.
One Who Was Not So Wise.
In contrast to these historical charac-
tiers in the grand procession which has
filed by and gone to join the great majority
Genes before my mental vision the stout,
burly, broad, yelow-vested figure Of one
of my friends and patrons Of ruffied col
lars and curly headedness. He was gen.
tleman, bred, born and nurtured, and
had every advantage of school, university
and travel. and was rich, but he could not
keep quiet in his cups, and with many hic-
coughs, bareheaded and carrying his silk
hat and bandanna in his hand occasionally
stepping to mop his bald head-shaped ex-
actly like John Quincy Adams. whom he
greatly resembled-wth a stentorian voice,
he shouted and acclaimed, and prayed and
cussed and swore, until he produced mob
and almost riot in the vicinity. That
was daily occurrence. He harmed no.
body, nobody harmed him. Our "consta-
bles' minded their own personal business
then and no one elses. If ever he came
back here now he would probably find him
self with Stoutenburgh for ninety days or
permanently at ST. Elizabeth My father
told me that on one occasion he was per-
suaded to go to the races, out by the site
of old Columbian College That's where
Jake Dixon, Pendleton and other promi-
nent sporting men of that day had their
life and soul and being. That day, just be-
fore the racers started, up dashed on a
magnificent and gitteringly accoutered
Arabian pony, which he sat like a Cen
taur, curly-headed boy, attended by
liveried groom, who rode at respectful
distance in his rear and watched his eye
and obeyed his command as a dog does his
master My father said he never before
or since envied human being as he did
that boy that day. The young lordling
plucked out purse bullying with gold and
notes and laid some bets on the entries,
and wheeled his nag and disappeared from
my fathers vision until he reappeared to
him later and every day the roaring drunk
ard. Two of his children followed in his
footsteps, inheriting his disease. All per-
ished The name is dead, the fortune gone
to strangers.
Old Daddy Green.
Habitues of 18th street and New York
avenue northwest about two or three score
years ago must have often observed Dad
dy Green" another of old-time Washing
toms eccentric characters
He used to wear an old green coat,
All buttoned down before
1t was a very heavy ulster overcoat, at
that worn at all seasons, February and
July alike. He had thick fur cap, pulled
down close over his ears, even if the
thermometer were In the nineties; a huge
IL
goloshes on his feet at all seasons. The old
fellows explanation of this fantastic mas
querade was that "Wunst he was caught
out in the rain and took a drefful cold, and
he was bound he never would be agin."
He was one of the moving pictures Of the
olden times and passed off the stage long,
long ago.
"Bonyackum! Yackumpuckyr the two
names by which he was universally known
to us boys and the community, was an old
ebony black man whose real name Was
Nicholas Warner. He was the professional
bootblack of the capital city. He had no
competition because he had cornered the
whole business and was a bloated monopo~
list. He was always grinning and showing
his dazzling worries and the whites OF his
eyes. Hail him "Bonyackum"' back inlme-
diately, across the street or anywhere, came
the merry response, "Yackumpucky!'
Prey for Small Boys.
The old darky oysterman Of that day,
likely worked all day for some ''marster'
or other. cannot be left out of the picture.
We bad boys used to put up job on "un-
cle' when he came around with his big
deep, round tin bucket and dipper and his
oyster horn, which would put the present
day garbage collector to discount. When
heard his familiar cry "H'yar's yere
fine, fat oysters-h'yar dey air-h'yar dey
be-butting DER brains out agin de bucket
who will come and buy fun pore me?" the
embryo counterfeiters and swndlers would
swoop down upon him and his wares and
buy him out to the extent of our presumed
silver fps" (6 cents), which were all hand
worked and made Of tin. The currency of
that day was more poor and debased than
We're the showers.
Moses Black, White and Yellow Wash
err was another character of that day.
He was a queer old darby, as was Diggs,
another, who used to drive US all to col
lege In his four-wheeler and make us long
speeches afterward on the campus from
the balcony when we got there. in the