The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-02-20
MAKING A LIVING.
ONE or THE 1nsuLrs or 1roD-
 EHN CIVILIZATION.
Biting aoh Dogss Halls second-hand Tcmbstonss-1e 1enovattng Meats and Tish-AThe Undsrtaker's
 sssolicitog'-The Cork
 Lsg Drummer.
New York PYess.

Leg Drummer. New York Press. N/
 ws . Du1:sn Ssy .os Ss J sss reoor oss ars hundreds cf n,es, and women engaged in queer occupations of which the world Some of them are honest, hard-working folk. whS have been driven by whim or .circurnstance into peculiar fields Cf endesvor. and som9 are of q hawsisn or fantastic schernes ts fleece the uns wsYy Some of them exult in their craft and md Happiness h their lahofs. and .eas seil. without pride and simply for
 Bstxss1 the man who makes his living by bltlngsoR the. tails of fox terriers and bull pups and the chap who deals in ons %o dociors snd the drummer for cork les factory. hetwesn the poodle dogs barber and the man who "rsnovates' hieh meats and fishes. be- err snd the vndertaker.s "solIcisor. ]" or bstwsen the bug-catcher Of our public parks andT the fabbit-chaser Of Green wood Cspetery, there is only that crdi- tween man. and man on the streets. The gamut yot human nature is the Saune whatever the scale of life. The man who bites dog. tails may G,ea~ n;nh Si ssa9y I.ehr's would look like a spent cork be. side a, magnum of champagne, and the drummer for artificial limbs may even aspire to the management of one of the great railway systems which makes them
 A Dwindling Industry.
 The man who bites dogs tails for living doesn't advertise his business and lie lights shy of the agents of societies organized for the prevention of cruelty to animals. There was tine when ha was In greater demand than he Is today the time when dog fights were more in fashion than they are now. and when no ing violence to the superstition that dog whose caudal appendage had been shortened with . knife instead of by bit- as haH Shs been or1n sree e n as s. sa' tion may have been to teach the puppy that damage can bs innicted with. the sssh s xs Sr t as s .a hoys oy ssns dqs
 In the larger kennels it Is the practice now to employ. veterinary surgeon to enough of the oid.tine breeders still in to half score of "biters." The. puppy is handed over to the bitter when he vertebrae between which he intends to force his teeth, ana marks tee place with piece of twine. The "dainties
 of the profession wrap the part to be simply thrust the tip of the tall into the mouth and bite 1t off as one would bite a stalk of asparagus. Commonly the "biters fee is T: but W where srs,sasT there dn ss the usual rate is 50 cents the head-or.
 |' aRsnovating' Meats.
 Probably the meanest of all the queer occupations in this city is that of the nshes. It not only is mean. but 1t is dangerous to health. and the business Is conducted in violation of the rules and regulations of the Board of Health. Sales tho "renovator.". fahts shy of food in- spectors and the police. Sometimes he, ts cautht and punished and Sa nis waIes ass sVys0 msn sns:xeS Sa' in no the business % eyer are brcusi1fs to book. T'ns "renoSator" could not exist without the consent of cer- tain wholesalers and retailers. and in shown that both retailer and wholesaler are innocent parties to his business. Some dealers regularly dispose of their Knowledge that the stun is to be sold for food, but others sell to the peddlers In the belief that their refuse Is being turned inte soaps. or oils.
 
 one. In the case of high meats it usu- ally Is the surface portions that are affected. These he pares on until the meat ha: the appesrancs . of being M clean in the cheapest districts. He finds his best customers among the poorer ItaI- fans and the Slavs and Huns-peopis ,SsS no are G tSs Ss of sf ts se eoarg roasts and other pieces of meat for which they. pay or 10 cents a pound costs the "renovator" less than sl the 100 pounds.
 In the matter of handling fish. the "renovat -r's' chances for big profits and quick sales, Are equally. good. He buys from the wholesaler lot of taint. The fish are carted to his den and sorted over, Those which are so far gone that the fact cannot be disguised are tossed into barrels to be sold to farmers for bad are washed with an acid solution to kill the scent. iced. and then sent out to be sold by the hawkers Out of lot Of spoiled SsVs nsG fro say a aor enGn @ get at least 300 fish that he can sell for 10 cents apiece. and perhaps 200 for which he will ask only cents each. because they ain't no chance Of keeping ean
 The Cork-Leg Drummer. A very yellow newspaper recently com trasted American and European business methods under the stunning headline, "Tbe old World Aghast at American Progress" There are some phases of o,,r progress at which we might well stand aghast ourselves. Take, for in- stance, the methods employed by the cork-lee drummer. as he is known. and of the solicitor for certain cheap under takers and florists. A professional gam bier the other day referred deridingly to . cork.leg drummer as "a capper for fhs artificial limb game" which. although siangy, Is fairly accurate description of the genius
 If is inc business of the cork-leg drum vner to keeu posted as to the accidents that happen in his territory. He reads the afternoon and morning papers care fully every day. and when he learns of an accident in which the victim has been nnaimed so that amputation of lin1h Is necessary. it is his business to "get next" at once Ills methods are pat termed after those of the adroit wine agent. Tn Accident cases the name Of the injured persons next friend" is al- ways taken by the police when possible. and this Is the person of whom the cork leg drummer goes In search He gets the address from the police. or the hos snce of that person during a call of sern,nathy. usually under the pretence Shat he was an eyewitness to the dis- sstsr He Is consumed with sympathy. ITa ca,is as often as he can to learn Snw fhe sufferer Is getting along There e. to he an operation. How distressing! Can he do anything or be of any ser aaa +o -the sufferer? He is eaten up Hce e.tnt,, Tor the victim and when