Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-06-26
In Defense of the Hucksters

To the Editor of The Star:
A writer In your issue of the oath instant,
under the caption 1.-The Huckster MUS
arce,' tenders his thanks for an editorial
on the subject that appeared In The Star OF
last Thursday. and then proceeds to add
some comments of his own still more dras-
tic than those of that editorial. AS am
satisfied that you would not deny square
deal to any class of our fellow citizens. OF
close the door of opportunity against any
toiler seeking to earn an honest living, L
beg leave to be heard through your col
un,ns In behalf of the men whose business
is thus assailed as "a crying evil that is
beyond all hope of regulation but should
be virtually suppressed.
The huckster business is doubtless one OF
the Oldest in this city, and had its rise
coincident with the founding of Washing
ton as the national capital in 1893.
Before market houses were built here 1t
was a public necessity, and 1t was then
carried on chiefly by the farmers, who
raised the produce that they sold from
their wagons on the streets 1t was then.
as 1t is now, the market on wheels, brought
to the homes of the people. That it has
not been regarded a nuisance by the
people at large Is proved by the fact that
in obedience to the law of supply and de-
mand it has grown with the growth Of the
city. until there are 657 hucksters, each
paying a license fee of $12 per annum ana
employing on an average three assistants
to aid them in making their sales.
l include in the term "huckster business
the crying of their stock in trade upon the
streets in accordance with ancient CUSTOM
form of advertising by word of mouth
which Is essential to the conduct of the
business. and 1t would seem therefore that
every license granted to the huckster au
thorfzed him TO conduct his business by the
usual means. If the privilege heretofore
granted the huckster to announce his pres
ence to would-be customers by calling out
his is abused through his -lOn6
and vociferous voice he may justly be COM
PEELED to lower his tone, but the sin of
such loud-tongued individual should not
be visited upon a large and useful class of
men, who cannot truly be accused of COM
hitting it. 1t Is undeniably true that thou
sands of worthy housewives in this city
welcome the huckster's morning call, I'M
musical as it may be to "ears polite" for
1t means to them a market at the door,
and the saving perhaps of a long walk In
the winters cold or the summers heat to
the distant market house or the more high
priced greengrocer's store. Nor is 1t true.
as stated by Mr.. George H. Evans, thewriter
of the article above referred to, that the
hucksters deal out to their customers fly
blown fish and andcient vegetables and
fruit" He and his fellow complainer, Mr..
r. Grant Barnwell, to the hucksters,
seem to be suffering under the same at
tack of nerves that led the Russian
squadron to open their fire upon the En-
glish fishing feet In the North sea. If
food. either fish, flesh. fowl or fruit. they
would swiftly be punished under the health
laws of the District, as In the cases that
have occurred among keepers of market
stalls.
Mr.. Evans, whose fancy seems to puff up
facts to fit the destructive theory of silence
that he would apply to the huckster bust
ness, charges that they practice a system
of horrible yelling that generally pervades
many of the residence sections, and even
business sections IKE 9th and F streets"
Upon inquiry l find that Mr.. Evans Is a
patent attorney, whose office is on the sixth
floor. rear section, of the Loan and Trust
building, at the corner of 9th and streets
and looks out upon neither of these streets
so that he could not possibly hear a huck-
ster's call from the street below especially
as six railroad tracks cross at that point
and make 1T a real noise center by the roll
ing and Gathering of the street cars day
and night. His residence is at the corner of
18th and b streets northeast and also 1nd
upon inquiry that he Is the solitary instance
Of nervous arrangement caused by the
huckster's call In that fine residential quar-
ter. AS to this matter he and Mr.. Barnwell
appear to flock together az a complaining
group of noise-stricken victims, but they
have no right to pose as representatives CT
the more normal public at large.
In so doing they suggest the three tailors
of Tooley street, London, who held a meet
ing in 1896 to protest against the introduce
ton of sewing machines into that great city
on the ground that they were "pestiferous
noisy" and hurt their trade of sewing by
hand, and they began their petition to par
lament with the words, I'VE the people of
England"
At the meeting of the District Commission
ers last Thursday when they gave the COM
plant OF the hucksters presented through
the wholesale fish and produce merchants,
respectful consideration, DR.. L. y. Walter, a
substantial citizen and president of the
Northeast Citizens Association. declared
that the inhabitants of that section were
generally in favor of the hucksters call;
that he defled Mr.. Barnwell to point to q
single complaint against 1t other than his
own, and that he could readily furnish a Pc
tition signed by 10000 respectable citizens
of that section praying for a repeal of the
regulation forbidding them to cry their
wares upon the streets.
GEORGE w. STUART