New-York tribune., 1910-09-04
TaEe OF q Miniature City
Life History Of Big Model Tenement Re-
vealed to the Collector OF Rents.

tives. and the mother supports the family,
stardin- behind the counter in a depart
ment store" she told the visitor as they
walked away ''Now for the next fiat.
+ The door was ajar, and just as she rang
/ a bass voice doomed out with alarming
suddeuness-" 'Tis a call to arms! know
not how twill end, but this 1 know. Twill
/ be q HI OF a fine scrap"
! Gracious do they feel like that about
paving the rent?". gasped the visitor
! They're theatrical people" the collector
( explained hurriedly. You hear all sorts
J of-6sood morning. Mr. Clevenning. 10
the beamng young man who came to the
door Did you get that message that
came to the office for you from the moving
picture concern
Yes hut I'm not going to work for them
any more said the cheerful young man
My wife and | are asked to star In play
that's going On the road in October May
he YOU heard us studying our parts a bit ??
he asked. joyouslT, as he handed out the
rent.
The next tenant was a German, who
couldn't speak English. and the next was
Bulgarian. and the next an Italian. but the
next was an American, who explained vol
ubly that she Was in trouble with the
all hunched on one shoulder, like. she said.
The collector shipped a lit and pinned
bit and went her way, leaving a nicely
fitting frock and taking the weeks rent
with her.
Babies abounded everywhere. They GOO
gooed from inner rooms, or howled, as the
case might be: they teddled TO the door and
PLAYED peak-a-boo from behind their
1T oil va
suited constantly about their teeth and
their tummies, and one anxious parent
showed her infants eyes, badly crossed,
and wanted to know when should she have
the operation to put them straight. Not all
the flats held children. though There were
bachelor women and bachelor men.
A tenement of contrasts II was. In one
fiat the rent was paid by melancholy
little man with a black eye. A neighhor
explained conddentialIy that Mr. Multi
gan's wife hit him up something dreadful
last night" From the next fat a happy
couple. obviously wrapped up III each other.
We're starting off for day at ConeY Island.
In the rooms on the floor below, the coll
hector explained in whisper, a girl COM
mitted suicide some time ago because her
husband had died and she couldn't live
without him. From one door the strains
of the Jewel Song" in Faust poured out.
She's studying for the opera, l guess
said the collector. and lives here to eeono-
mize" From a window near by a gramo-
phone was announcing raucously that there
would he hot time in the old town to-
night.
In q clean little fiat. high up, a white
faced woman opened the door. Three thin,
frail little children were in the rooms,
which had hardly any furniture.
I've only got a dollar on the rent to-
day" the woman said. Il hope We can
make it up soon. Ny husbands out look
ing for work.
Is il so hard to get?"
It's a bad time for walters. and August
don't look strong. I'm hoping to get some
sewing TO do
Mrs. Schmidt" said the collector. why
don't you apply to one of the organizations
for help?''
Would you like TO do that. and have
the investigator coming, and all the neigh
bors knowing you'd asked for charity"
demanded tEe woman, lifting a pair of
hollow Hack eyes.
Well" the collector said. hastily, IF
your husband doesn't find work to-day I'll
try to fix il SO YOU can have some of these
houses to light, and get pay for that"
We don't ever let any part of the rent
go, technically she added, when she had
shut the door on the white-faced family,
but what can you do in a case like that?
They're starving, and he's tried hard to
get work, ! know. But [ must get through
with my collections, or L sha'nt get my
books proved up today" And she turned
to give her best attention TO a housewife
who protested that Mrs. Van Horn,
ma'an, my gas stove must De fixed, for it
leaks gas that bad everything 1 cook in il
is an smelled up"