New-York tribune., 1922-09-01
M Money Magic
Gives Pllsllcart
Men Good Spots
Unofficial Collectors Range
Through East Side Under
the Eyes of Supervisors,
Who Disclain Amy Craft
Good Reports Required
Market Commissioners Of
flee Puts Peddlers at tlle
Mercy of Field Agents
BY NJ. Jay Racusin

"lf Mr.. Friedman will send me a good
report about you we will see about a
permit"
The Mr.. Friedman referred to is
Louis Friedman, supervisor of the
Orchard Street pushcart market. The
tine" is an official in the office Of
Commissioner of Markets Edwin J.
0 Malley. The "you" is a poor old ped
dler who for weeks had been wearing
out the stones between O'Malley's and
Friedman's Offices in an effort to OBJ
tain little breathing space along the
Orchard Street curb to sell his penny
wares Finally he was told that he
could stand in the street as a trial"
and if The supervisor turned in a
good" report the question of permit
could then be taken up.
What did the official mean by
good" report? What had to be
"tried"? The peddlers have their own
ideas on the subject. They tell me
that the supervisors maintain an auto
cratic and czarlike control over their
continually under threat Of expulsion
from their spots on the ground; that
the stands are worth money to super
visors," and that they are only per-
mitted to remain upon payment of GER
tain sums.
Extortions by Shopkeepers
They say that many pushcart ven
ders are abruptly chased from their
fo els fhNtr I'll
given to others. The only inference,
they assert, that can be drawn from
this arbitrary action is that money is
collected for the change.
And finally learn that peddlers are
still compelled to pay storekeepers for
the privilege of maintaining their
stands in front of their places, al
though Commi ssioner O'Malley had told
me this practice had been eliminated
by his 81 week permit system.
On the contrary, am informed that
the exactions are practised with the
full knowledge of supervisors and that
they even insist upon it.
Maybe this has some relation to the
good" report just referred to. Maybe
the report is good" if the peddler
and complies with his every eXaction
and wish.
Anyhow, I was informed of one case
where the peddler did not meet the de-
mand of the supervisor and he hasn't
got his stand yet. In the course of an
affidavit vender whose name is with
held for obvious reasons relates how
he had had cart in one spot in Orchard
Street for nearly twenty years, and how
Friedman, for no cause that the peddier
could imagine, refused to grant him
permit for it some months ago.
Differs With O'Malley
After repeated pleadings for spot,
the peddler says Supervisor Friedman
brought up the question of stand in
front of the premises at $50 Orchard
Street, where there was an empty space
at the time.
supervisor Friedman informed me-"
runs tbt affidavit, "that if would pay
the sto: ekeeper located at these prem
ises sic month he would give me per-
mission to stand at this place. told
him | vas unable to enter INTO any
such arrangement
Commissioner O'Malley says that
this sort of thing has been eliminated.
There is many poor victim over on
Orchard Street who can give more
correct answer.
A little phrase on the 81 week per-
mits issued to the hawkers is inter
esting. 1t reads that the permit rs
revocable at the pleasure of the Com
missioner" Orchard Street peddlers
say they don't believe Commissioner
0'Malley ever INDUCED in the pleasure,
but that Friedman certainly did and
frequently. He has been seen to de-
mand permits from peddlers on some
pretext or another and tear. them up
on the streets. They take this 10 m,
dicate that the supervisor is the real
authority and decides If an applicanc
shall have permit. =,
And there is no telling, say the ped
dIers, how far they are going TO carry
their authority for their own pnr-
pose. A case in point is that of q
crippled father Of FIVE children, who
has had little cart in Orchard Street
for fourteen years. He is SO helpless
that he has had to resort to the aid
of his wife and one of his children
TO lift his small stock of potatoes to
his wheel stand. Recently Supervisor
Friedman ordered him to back his
stand away and make it smaller. 1t is
only seven feet, he said, and does not
violate any rules of the department
covering the size of pushcarts The
average cart is about eight feet long.
Cripple Gets Rough Deal
~ have been ordered by Friedman to
cut down the size of my stand" he
complains, at will mean that I can
only have very small stock of pota-
toes, and will work great hardship
upon me, because can't keep carrying
sacks of potatoes to the cart. You don't
have to think very long on why he
wanted me to cut down my cart. Of
course, he wants to squeeze more carts
in and get more dollars week. En-,
to pick on crippled old man like me-.
What are you going to do? Please
don't mention me. If he don't bother
me he's a good man."
Another peddler on Orchard Street
asgaazrassly