Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1963-07-24


Funny how The Rambler
accepted the alleys desig-
nation without question. He
strolled on. Somebody up in
the District Building had
probably, quietly, paid a
small compliment to Ike
general, President, golfer.
Everybody probably knew
about it but the Rambler.
DISTRICT officials are
usually quite careful in their
dealings with official per-
Sonalities. The thought that
one of them had named an
alley for a President be-
came, after a while, extraor-
binary. Particularly a liv-
ing ex-President. Was a lit
tie collection of Democrats
up to some clever, if snide,
needing?
One dull afternoon, the
Rambler telephoned Francis
F. Healy, the Districts sur
veyor, who has as one of his
responsibilities the naming
of streets, and asked him
about likes Alley"
Mr.. Healy said he had
never heard of it and then
he was gone for a while,
looking up some old records.
He found nothing. There is
a good possibility he de-
cided the Rambler was mis-
taken, or just plain nuts.
I'VE don't name alleys"
Mr.. Healy stated, bluntly.
NOW HOT on the trail OF
a possible Pulitzer, tn G
Rambler returned to Z
street the next morning. II
was good to see the sign was
still there.
He noticed a small, scar
ryout" shop-"Furman's"-
at 906 D street NV, entered
and pressed the investiga-
ton.
Shortly, a bright-eyeo
young man named Jerry
Furman announced he ran
things and Immediately ad-
mitted, slyly, he knew of the
sign. 1t is posted, after all
outside on the shops wall
The Rambler had him.
I'VE used to be down or
the waterfront" said Jerr!
Maybe you remember the
place. It was in the Termi.
nal Building which was de.
molished a few years back
We had a little restaurant
there. Next to Benny Bort
hicks, the watermelon
king Well, we did a gooc
business. There used to bt
lines of people outside ir
the morning and around
lunchtime. Our specially
was brisket Of beef"
With the redevelopment
of the area-the old Termi.
nal Building was one Of the
first things to come down.
the Furmans moved to the
Northeast Market anc
opened a restaurant.
%
WE PRACTICALLY los
our shirt" Jerry said. "Al
that overhead. We had q
employees. We had to clost
and about two years ago w
opened this place.
"We-my father and L
decided we had had enough
headaches. We started cut
ting out everything that wa
a headache. You don't SCI
any dishes around here. Yol
can't find a dishwasher
Everything is paper anC
plastic" Jerry said, proudly
WELL" Jerry continued
after getting up and fixinl
an old character e pas
trami sandwich, "some o
our old customers found on
where we were.
II told 'em we were mex
to an alley. They started II
come. My father knows al
the policemen. There hav,
been so many in here 4
looks like a raid. The mex
thing is that somebod!
brings us that sign. SO
nailed it up on the wall.
don't think I'd better tel
you who made 1t. Might &c
somebody in trouble"
The ike" in the sign
Ike Furman, Is 70, Jerry
father. He comes into tn
store at $3.50 am. He has |
grizzled face and sparkling
eyes. He brought the Ram
bier q slice Of brisket Of beef
1t parted easily under tn
plastic fork.
Nothing but the tops,
Ike Furman barked In tn
little store, next TO his alley
a. "a