Valentine's manual of the city of New York, 1917-1918 . house was owned by old John Jacob Astor.] have an indistinct remembrance of the old man, withhis thrifty habits, picking up, about the streets, suchthings as he did not like to have to go to waste. Ourhouse was entered from Vescy Street, there being sev-eral shops under it on Broadway. It was in one of thesethat we went to have our ears pierced. Our next door neighbor was a Madame B., who kepta fancy store. Our backyards adjoined each oilier, ourwood pile was against her fence. (No one had subcellarsin those days.) I used to get up on th
Valentine's manual of the city of New York, 1917-1918 . house was owned by old John Jacob Astor.] have an indistinct remembrance of the old man, withhis thrifty habits, picking up, about the streets, suchthings as he did not like to have to go to waste. Ourhouse was entered from Vescy Street, there being sev-eral shops under it on Broadway. It was in one of thesethat we went to have our ears pierced. Our next door neighbor was a Madame B., who kepta fancy store. Our backyards adjoined each oilier, ourwood pile was against her fence. (No one had subcellarsin those days.) I used to get up on the wood pile whenMadame B. and her husband quarrelled, to see themfight it out. We went to school to a Miss Baynum, a prim oldmaid, in Vesey Street. On our way, we always stopped atShaddles bakery, to buy a pennys worth of round hearts(bolivars), always eating the scallops off before wereached school. I was always in disgrace in school, havinggenerally the dunce cap, or the leather medal, but EllenScrougan and Johnnie Armstrong were about like me. [50]. Ellen would not learn her lessons. On one occasionMiss Baynum sent me to the City Hall to get the ChiefConstable, Old Hayes, thinking I would only go out-side the door, to frighten Ellen. But I had my fun outof it, for, fearing I would be called back, I ran as ifthe old boy was after me, till, meeting Old Hayes, asthe Head Constable was called, I stated the case to him,and he sent me back to say that they did not take chil-dren up for such things, at which Miss Baynum wasmuch mortified. I can remember just how I looked inmy nankeen Van Dyke. I looked very demure whenMiss Baynum asked me why I went up to the City Hall,and only answered Why, you told me to. She alsoonce took me up there after school, and threatened mewith being locked up. Mother could never have knownof her punishments, nr we would not have been allowedto remain in her school. I was also, once, shut up ina new coal bin in a dark closet till I asked her pardon,which
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