Harper's New Monthly Magazine, No. XI.—April, 1851—Vol. II.Various
General
Harper's New Monthly Magazine, No. XI.—April, 1851—Vol. II.
Various
American literature -- Periodicals; Civilization -- Periodicals; Culture -- Periodicals
their bosoms, sit on their porter's knots, chatting in Irish, and
smoking short pipes; every passer-by is hailed with the cry of "Want a
baskit, yer honor?" The porter, trembling under the piled-up hamper,
trots along the street, with his teeth clenched, and shirt wet with the
weight, and staggering at every step he takes.
Inside, the market is all bustle and confusion. The people walk along
with their eyes fixed on the goods, and frowning with thought. Men in
all costumes, from the coster in his corduroy suit to the greengrocer in
his blue apron, sweep past. A countryman, in an old straw hat and dusty
boots, occasionally draws down the anger of a woman for walking about
with his hands in the pockets of his smock-frock, and is asked, "if that
is the way to behave on a market-day?" Even the granite pillars can not
stop the crowd, for it separates and rushes past them, like the tide by
a bridge pier. At every turn there is a fresh odor to sniff at; either
the bitter aromatic perfume of the herbalists' shops breaks upon you, or
the scent of oranges, then of apples, and then of onions, is caught for
an instant as you move along. The broccoli tied up in square packets,
the white heads tinged slightly red, as it were, with the sunshine--the
sieves of crimson love-apples, polished like china--the bundles of white
glossy leeks, their roots dangling like fringe; the celery, with its
pinky stalks and bright green tops, the dark purple pickling-cabbages,
the scarlet carrots, the white knobs of turnips, the bright yellow balls
of oranges, and the rich brown coats of the chestnuts--attract the eye
on every side. Then there are the apple-merchants, with their fruit of
all colors, from the pale yellow green to the bright crimson, and the
baskets ranged in rows on the pavement before the little shops. Round
these the customers stand examining the stock, then whispering together
over their bargain, and counting their money. "Give you four shillings
for this here lot, master," says a coster, speaking for his three
companions. "Four-and-six is my price," answers the salesman. "Say four,
and it's a bargain," continues the man. "I said my price," returns the
dealer; "go and look round, and see if you can get 'em cheaper; if not,
come back. I only wants what's fair." The men, taking the salesman's
advice, move on. The walnut-merchant, with a group of women before his
shop, peeling the fruit, their fingers stained deep brown, is busy with
the Irish purchasers. The onion stores, too, are surrounded by
Hibernians, feeling and pressing the gold-colored roots, whose dry skins
crackle as they are handled. Cases of lemons in their white paper
jackets, and blue grapes, just seen above the sawdust, are ranged about,
and in some places the ground is slippery as ice from the refuse leaves
and walnut-husks scattered over the pavement.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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