Criminals -- Fiction; New York (State) -- Social life and customs -- Fiction
“I'm like you, Nailer,” agreed Sop Henry. “Them socialists have
certainly got me goin'. I can't get onto their coives at all.”
“Lishten, then.” This came from the Irish Wop, who was nothing if not
political. “Lishten to me. Yez can go to shleep on it, I know all about
a socialist. There's ould Casey's son, Barney--ould Casey that med a
killin' in ashphalt. Well, since his pah-pah got rich, young Casey's
a socialist. On'y his name ain't Barney now, it's Berna-a-ard. There's
slathers av thim sons av rich min turnin' socialists. They ain't strong
enough to git a fall out av either av th' big pa-a-arties, so they rush
off to th' socialists, where be payin' fer th' shpot light, they're
allowed to break into th' picture. That's th' way wit' young Barney,
ould Ashphalt Casey's son. Wan evenin' he dr-r-ives up to Lyon's wit'
his pah-pah's broom, two bob-tailed horses that spint most av their time
on their hind legs, an' th' Casey coat av arms on the broom dure, th'
same bein' a shtick av dynamite rampant, wit' two shovels reversed on a
field av p'tatoes. 'How ar-r-re ye?' he says. 'I want yez to jump in an'
come wit' me to th' Crystal Palace. It's a socialist meet-in',' he says.
'Oh, it is?' says I; 'an' phwat's a socialist? Is it a game or a musical
inshtrumint?' Wit' that he goes into p'ticulars. 'Well,' thinks I,
'there's th' ride, annyhow; an' I ain't had a carriage ride since
Eat-'em-up-Jack packed in--saints rest him! So I goes out to th' broom;
an' bechune th' restlessness av thim bob-tailed horses an' me not seein'
a carriage fer so long, I nearly br-r-roke me two legs gettin' in.
However, I wint. An' I sat on th' stage; an' I lishtened to th'
wind-jammin'; an' not to go no further, a socialist is simply an
anarchist who don't believe in bombs.”
There arose laughter and loud congratulatory sounds about the door.
Next, broadly smiling, utterly complacent, Big Mike Abrams walked in.
“Did youse lobsters hear me handin' it to th' monkeys?” he asked, and
his manner was the manner of him who doubts not the endorsement of men.
“That chink, Low Foo, snakes two of me shirts. I sends him five, an'
he on'y sends back three. So I caves in his block wit' a flatiron. You
ought to pipe his joint! I leaves it lookin' like a poolroom that won't
prodooce, after the wardman gets through.”
“An' Low Foo?” queried Tony, who had shirts of his own.
“Oh, a couple of monks carries him to his bunk out back. It'll take
somethin' more'n a shell of hop to chase away his troubles!” Mike
refreshed himself with a glass of beer, which he called suds. “Say,” he
continued with much fervor, “I wisht I could get a job punchin' monks at
a dollar a monk!”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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