Alon Lower East Side Letter
Alon
Dear Grandpa,
When I first got home it felt so disappointing, to think that America would be fair to everyone, apparently people are really unfair about housing. Dad found this house on 212 Mott street, the Scottish neighborhood. Together, me as a newsie, and dad as a carpenter, we can pay the rent and have food and an extra $1.75. At the dinner table we always talk about what is in America and how our life is going. We have a lot more money that we used to have. Dad’s job is a carpenter, I’m a deliveryman as well as a Newsie. We can afford the rent because it is really cheap, $4.50 a month. The house was really bad so we haggled and won. I never went to school.
In the tenement, the living conditions were horrible. It was damp, musty, and dingy all the time. But now our landlord is now forced to follow the law and build windows in all houses and build indoor toilets, finally, I don’t have to go outside just to use the bathroom. Our apartment is not a sweatshop luckily. We never had to take on boarders to. The tenement Inspectors told us that they would inspect the tenement and we passed inspection. What they do is come into the tenement and inspect certain things like, no rags allowed, and no keeping feces and urine. Also, once Jacob Riis came and took a picture of our tenement. His book really helped convince the government to pass a law about tenements.
One day I saw women picketing a shop, it was like when we were Striking with Kid Blink against The world and The Journal. Kid Blink encouraged us with speeches, one was “The time has come when we must either make a stand or be down ridden buy the disciples of avarice and greediness. Is you all still with us?” The women were striking against bad working conditions. One was small, crowded rooms, another was short bathroom breaks, and also the last one was humidity and no windows opening. This was also the condition in sweatshops. After the strike though there was more pay, and the conditions changed over time to cleaner and more safe places.
We generally eat fish and potatoes here, though it is not as good as in Scotland. We really miss beef because you cannot get it here. But, we discovered a new food that we really like, it is called chicken stew, it tastes like beef stew but the only different thing is the meat, it is chicken. I shop on the way home from work, I shop from Phillippe who is my friend peddler and gives me the lowest prices from all of the peddlers, and he is my neighbor. I usually eat rolls for breakfast, a sandwich for lunch, and fish and potatoes for dinner. I like buying whatever mom tells me to buy from peddlers. I really like to buy potatoes a lot from peddlers because it reminds me of Scotland.
So basically, we achieved our goals and and have a better life, a good life, I wish I could see you again I miss you so much, you have no idea how much I wish you were here, when we were back in Scotland I felt like I could tell you anything, you were my best friend even though you were family. During my free time I play stickball, a new game I learned in America, it is what a lot of boys play and I think it is very fun to play. So, I really miss you and I want you to come to America.
Sincerely,
Jack