That burden lifted, it seemed as though the memory of my
unfortunate acquaintance with Miss Tevkin had suddenly grown
in clarity and painful acuteness
Our rush season had passed, but we were busy preparing for our
removal to new quarters, on Fifth Avenue near Twenty-third
Street. That locality had already become the center of the
cloak-and-suit trade, being built up with new sky-scrapers, full of
up-to-date cloak-factories, dress-factories, and
ladies'-waist-factories. The sight of the celebrated Avenue
swarming with Jewish mechanics out for their lunch hour or going
home after a day's work was already a daily spectacle
The new aspect of that section of the proud thoroughfare marked
the advent of the Russian Jew as the head of one of the largest
industries in the United States. Also, it meant that as master of
that industry he had made good, for in his hands it had increased a
hundredfold, garments that had formerly reached only the few
having been placed within the reach of the masses. Foreigners
ourselves, and mostly unable to speak English, we had
Americanized the system of providing clothes for the American
woman of moderate or humble means.
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