Weeks after fleeing the unsettling home of restless souls; the tranquil countryside soon gave way to smoke stacks and low-lying brick buildings. The big city sounds ushered in the excitement that Eubie had longed for. Everywhere he looked was like a present begging to be opened. Smartly dressed women gabbed on street corners with friends hoping to escape the oppressive heat. Those who would normally be invisible during the day skulked in darkened doorways. Cutthroats lurked in every alley awaiting any opportunity to surprise some unsuspecting soul while drunken sailors sang the joys of being on dry land. Whether it was lack of food, or more excitement than he could bear, Eubie stopped to catch his breath. It was then his growling stomach was a reminder that hadn’t eaten for a couple of days.
This was the life he chose and the sooner he became acquainted with it he thought the better off he’d be. As soon as Eubie contained himself, he spied a Produce vendor. “Berries as red as your true love’s lips,” the vendor hawked to a bustling crowd. They didn’t appear to be as fresh and plump as the ones on the plantation, but an empty stomach would not know the difference.
The theft had to be timed exactly right if he were to get away unseen. When another customer approached, Eubie saw his chance. However, his calculated risk was thwarted when a hunchback dressed in tatters came up from behind and grabbed his hand.
“Rub my hump. Rub my hump. Lucky lump. Rub my hump,” the penniless man said while offering his much maligned and unsightly bulge. The vendor, who wanted to make a lot of money that day, knew that by rubbing a hunchback’s hump would bring good luck. Caught red-handed with an apple and a few withered string beans, Eubie wished that he hadn’t shooed the pitiful man away. The vendor, no stranger to thieves in his line of work, handed Eubie over to a nearby constable.
