rag-rakers

Updated: May 4, 2025

I observed them principally early in the morning, when they issued from their dens, on the same principle that the rag-rakers, and rubbish-pickers in the streets, sally out bright and early; for then, the night-harvest has ripened. There seems to be no calamity overtaking man, that can not be rendered merchantable.

Herman Melville - Redburn. His First Voyage