The story opens in late nineteenth century New York City's Bowery district where a small boy from Rum Alley stands atop a pile of gravel.  He and his friends are under attack by a rival gang of street urchins from Devil's Row and the little boy has chosen to make a stand.  He throws rocks and hurls insults at his attackers.  One of his retreating friends calls out: "Run, Jimmie, run!  Dey'll get yehs," but Jimmie retorts that "dese micks" can't make him run.  This causes The Devil's Row gang to pelt Jimmie with rocks.  Jimmie stumbles down, his clothes in tatters and his head bleeding from a savage cut.  While the boys curse and fight a woman looks on from her squalid apartment, some men unloading a boat on the river pause to watch and on the Island a line of yellow convicts trail along the river's edge.  Jimmie receives a cut to his face and his legs begin to buckle.  At this moment an older boy of about sixteen years comes swaggering down the street.  His hat tipped at an angle, the older boy holds a cigar stump clenched between his teeth, his expression is locked into a permanent sneer.  He observes the smaller boys fighting and arrogantly grabs one of the Devil's Row gang and with an exclamation of "Ah, what deh hell," he boxes the child to the ground.  The older boy, whose name is Pete, turns to Jimmie and exclaims "What deh hell, Jimmie?" and Jimmie responds to his friend: "I was goin' teh lick dat Riley kid and dey all pitched in on me."  The rival gangs quit the field of battle with many curses and begin to brag about their abilities amongst themselves.  Jimmie gets into a brief scuffle with one of his gang mates but their fight is interrupted when Jimmie's Father, dinner pail in hand and smoking an apple-wood pipe, arrives on his way home from work.  He sees that his son is fighting and he begins to yell and kick the boys.  Jimmie curses his father and receives another kick for his trouble.  Much chagrined Jimmie follows his father home.