The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1873-07-24
he Hersld's Latest Revelations I
Philadelphta.

Phtladelphta.
The remarkable correspondence which we
print from Philadelphia to-day will doubtless
astonish many thousands of our readers who
are acquainted with the inner life of our sister
CITY, To come into close contact with crime
is neither novel nor pleasant Volumes have
been written on the misery and degradation in
the cellars and garrets of densely populated
cities, where the vilest creatures that walk and
represent the human form ore thrust in with
pure-minded but poverty women
and contaminate by their presence the
atmosphere around them. By their vile-
ness, like the boa constructor springing
for its prey, subduing by q frightful fascina-
ton. New York has supplied abundant ma
terial for the philanthropic pens of con-
temporaneous historians, while the East End
of London, the slums of Seven Dials, the
Quarter Latin and other purlieus Of Paris
have been more fruitful sources of criminal
information. But authorities have differed
widely on the question of throwing open
to the gaze Of the world the inmost re-
cesses of haunts horrible in their character and
disgusting by location. Men of high Christian
and social standing have advocated the neces-
sity of oharitably throwing veil over these
plague spots in our midst and Of hiding them
from the general view, lest the knowledge Of
their character and objects should prove more
baneful to society than would be overbalanced
by their exposure and overthrow.
The mission of the HERAIDs correspondent
in the present instance has been with class
of criminals the most difficult to reach, and
who for that reason have SO long piled with
success and comparative security their revolt
ing fraudulent avocations The spiritual me-
diums, the fortune tellers the abortionists, the
magicians and sorcerers, whose special profit it
becomes to wayIay the unwary, to prepare a
snare for the young and giddy, and, by their
vile arts, blight the fairest hopes Of thou
sands, have been making their harvest in the
face of the Christianity SO much boosted of in
Philadelphia. Deception and infamy lead to
shame, but, once having their victims dis
graced, their most fruitful source of revenue is
in the attempt to cover up the traces of
their villany The young girl, bright and
blooming, curious from strange superstition
that these wretches create in the minds of the
young to have their fortunes told, 'just for
fun enters the ''ofice'' that in too many in
stances proves the most serious step of her
life. But the open fraud they practise Our
correspondent gives the names and address
of those whom he visited and handed
over to justice, and among them one
who actually located sister never having had
On existence, and had the audacity to describe
to man in the full possession of his senses
his mother, who was ''neither young nor old,
neither long nor short nor stout nor lean, and
the ''sister in distant land, in city she could
not see and in street she could not name. :"
Such unqualified humbug should not only be
exposed, but should be punished equal to the
misery and torture it otttimes brings to its
victims. We are glad that the Mayor
and the police of the Quaker City see the
importance of the disclosures the
HERALD now makes through its cor
respondent, and that the base creatures
who traffic in human beings more
wilfully than ever did the planters of the
South, who deliberately undermine the moral
laws, hurl to destruction some of the
fairest of Gods children and set at naught
every ordinance Of modesty and decency are in
fair way Of receiving the just punishment of
their crimes.