The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1878-02-20
DOHERTY.
The Story Of n Woman Who Never Had
Chance.

Elizabeth Stuart Phelps, in the Indepen-
If you want to see the inside of station,
you'd ought to have been here last night.
1t isn't often, ma'am, there is a night that
would be suitable for You. | don't think
there's been half dozen this winter that I'd
want you round if you was my daughter or
my sisier-begging your pardon, ma am, as
the best way | can put it TO you to express
my meaning and the feeling that man has
about such things.
Ever see our books? Nol Just YOU look
here, if you please. Just count those pages,
will you? From there to there. We TOOK
in all those in December. In the month of
December, 1876, We had at this one station
. 252 men and women. OF course, there's
the usual share of arrests. There's Mahoney.
and Jones and Sullivan, and Pete Cart
wright and Julia Henderson right under
my fingers, all arrests All drunk. But
most Of 'em are vagrancies in the winter
time. You see, il was pretty cold last De-
cember, especially nights. And then we are
careful about our officers Don't allow
kicking. and no more swearing at 'em than
circumstances require. These creeturs get
such things round among themselves. They
have fancy for this station, maybe, | don't {
know how that is. We mean to be humane
on this corps. That's our theory. Some of
our officers have a very gentlemanly way.
| tell you, madam (you may better
understand 1t at the outsetl L
don't know what your intentions are of
course-but ladies come with so many charit-
able and curious designs which it seems a
pity to disappoint but tell you the folks
that get into these places are hopeless lot.
There are fOlks without a chance Most of
us have a chance, reckon, in this world,
some time or nuther; even them poor devils.
But by the time they get here their chance
is dead as John Browns body. l don't say
there's never an exception. Now, there was
that creetur last night. Maybe if somebody'd
taken her in hand several years ago-if
lady with the way you seem to have-(I
hope you'll excuse me, ma'am, but there is
a difference in a ladY's way, such as | you
think'd have to be a man, and do a pretty
rough mans work, like mine, for instance.
to understand so clearly as you might)
wished last night, will confess, that there'd
been lady here. 1t did occur to me TO go
home for my wife. But never bring my
wife into the station house.
Here's the entry-the last one, 1 mean.
Seel
"D:-Doherty, Ellen, February %, 1877.
Vagrancy" When / get time Pm going to
count up how often that woman name has
been on these books. But il would take a
good deal of time It's some years.
remember very well the first time she
came. Don't know how happen to. There's
such lot of young girls. And pretty ones
too. This one was more than common good
looking-an Irish girl. She had dark style
and was paler than most of 'em. l think it
must OF been five years ago. 1t was the first
- time she d ever been arrested. She took on
dreadfully about it. She hadn't begun to
drink then. And what she was taken up for
ad never happened before. 1t was the first
me, she SAID. SJmewavs, | remember,
elieved her. Seemed as if She break her
cart. Hadn't any folks, she SAID. Her n
>Were dead. She cooped up in a little heap
in the corner on the floor that night, and sat
crying all the night. 1t wasn't till nigh
morning that the other women could get a
y word out of her. IL / remember straight
we had an uncommonly rough lot of women
folks on that night l wou .dn't have put
her in among 'em. but there's no other way
never get quite used to that-shuttIng up a
young thing with an old one.
Well, so she was sent TO the house for
\birty days, and by and by she was back
ain. She came of her own accord that
PIE. Said she couldn't get anything TO do.
ms TO me she said she wanted honest
fk. Tney do say it once in while. And
Was pretty cold night She came for q
Ice to sleep. So after that we got pretty
Yell used 10 her, but mostly after she begun
ITO drink aud alter like the rest. Ii DON
take long Their own mothers wouldn {
know 'em mostly in three years or 50; less,
maybe as IL happens
\ Well, yes. Oar rule is: Come a fortnight
pd you 60 When one comes steady for two
eks, every night, then il i3 a case OF
Eraney. and we can send 'em TO the aims
use. But Doherty, she was pretty careful.
he grew smart as she grew worse. II she
OF taken up. it wasn't for a long pull
gever knew her in the house at the longest
5re than three months at a time. And
when she come TO loige she steered pretty
lear of the law-colning for a few nights
FOu see, and then of sgain on her own ways.
They're more afraid of the aims house than
hey are of hell.
SO she got TO be pretty old customer
always come 10 this station. | don't know
but that Eas my fault Once give her a
pair of my wife's shoes. Is was one January
morning. twelve below Zzro. Sue hadn't
any stockings, only pair OF old rub ubbers, and
her bare feet came through on TO the pave
ment, and it was pretty icy. / suppose