St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-07-26
VLLIAN0US AND NASTY.
The Chapter of a Day in Police Court
Records.

Records.
Sexual Sinners, Gamblers, a Crank, Bar
bara Reynolds, Etc.
The hot weather seems to have an eruptive
influence on petty crime, or else as pretty
widely accredited school of philosophy
teaches, vice like certain organic diseases
comes in the nature of an epidemic an d
stays until it has run its full period. The
heat in the police court yesterday was at a
boiling point and the crowd was fearful,
while the stencil was strong enough to stop a
clock. Tom O'Brien, the genial assistant
city attorney, stood it as long as he could,
but it finally foored him and he was COM
PEELED to call at drug store and seek relief
in chloride of lime.
The case attracting the most people to the
court room was that of the six sports who
were caught in the act of playing with the
tiger at Robert street gambling house.
The knights of the green baize answered to
the names of John Pelot, the keeper, VIM.
Wilson, Andrew Philip, alias handsome
Charley, VIM. Schines, j. w. Wilson and
James Walker. They all pleaded guilty and
were fined s25 each.
There is something radically wrong in a
system of government that drags into the
quagmire of prostitution young and tender
girls, and the question of how to deal with
this most monstrous of social vices is becom-
ing day by day of more vital importance.
Hardly day passes but one or more young
girls are dragged into the police court
to testify by their presence to the
extent of this burning blister of shame on
the fair fame of the city. Yesterday Agnes
Murphy and Johanna Reagen, two young
girls, were the witnesses; their paramours
were Thomas Meedham and Chas. Croffuth,
and they were arrested while trying to gain
admittance to one of the down town hotels.
The men were fined $40 or ten days, and
the two girls were committed for thirty days
each.
Another almost similar case, only that the
parties were older, was presented in the APP
pearance of Mrs. Middleton, Ellen Flaming
ton and man giving the name of Tom
Flannington. The women are said
to be strumpets, and the sweet
scented gang were yanked from a
room in the vicinity of Seven corners. Their
cases were disposed Of the same as the others.
Still another case was that of Mrs. Johnson
she was charged with street walking, but she
denied the charge and explained that she
was looking for her husband when the officer
run her in. She was fined $40.
John Mcintosh, the crank who related a
blood curdling story about the murder of a
woman and who asked to be locked up and
then tried to hang himself, was arraigned on
the charge of vagrancy. He presented a most
wOe-begone spectacle and the poor wretch
was committed for thirty days.
Joe Wick, young idea who has commence
ed to sport a little early even for this fast
age, was charged with stealing snide chain.
The trinket was worth about ten cents, and
the court continued the case in order to
learn something of the lads character.
Mike Kennedy, q tony looking blonde
with nice moustache, and attired in a mob
by looking suit of gray, was charged with
bastardy, the complaining witness being a
plump little damsel named Mary Ehrke. Mr..
McCafferty appeared for the girl, and Mr..
Thos. D. O'Brien represented the defendant.
Considerable testimony was taken, with the
view of making it out that the girl had pur-
sued the accused and forced her fayors upon
him, while he also tried to prove that she
had bestowed her charms promiscuously. The
case was partially tried and continued until
to- day.
The case of Barbara Reynolds, the colored
damsel who slashed her lover with a razor
because he was too sweet on Ellen Gilmore,
a white woman, resulted in no new develop
ments Barbara was held to the grand jury
and the Gilmore woman was sent up for
thirty days, while Williams, the gay
Lothario, was discharged, the court
considering that between the two women he
had trouble enough.
The case of G.. c. Smith, the brakeman on
the Milwaukee Short Line who struck Jacob
Ermentrout with poker because he was
smoking cigar on the train, was next dis
posed of. The testimony was conclusive, so
far as the assault went, and he was held to
the grand jury.
In addition to the cases named a number
of vags, DRINKS and disorderly cases were
disposed of, none of which, however, were
aggravated.