The Cecil Whig., 1885-07-04
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| HORRIBLE REVELATIONS,
The way led US along filthy street,
| odorous even, though covered with snow,
| Tall tenements walled us in, and it ap-
peared as though the houses had been
filled to the brim with people, and were
running over into the street. "Any
house III do" said the detective; "let's
go in here"
The hall was as dark as tunnel, and
its floor was thick with mud The dc.
tective pushed open the first door. A
dense cloud of gray and sickening smoke
rolled oat into the hall, and through it
the reporter saw the outlines of thirty or
forty persons. Their figures came grad
ually out through the hazy atmosphere
as the VISITORS eyes accustomed them
selves to the light. What sight it was;
Thirty men sat shoulder to shoulder on
half dozen, short, pine benches. Ten
| women were scattered among them, The
men were what are known as "bums."
Manly gallantry has not permitted the
| application of any word for woman when
they reach that pass. Men and women
were in rags. One man had no shirt un-
der his vest. Five women were bare
headed, and all the eyes were blear. The
light had gone from the spark of intel
lect in every countenance, and the few
that troubled themselves to raise their
heads to see who entered lifted mere
dead and dull masks, as expressionless
and stupid as those of idiots.
| THE NEXT TO THE LAST STAGE.
Those men have reached the next to
the last stage of tramp existence. Those
women show you what becomes of the
great majority of fallen girls. 1t costs
two cents to occupy seat in there and
drink beer until midnight. After that
all who have not another two cents to
pay for a chance to sleepuntil morning
must turn out into the streets and sleep
in doorways, areas and wagons.
In the hallway one could just distin-
guish through the darkness the forms OF
women pressing their scanty garments
under their folded arms and watching
the front door in the hope that some
wretch who would lend them two cents
happen along. The detective pushed
onward. He opened the next door, He
went up flight after flight of stairs, along
one hallway after another. opening the
doors and pausing in each of them an
instant. The same shocking, sckening
sight was presented at each new halting
place. There were the men and women,
either on chairs, On movable benches, or
ON settees around the walls, passing the
can or jug around, smoking clay pipes or
nodding stupidiy under the influence of
the secondhand drink. l was somking
to offset the ordor of these pest rooms,
One swollen-fa faced young woman begged
me, fol the love of my Creator, to bite
off the end of my cigar and give it to
her to chew. Another staggered to her
feet and pleaded with me to give her two
cents. Her companion, a villainous-
looking tramp, cursed her and bade her
''shut up" She did rot obey him, and
he struck her in the breast and doubled
her up upon the bench. "Think of it."
said the detective; "there is not any,
thing so desperate, Or mean, or foul, that
these creatures would not do for two
cents. They are not dangerous, how
ever. They do nothing worse than pill
fer. BuS it is only because energy, am
bition and, perhaps, even hope, have left
them"
81 was thinking" said |, ''of the cosy
village cottages, the well-appointed city
homes and the picturesque farm houses
these women may have come from. 1
was thinking how well it is that their
mothers could not have dreamed that
this could have come to pass. They
would have throttled the babes in the
cradIes.'
Once again we had reached the first
floor. l asked the detective how many
people he supposed We had seen in that
house. He figured it at thirteen rooms
: and thirty in room. "But," he added
chats only half of en-" saw no mis-
behavior other than have described,
but the detective told me that there was
no display of person, no shameless act
and no exhibition of barbaric unclean.
ness that was not to be seen in these
beer dens.
FROM sPLENDOR TO sQUALoR.
3 l saw among all the other courtesant
who sunk below the depths of their orig.
inal vocation a spirited woman, who, q
few years ago. kept stylish palace ol
vice in one of the fashionable avenues
up town. She is paralyzed now, and hal
to be helped on and off the bench when
ever she desires to move. She never
3 leaves the filthy beer den | saw her in
, Some of the outcasts that knew her il
the height of her former grandeur now
divide their pennies with her and kecI
her supplied with beer DRAWINGS.
GLOW do these people reach this con
dition ?" l inquired.
n "WelL" said the detective, "the mel
f resolve to do without work. They be
e come tramps, thieves, gamblers, swim
Ldlers or burglars. In time, they los,
!, health and spirits, and only liquor at
o tracts them. For time after they hav'
$ broken down they tGSSnn into the station
S houses only in the evenSng and swea
they never can bring themselves to visi
i these dens. But it is only question o
r | a little while. AS for the women, the,
q loose their freshness and their health
!, Dissipation racks them. They cease t,
q be attractive. They get discouraged ant
take to bummlng and sleeping in tn,
stations. Then comes this stage; thel
the charity hospital OF the almshous
n and the grave. J. Z. r.
Avery Good Dog About Railroad.
S From the Chicago Herald.
"What breed is your dos?"