Richland beacon., 1888-06-23
THE BUNCO MEMS WALK.
You Can See Them Any Day at tho
Post-Onice.
from the n. Y. SUM-


Bunco steerers are plying a lively
trade on Broadway, from Mail street to
Chambers. They work the simple, old
fashioned game openly and industri-
ously. There is police station in the
City Hall building. there are severa!
Park policemen in sight, and certain OF
the regular force patrol Broadway at all
hours. Superintendent Murray has had
detective making something OF on in
vestigation, but the swindlers are there
yet. Operations are confined almost
exclusively to the Park side Of the
street, and those who have been in q
position to notice the matter say that
eight men are concerned in it. They
work in pairs, according to the old style.
On Wednesday afternoon a Sun repOr.
ter went into one of the buildings be-
tween Park place and Murray street and
looked out OF the window Of a second
floor tenant. The tenant was with him
explaining how the swindlers were live
liest in the morning, and they had not
been in their post of observation full
minute when the tenant said:
"There's two Of them nOw!'
He pointed to two men walking to-
ward the Post Office. One was heavy,
comfortable looking fellow, and the
other slim and dark.
"The big fellow" said the tenant,
"does the tackling, and the other one fol-
lows up the stranger. That book you
see in his overcoat pocket is bank or
business directory. Hulloal there's q
man with q bag! I'll bet five dollars
to one they will tackle him. I've
watched those fellows too long not to
know their ways"
The man with a bag was elderly, and
plainly dressed. He had just crossed
Broadway, and was about to turn into
the Park. Sure enough the suspected
pair stopped in their walk and looked at
him. They consulted q moment, and
the big one set out after the man with
the bag while the other remained on the
sidewalk. The man with bag had got
half way to the City Hall when the big
fellow, by dint of running in o rounda-
bout way, appeared before him and ao-
costed him. The man with bag stopped
short, looked at the stranger, smiled
knowingly, said something, and went
on, whereat the big fellow looked back
at his companion, slapped his thigh and
laughed. They rejoined each other at
once. and went up towards Chambers
street. Nothing could have been cl ;aref
than their attempt to entrap tho man
with bag, and what they would have
done with him or where they would have
taken him are matters for interesting
conjecture.
"That has been the commonest kind
of an incident for six months" said the
tenant. "They frequently snare o VIC
tim, and not day passes but they are
at their work. We wrote to SupeIn-
tendent Murray about it, and believe
detective was sent down, but the de-
tective confined his attention to the
wrong side of the street. When We had
learned this we wrote again to the Su-
perintendent, telling him of the mistake,
but, so far as know, no attention was
paid to the letter."
If the police should make m effort to
get acquainted with the Broadway bunoo
steerers, they might find an interesting
open gambling game to investigate at
the same time, n game of dice throwing
INDUCED in by loafers of mature years.
The driver of mail wagon told re-
porter that the game is what is known
as trap"
"And it is trap" said he, smiling,
"for it is so complicated that it is hard
to learn, aud the chances are 30 much
against the player and in favor of the
banker. The bank passes on some sys.
TEN from one player to the other; so
that theoretically the chances are even
all around, but it don't come so in &C.
tual play. I've been driving here for
four years, and lately there isn't day
passes that a crowd Of those loafers don't
squat on the sidewalk and play trap
for two cents, or even one cent n crack.
As many as want to can play, and they
often get such crowd in and Watching
that the sidewalk is blockaded. l don't
know how those fellows make their
money to play, for when they are not
gambling here they are usually loafng
down in Theatre allev