Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-09-23


The central guard house on the south sid,
OF louisiana avenue was early during the wal
used by the military and they co-operated t.
some extent with the old police force Of thu
city, then known as the Auxiliary Guard. Fol
long time company Of New Jersey troops
was CHARTERED here, and Lieut. John s. Coope,
commanded the military guard, while the late
Jno II. Guard commanded the Auxiliary Guard
having the late veteran policemen Ed McHenry
and W. II. Bright, who afterward went to
Wyoming, for heutenauts. The late Justice
Thomas c. Dom and the venerable Justice
Walter sat morning and evening to dispense
Justice, and often when nececessary there was
military attache present to watch proceedings
and assist In the administration OF justice, es-
pecially If the offense charged against the I'M
fortunate who had been run in by the police OF
the patrol guard was purely military one.
THE OLD GUARD HOUSE.
The old guard house quite large enough
for municipal purposes in time of peace, but in
war times was frequently too small. Especially
was this the case when attention was turned to
camp followers. pickpockets and bummers. and
the cells In the rear Of the building as well as
the dodgers rooms above were often SO crowded
rest. 1t has been said that military law is the
most elastic OF any, and numerous were the
cases when offenses not covered by statute OF
municipal regulation by the elasticity OF
the military law received punishment.
Pickpockets and thieves Of other description
were here in large numbers and through the
agency Of private detectives, Messrs. ]. II.
Wise and A Il. Allen, the Pinkerton agency,
then known as Z. ]. Allen, and detectives from
other cities employed BY the government the
guard house was from time to time filed with
them and haste had TO be made in the examina-
ton of suspects to prevent an overflow. With
this class Of cases it was the custom, when a
sufficient number had been corraled to mako a
parade, to send them out of the city.
PLAcARpED AND SENT AWAY.
The custom was at the appointed time to
bring such prisoners from the cells into the
office, then handcuff their hands behind their
backs place placards on their breast and back
labeled'Thief, ""Swindler, 'sRobber," HBeat, -
&c. and with drum and fife playing the "Rogues'
March" parade them along Pennsylvania
avenue and sometimes on other streets. march
ing them near the curb that they might be seen
to the B. and o. depot (theh the only one).
when they were placed on trains, and with the
admonition if caught again they would be more
severely dealt with, they were sent off.
THE PROVOST MARsMAL's OFFICE
military prison for several years, although for
state and other prisoners the Prescott House,
a double three-storied brick on the site now
occupied by the Gibson Bros. printing Office
(southeast corner of Pennsylvania avenue and
18th street,, was taken into service. Here the
provost marsh.fs Office was established and
there are many living who spent a few DAYS OF
weeks as prisoners in it. 1t was not always dis
graceful to have been a prisoner there, for
sueh was the condition of the public that a
trlhlng misunderstanding indiscreei
word, spoken, perhaps, in jest, would lead up
to an arrest and Imprisonment. Indeed. some
of the soldiery in the early days looked on the
population of the District as disloyal.
THE COLOR LINE.
Before the emancipation some Of the slave
holders of Maryland made efforts to recapture
their slaves who had come into the District and
ofttimes they and those who did the least in
aiding them would find themselves sojourners
at the Prescott. The colored race, who had not
yet been emancfpated, was not then regarded by
all the Union people or soldiery with favor. but
numbers schooled in the old abolition senti-
ments regarded the capture of runaway slaves
and indeed the least unfriendlv allusion TO the
negro as an act OF treason So extreme were
some soldiers and civilians that in a public
address President Lincoln was referred to as a
traitor because he had not taken the advanced
ground of the speaker who, by the way, a
clerk. While this the case with few some
referred to the President as more than human.
and in one instance fellow clerk with the one
above referred to spoke of him as the brother
of Christ, who would share with HIM His seat at
the right hand of the Father. With such ex-
IRENE sentiments, though held by but few, it
can readily be appreciated that with popula-
ton in which numbers were allied by ties of
consanguinity to families over the line that
there was friction and hard feeling, and some