The evening world. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1887-1931, 1894-09-25
MONTE CARLO BOATS.
Shell Game Workers Infest the
East 23d Street Ferry.
Patrons Of the Maspeth Night Races
Their Especial Prey.
Protesting, Respectable Passengers
Abused and Insulted.

Passengers who travel between this
city and Brooklyn by way Of the ferry
running between East TWEEN ty third street
and Broadway, Brooklyn. are bitterly
complaining Of the lawlessness which
is observed on board the ferry boats,
usually after dark.
1t Is claimed that gamblers have full
sway and work the unwary passengers
freely with the ancient but enticing
shell game. The harvest. 1t IL alleged,
has been abundantly satisfactory to the
gamblers since the Maspeth races have
been running, and no end of suckers
have fallen into their net
Last Saturday night, when several
passengers denounced the practice, a
big row was nearly precipitated. It
is said that as many as three shell
games were being operated in the
cabins of one of the ferry-boats. and
the gamblers received bets anywhere
from 10 cents to 500. and. of course, only
the cappers and the gamblers were the
winners.
When the deckhands were appealed
to they declined to interfere. but, on
the contrary. stood about and watched
the fleeing.
One OF the men who was a witness
to the disgraceful proceedings Saturday
night, Harris Barnord. a match i'm
porter, of 23l Pearl street, termed the
operations as positively an outrage and
an insult TO respectable law-abiding
citizens.
Il am loath to believe" said he to an
Evening s anin World, reporter today, that
are In the pay of the gamblers, but II
looks very much as II that state OF af-
fairs was true.
II came back from Maspeth to this
city last Saturday night about ll3O
o'clock. There was a big crowd Of peo-
pie on board many Of them late pas
sengers from the races. We had no
sooner left the Broadway dock in Brook
Ign when the gamblers flashed out their
shell-game boards. They laid the
boards on their knees and offered the
usual odds that man could not pick
out the shell covering the pea.
Il saw many OF the victims drawn on
by the cappers. for there were two or
three OF them to each game. I stood
and shouted to the men who were being
drawn Into the game to avoid the
swindlers and look out for their pocket
books.
This aroused the gamblers to anger,
and several OF the cappers surrounded
me was commanded to hold my
tongue or 1 would be thrown through
the cabin window
Other OF the respectable passengers
sympat hlzed with my effort to bring the
gamblers to time, but II grew so hot in
bodily harm.
a, But the gambling continued on just
the same until we reached this city.
Before reaching here | had appealed to
and Threatened the deckhands to stop
the shell game3. but to no purpose Even
when / declared that / would report
their conduct to the Company, they con-
tinued to watch the game and hugely
enjoyed the sport
Il don't believe that It would amount
to much TO personally inform the Com
pany. The Evening World" can stop
the nuisance.
ION leaving the boat. two men gave
me their names and said: Call on us II
you need any evidence
The names OF the men are f. L. Chi
chester, of ia East Seventy-frst street,
and l.. Buelgelsen. of 1861 Lexington
avenue.
The slips OF the East Twenty third
street ferry. which Is run by the New
York Ferry Company, are. on the New
York side, In the Eighteenth Police Pre-
cinct, or under Capt John Gallagher s
jurisdiction. Inspector Williams, In
whose district this Is. said this morn
Ing that he had never heard OF gamblers
working the shell game on the ferry
bonts. and that he would make an In
yestipa tIon