New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-10-07
FOLLOWERS OF ANANIIS.
CLUB IN THE TENDERIOIN WHOSE MEMBERS
VIE WITH EACH OTHER IN MANIFEST
FALSEIOOD

One Of the latest products OF the restless Tender
loin district is an Ananias Club. The club meets at
OF the larger uptown hotels whenever the usual
clique gets together. As may be Judged from the
name. the organization Is pledged TO the display
OF manifest unruths The club Is comparatively
A new organization. but the stories that have been
told at some of its sessions show plainly that many
OF the members eligible for admission 70 such
an organization long before the club was formed
To Join the club man must be an ingenious lar
Ta.es OF travel. scientific discoveries and stories
OF historical research predominant Woe to the
who springs story that does not smack OF
originality Lately the meetings have assumed n
sort of progressive euchre appearance. The club
had leather medal struck of which was presented
to the champion liar. The medal bore on Its face
a stamped reproduction of Ananias's features
While 1t may not have been good likeness. the
fidelity to feature was youched for by "A member
of the organization who b!andly professed to have
a profile of Ananias done in petr1ed sat. and
handed down to him through history by succeeding
generations.
Some Of the stories told worth repeating. At
a recent session held in the cafe OF the Hotel
brunswick there fun attendance. The man
who the medal at time Judge OF the
United States Federal Court and a noted traveller
He telling story as follows:
Some time ago | travelling in South
America. | stopped at a hotel In one of the inland
cities and as / wanted to rise easily | asked the
landlord TO have me Weakened at O'Clock In the
morning. ! asked him If he had an alarm clock
He startled me by saying that he did not but
that he had a lot OF rsttlesnakes trained to wake
people. All you had TO do to lie down and at
the designated hour the snake let loose his rattle
and kept 1t up until you wakened. II struck
me as an odd arrangement. but l said that II 1t
was all right | would stand IL. Accordingly. he
put a snake In my room. and after the newness Of
the thing wore of | fell asleep. | WAS Weakened
abou, O'Clock by a great racket In the room
Through the dim light could make out struggle
that was taking place in the room but could only
discern man. When made the situation out
clearly | found that native thief had entered
my room. The snake had Immediately coiled IT.
self around his throat. and was slowly strangl!rg
him. white It violently It's rattle for the
police"
A dead silence settled over the little group None
but a brave man would have ventured TO open
his mouth after that There one, however.
that did dare and his narrative was as follows:
the farm In Vermont dropped my gold watch and
chain on the grass. Before / had time 10 pick II
swallowed It. Last week 1 was home again ana
the calf now grown 10 COW, was TO be Killed.
| had a grudge agansi 1t for The loss o. my Rand
some gold watch and went out 10 see the eNecu-
ton In cutting up the cow after the killing the
watch was found. Imagine my surprise when !
found that II Was perfectly intact running all
right and correct within few seconds An invest-
CATION revealed the fact that In swallowing the
watch the animal had allowed II To become fastened
between It's lungs. 1t was so fixed that each tine
the animal breathed. the watch being stem
winder, the knob got A twich and this kept 1t
animal kept 1t well oiled ana preserved"
There was another dead silence; Then Slowly ne
out 4 word handed II 10 the last speaker. Suddenly
a cry of establishment broke from the lips OF one
The face Of Ananias had turned green.