The herald., 1895-09-14
A STORY OF CHINATOWN
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| cine Arena PubliSnlng company uA'
| issued story by Harry NJ. johnson,
called Edith, a Story of Chinatown. the
scenes of which are laid on Alameds
street in this city. The story is not a
great one, but it carries lesson. The
preface to the tale is, however, worthy
the attention of the Los Angeles public
and the city council and police com mis-
sioners. as it gives an idea OF the I'M
preston made on eastern people by our
criminally lax methods of dealing with
"ths fence and what it emphasizes.
The authors introduction to his book is
given beneath.)
The little story that appears in the fol-
lowing pages was not written Tor the pur-
pose OF pam pering the depraved tastes of a
certain class of book readers who crave
sensational literature. 1t was upon the
theory that ''if we could see ourselves as
others see us'' good would result, that
the story was written; that II the resi-
dents of the largest Pacific slope cities
could be brought to realize .he shocking
condition of the moral atmosphere OF
their communities, they would not be
slow in mending the existing state of al.
fairs, which has been of such long stand
ing that, through its very familiarity. 1t
has lost it's hidsousness to native.born
1t was upon the occasion of the writer's
first visit TO Chinatown. Los Angeles,
that the material for the little tale was
gathered He was tenderfoot in the far
west. and the conditions found on Ala
media street were a shocking surprise.
The author was impressed with wonder
that the valiant modern crusaders who
welded pen and pencil had not long
since turned their effective batteries upon
the iniuuitous conditions to be found
there.
The facts as presented in the story have
not been exaggerated in the least-the
picture has not been overdrawn. In tho
city of Los Angeles one may search the
municipal. statute books in vain for legis-
lation calculated to suppress or control
this vice. the traffic that in all civil
ized centers of life is considered a moral
crime, and in most communities is
statutory offense, is wholly ignored
in the larger cities of the golden
west, and consequently thrives bevond
wonder of residents of better regulated
eastern cities.
While the story deals only with Los An
geles, the conditions are manifoldly worse
in that part OF San Francisco S Chinatown
known as Du Pont street. Probably in
no city in the United States does vice
the social evil-thrive as it does within
the Golden Gates of this western metrop-
Uis.
Among the fellow travellers of the writer
on the homeward bound trip was a resi-
dent of San Francisco, a man attired in
striped raiment of the "loudest" type
and wearing a sparkling shirt stud of the
prodigious proportions so suggestive OF
paste. On one occasion the conversation
among the party of gentlemen gathered
in the smoking compartment OF the Pull
man turned upon the social conditions
existing upon the coast. In the course
of tho discussion he of the striped clothes
proudly stated that NO city in the Union
would compare with Frisco in life and
sport from the hour of midnight to the
break of dawn. 1t is needless to state
that life and sport" as understood by
the man of the paste pin, are synonymous
with what idight be. perhaps inelegantly
but expressively. termed rotten immoral
ltv and licentiousness.
Chinatown bears the ouium of harboring
the infamous cribs" the Chinese are
not responsible for their existence or sup
port. While the inmates are mainly
French or Spanish girls with fair pro-
portion OF daughters of America and
other nationalities), upon Americans
mainly lie the dishonor and shame of
perpetuating these hell holes. Native
Horn CslifornIans or the adopted sons OF
the st ate who have drifted in from the
east constitute the bulk of the patrons
of the "cribs.'
The old cam paign cry, Chinese need not
apply" might still be heard from the lips
of the pnfortunates who are on sale at the
"cribs, " should the almond eyed denizen
of Chinatown presume to spend his
money in this section of the town.
The cribs are located in Chinatown and
constitute a part of that section of the
city both in San Francisco and Los An
geles, but are not patronized by the Chi
nese; the inmates as rule consioei it
"debasing" to receive Chinese patron
age, and the policeman on the beat told
the writer tnat he never knew of but two
or three instances where the girls would
take the Chinaman's money. They are
located in Chinatown principally for the
reason that it is the meanest section of
the city. and lawlessness and immortality
naturally gravitate to such localities and
away from clean surroundings and clear
moral atmosphere.
The fact, however, that the cribs -four
ish and carry on their disgraceful traffic
in the most untrammaled manner. yea
even under the protection of the law in
a certain measure, is a disgrace to the
community as a whole and must be laid
at the door OF every respectable citizen
who has a vote that be can cast at the
ballot box and voice in the conduct OF
the affairs of his city.
HARRY NJ. JOHNSON.