The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-01-15

DisreputabIe Women Indulge in the
Debauchery of the Pipe AIso-The Den
is Located on Lawrence Avenue Within
Half Block of Douglas-It is Sendins
Hundreds to Ruin.
Right In the heart Of Wichita, half a
block from Douglas avenue, there is a
heather den that is doing more mischief
than all the joints in the city put to-
gether.
1t is what is called an Opium Joint
md the police know it is there, and if
aot the whole outfit should be fired and
new set of officers put in their places
men who could see a mischief mill
when it is operated under their noses.
why people are afraid TO expose this
sutfit is an incomprehensible mystery
and an objectionable official crime. The
place has been in operation for some
tine, but its character was discovered
| 3y some physicians who went to visit
( Mrs. Anderson Gray's boy, who is very
stck with appendicitis, up stairs over
ghe place. It seems there is flue going
rom the alleged laundry up through the
room in question and il opens through
/ stove pipe hole into the room where
the boy is sick.
The number Of young people who pat
ronize the place is alarming and it IS
time that somebody should call halt
On this demOraliZing influence.
1t does not make much difference who
runs an opium joint, so far as the dam
nation it breeds is concerned, but il does
not help the establishment by being op-
Grated and managed by a heather
Chinese, as this one is, aided by one OF
American birth, parentage and color.
Very few Of the good people know the
extent of the vice Of opium smoking.
A pipe is filled and the victim squats
down beside it or lies on a rug or couch.
He puts the stem in his mouth and
draws in the poison. Every puff is a
fairy dream and in a few minutes ne is
In the land Of delight. All the pleas
ures of the world pass in review before
him. He sees castles and Elisum fields
In the rising smoke. He sees fair wo-
men in all fantastic forms dancing in
the vapOr poison that clouds and, en-
circles his brain. He might feel himself
in the mad whirl Of Coney Island beach
one moment and the next he basks in
the gaiety Of a Paris theatre or is pill
Ing up millions at the tables of Monte
Carlo. In all stages of the development
Of the jag he imagineS himself rolling
In wealth, compared to which the gold
OF Croseus was but a misery pittance.
wear away all the miseries of life follow
in the route Of former pleasures. The
victim goes from one fanciful extreme to
the other and he wears out the remain
der Of his debauCh in WearSOme weak
ness and horrible dreaming stupidity.
The moment a man puts his lips to the
stem Of an opium pipe he yields an man.
hood and gives up all individuality. He
is nothing any more but a duh, weak
slave. He retains. however, a peculiar
faculty and that is the faculty of cum
ming. All this faculty is exercised in
the direction Of getting another jag on
without the police knowing it. A man
Of honor in every day. life will lie, steal
and deceive to reach the pipe. One in
stance shows that a man addicted to a
habit of this kind stole a coat from a
friend, sold it for enough to get himself
under the influence of the drug and
when the jag wore off he came stealing
back and acknowledged himself to be a
thief. This is how ii acts. There is no
fight in an opium drunk, but man
loses all his Self-reSpect if he continues
and continue he will, until he is an OBJ
ject to be pitied and despised-a wan
derer, a sneak and a vagabOnd. This is
the condition that opium smoking leads
to; the end is an early grave in the pot
ter's field, with some 10 pity his fate
but none to mourn his death.
No decent women go TO the Wichita
opium joint. SO far, but it has a number
Of prostitutes Of the lowest order among
its patrons. They reVel in the drug and
IUissad 10 see them in a. 1ny and horror
rs the pleasure drea- vanish and are
succeeded by the snakes and torments
of the Soldering up process. If il con-
tinuaS to DO business there is no doubt
but what time viii see the establish
ment patrOuiZad by other women and
H. L Il
and pain that il does not now compre-
bend.
At present some very swell young men
are patrons Of the dive and il is only a
question Of a few months until they viii
bring disgrace to their parents, Tela-
tives and friends. There are two broth
ers, sons Of q popular woman, who are
now confirmed opium smokers and their
secret is practically exposed. The
mother knows not of il yet, but when
she does ii Will so through her heart
like a barbed steel The Eagle learned
that one prominent officer of the metro
politan police government goes there.
but his position is such that il would
not do TO expose him on mere report. He
{ Id a certain woman here in Wichita
that he Gi3 patTOniZe the joint and hit
the pipe and solicited her 10 do the
same thiur. which she refused. She in
turn. asked him why he did not sup
press such great evil and he replied
that there was no law for il, and asked
her again TO Try the habit.
The man who runs the place is a
Chinaman and he is married 10 a white
woman.
A reporter for the Eagle went 10 the
place last night, pretending to be a
seeker after wisdom and delight, and
the following Is his story:
on entering the door, being the sec
ond door south Of the alley running par
allel with William and Douglas ave
nues. on South Lawrence aVenue-NO.
12l-iD front Of which is a sign extend
ing across the sidewalk, on which is
printed Chinese Laundry" the report
er was met by a woman wearing a sky
blue fvock. cut after the pattern Of
twenty years ago, with extreme low cut
R,ck and short sleeves.
What can I do for YOU" was the
question asked 0 fthe reporter.
Inamedia tely the reporter put on an
expression resembling a dying calf in
the last stages Of being locoed and with
his hand on his head said:
''Oh, dear. where is John? Ny head
has been killing me for almost three
weeks" which was a fact, though the
expression given would make il far more
serious
"Oh, seer' said the woman, you
mean Lee. Il VIII stop the headache
every tine and keep il stopped. too
Have you ever tried it?" asked the