The San Francisco call., 1898-03-20

Chief of Police Lees sent an order to Captain Whitman yesterday to detail two men at each of the poolrooms pat ronized by women, with instructions to secure the names of all the women who visited the places, and if they were seen there more than once to arrest them as habitues of the place and book them on a charge of vagrancy.
 Captain Whitman accordingly detailed Sergeant Martin to take squad of men with the object of carrying out the Chiefs instructions. The captain ac- companied the sergeant and his squad, and personally saw that two police of- ficers were stationed at the entrance to each of the bedrooms. A curious crowd followed the officers, and it became so large that it took all the efforts Of the officers to drive them away.
 The first place visited was a lodging house on Stockton street, above Mar ket. Then other places were visited, mostly common lodging houses or questionable repute on Market. Mason, Powell and Stockton streets. On Ellis street there were eight of these houses, and the last one visited was the "Old Sausalfto." on Ellis, between Mason and Powell.
 After all the men had been assigned to their respective places Captain Witt man said: We could make no arrests of the booksellers because we could not get them to sell us any tickets. They will sell to women only, but we will stop this business, though 1t should take all the men in my division. Any woman. no matter who she may be, who makes it a habit to frequent these nlaces will be arrested for Vagrancy. The husbands and brothers of these women ought to look after them. We shall see if a few arrests for vagrancy will not have the effect of calling the attention of the men to the fact that their wives and sisters are, possibly unknown to them, going to places where they ought not to go. A man who has a woman relative arrested TOT vagrancy is not likely to relish It, put it seems the only way to close up these resorts"
 If this plan of the police fails, there is another person who will try an en- tireIy different method of procedure Tn endeavoring to destroy the evil. It is Frank J. Kane secretary of the Society for the Prevention of Vice. Secretary Kane has become keenly interested in the proceedings, and if he can find that any women who frequent the poolfooInS have charge of minor children he Wlll apply to the Superior Court for letters of guardianship and remove the chil- dren on the ground that the mother is an unfit and improper person to nave their custody. He said yesterday:
 When read the article in The Call about women frequenting these pool rooms it suggested to me the ady1sa- bility of making an investigation of the environments of the children of these women. As there were no names men toned, and, of course, the reporter would be unlikely to know who they were. I thought I would bide my time and wait developments.
 T did not know such pitfalls for mar ried women, and, as The Call states. minor girls, existed in the city until l read 1t in that paper, and have been debating in my mind to-day whether a man could obtain admittance into these places. I would like to see personally who were there, and especially If any minor girls frequented the place. don't see why the law can be violated by women and not by men. It seems true that the police should be able to break up this poolroom gambling in the case of both sexes.
 "The practice Is more demorailz1ng in the case of women than of men. as outside of the demimonde class, which frequent the resorts, there are great many women with families, and l have