Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-09-02
GAMBLING AT OSTEND.
1t Is the Rendezvous for the Worlds
High Life in Summer Time.

High Life in Summer Time.
Correspondence of the Chicago Record.
Had the tower of Babel been built upon
the site occupied by the queen of watering
places" by which name Ostend Is now
known, the confusion of tongues could not
have been greater. The throng that crowds
the magnificent promenade and fills the
spacious Kursall at this moment Is COM
posed Of all colors, races and natonalities.
for OStend has rapidly become the rendeZ-
vous of the worlds high life. the summer
Monte Carlo. Natural beauty is, of course,
lacking. None of the seaside places along
the North sea coast of France. Belgium
and Holland has natural attractions be-
yond the sea itself and the splendid almost
uninterrupted stretch of smooth, firm
sand.
Before long there will be but one grand
line of sea walls and promenades from
Dunkirk. on the SOUTH to Scheveningen, on
the north. The line is already nearly con-
tlnuous from Newport, on the Belgian
coast, to Heyst. between which we have
Mariakerke, Ostend Wenduyne Coz, Blan-
kerbergh, all 1ourishing. all offering at
fractions. all extremely healthfu, all af
fordng excellent bathing; and yet Ostend
will always remain unexcelled. 1t is Paris,
| Berlin. London and New York, all by the
sea, and unsurpassed in the brlliancy and
lavishness of its visitors.
Hither feminine beauty comes from the
north, south. east and west, to be admired,
! to be flattered. to make conauests hasten
| ing to Monte Carlo in the winter season to
| make the same gorgeous display. There
are baronesses, duchesses, princesscs.
courted and admired by men of title and
wealth. With every year the display in
creases, until Ostend has come to be called
the northern rival of Monte Carlo.
All this is due to the magnetic attraction
of the gambling clubs. where all nations.
types, titles and conditions of the gay
world cOngresate around the tables where
tens of thousands of francs change hands
every hour. There are hosts of American
men and women, some losing some win
n ng. some indifferently. others flushed
with excitement: while others sit patiently
at the tables, working out a system with
logged persistency.
Just recently Ostend has been shaken to
its foundation. but the shock has passed
and the hotel propretors breathe freely
again. The Belgian parliament began an
agitation against gambling. and with
Stroke closed all the low public gambling
dens, that We're a scourge t. the country.
At one time it was feared that Ostend and
Spa would be ruined by tie closing of all
their gambling establishments, but the gov
eminent compromised and Ostend and Spa
We're allowed to continue the Saminl, under
the auspices of private clubs, constituted
under the most rigid bylaws and under
the constant surveillance of the mtnicipali-
ties, the police and the government.
So the transient tourist, known here as
the "trpper,' unless he stops at one of the
first hotels, can take part IN the PERM
cious sport: he cannot even be tempted, for
unless he decides to remain at least three
days he cannot gain access To the clubs
nor can he even visit the rooms to have a
look at their appointments No one may
cross the threshold but duly elected MEM
Der of the club. A man living in Ostend
has to go to Spa to gamble, and vice versa
and so the clubs called ''cercles des
strangers Every visitor wishing to gam
BILE has to present himself as candidate
for membership, be elected and nav the en-
trance fee of 20 francs (SD. In forty-eight
ia ha Al h.
admission card sent him, and from that
time he may lose as much money over the
tables as he chooses. If. however he has
had the foresight to stop at one of the first
hotels. such the Continental. PLACE
Ocean or Splendid. he is passed through
quickly, and may participate in roulette or
rouge -et-nOir' the evening of the day of
his arrival.
l went through the formalities Of becom-
ing a member of the Cercle International
des strangers. In order to better Judge Of
the gambling. 1t is significant that where
as the municipality demands fixed tax
from the club of 100 francs for every mem
Der admitted the club accepts The members
for 20 francs. paying the other 80 itself
While no exception whatever may be taken
to the fairness of the game the club man
ayers know that ninety-nine out of every
hundred members will play recklessly In
the three months season last wear the club
l entered last Saturday night cleared 600
oco francs net after paying to the munich
pality fixed tax of 100000 francs
one EnSnShman whom l noticed partic-
ularly. man past middle age sat at the
roulette table. with continual contemp-
tuous sheer on his face, if the paltry 100
and 5oO-franc notes staked were beneath
his notice. He threw 10O0-franc notes on
the table in rapid succession and when he
had lost ten quietly took out a crumpled
check for f4OO, asked for change and began
again. His face never altered he smoked
his cigar quietly, passed jokes with his
neighbors, and never WINGED as the crou-
piers pulled In his counters to the tune Of
500, $500 and $500 at a time At times ne
won. but all his winnings were staked
again. and left him there at i O'Clock in
the morning as fresh and calm as when he
had started.
There were young Englishwomen who
had never seen roulette table, with their
fathers and mothers, flushed with excite
ment as they were told when and where
and how to stake few pounds. There
were boys of barely twenty-one badly at
tackled by the fever. and losing all they
systems for all they were worth, and the
Americans present-and some were from
Chicago-were in the thick Of 1t ALL
At the Cercle Prive du Kursaal the gam
ing is little quieter, the animation much
less As for the Kursaal ITSELF toilets are
aglare and jewels ablaze. At the dance in
the evening the dowagers parade their
marriageable daughters to the strains Of
Strauss waltzes, while the gilded youth
look on, admire, and from time to time
pluck up sufficient courage to ask WaIfx
from some young woman whose dowrage
IS known to be substantial.
The Ostend Kursaal is one of the finest
and most comfortably appointed of any in