El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1899-04-29

For little day the city of New York
Is the haven where Jack Tar, in the
words of the prayer book, would be-
where he most uproariosuly would
! be. The soft, scented winds of the
tropics, the languishing splendors of
the East are as gall and wormwood
compared with the opulent joys that
await him here. For a brief time
Jack is enjoying that rare ecstasy of
playing the part of the bone over
which two dogs are fighting. 1t won't
| last long. Sooner or later the bone
will be swallowed, but even the
process of being swallowed and di-
gested, when literally accomplished
with grog, is not altogether unpleasant
Anyway, the able seaman gets accli-
mated to that sort of thing. says the
New York Press.
The United States statute which saws
that it shall not be lawful to pay any
seaman wages in advance of the time
he has earned them is primarily re-
sponsible for the house parties which
are being given now without ceasing
or charge in this haven. The board
ing house keepers are giving the house
parties-they say the revel will be
IL
be Jack, but he doesn't know that vet.
The new law was framed for the
purpose of discriminating the sailors
boarding house keeper. Along the
river front and in Cherry street he is
not called boarding house keeper.
"Crimp" is the terse, easily handled
name which is applied to him, and
"crimping' is the art which he prac-
tees on the seaman. 1t is simply a
process of keeping him habitually in
pawn. A little tobacco, some rum and
a bunk are the principal ingredients
required. Heretofore the "crimpine"
business has been both remunerative
and without risk. When Jack came
ashore with a tropical thirst and I'M
tainted with lucre the crimp's place
was the only one to which he could
carry his thirst and have it treated
without the annoyance of paving for
the treatments as fast as they came.
The fact that he paid about three
times as much in the e1a1 for the treat
ment did not trouble him. 1t was as
nothing to thirst unsoothed.
And the 'crimp" went even further:
he provided lodgings and a bunk where
the tropical thirst might rest and re-
cuperate, and when it had reached
that stage where a sea voyage was
urgently prescribed he fitted out the
able seaman with boots and wooIens
and oilskins and all the trappings for
long journey, and he charged the
same rates as he had for the thirst
treatment which had made the outfit
necessary. He received his pay from
the agents who shipped the able sea-
men, anal who, in turn, dtHucted if
from the seaman's wages of SIS a
month. Thus it happened frequently
that a nine-day's drunk cost Jack
nine months before the mast. The
new law makes it impossible for the
"crimp" to levy on more than one
month Of sailors wages. AS the en-
tertainment and the oilskins which he
has provided frequently amount 10
fifty or sixty dollars, according to the
crimp's own system of philanthropy.
it can be seen readily what a grievous
blow the new statute dealt TO his
profit. Obviously something had to
be done. The crimp turned to Jack
as the most likely specimen You have
been under the grinding heel or capital
long enough" they said to hinr. CAS-
sert your manhood and yorr rights.
Demand $50 a month and Hrn't You
ship until you get it. We will stand