The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1900-08-27
A CHINK IN A TRAP.
Amusing Experience of the
Cousins Sing After a
Night Of It.

There was somewhat of a conmotion
about two o'clock this morning in the
vicinity of the laundry run by Charlie
Sing and Steve Sing, his cousin, at No.
5o4 Grove street
The Cousins Sing spent yesterday after
noon and evening possibly at the fan tan
tables of Chinatown, New York. regaling
themselves occasionally with chop suey,
rodent fricasee and other Chinese
delicacies and did not return home
until the wee smaa' hours Charlie
Sing inserted the key of his door deftly
into the lock, but somehow the lock re-
fused to work. Charlie worked at the key
and then Steve took hand. Still the key
refused to turn First one and then the
other yanked at 1t, meanwhile indulging
in polite Chinese cuss words.
Finally with an unusual effort and an ex-
clamation that even in Chinese sound
ed blasphemous, Charlie gave the key
yank that broke 1t short off Things were
getting desperate. Finally Charlie climbed
up on Steve's shoulders, tore away the
wire netting from over the
transom and pushed it open.
He attempted to crawl through
but got stuck in the middle. A pair of
/ arms were working wildly on the inside
of the laundry, while a pair of legs en-
cased loosely in purple linen were doing
all sorts of lively stunts in the air out
side. The air was kicked full of holes
with a pair of Chinese wooden shoes
Vainly the Chinaman tried to extricate
himself from his jammed position. Steve
also grew excited. He was afraid to call
! a policeman for fear he'd take Charlie
and him for burglars, and he was afraid
that a blue coat would heave in sight.
Suddenly there was a great crash.
One of the imprisoned mans
wooden shoes shot through the big pane
| of glass in the door. The noise alarmed
| the neighborhood, and men, women and
children came rushing to street windows,
and beholding the kicking legs of the
Chinaman protruding from the transom
over the laundry door, with the excited
Steve trying to catch them in an effort to
pull his cousin out of the hole he was in,
set up all sorts of shouts, such as:-
"Burglarsi''
'Thievesp'
sMurderr
tpolicei"
| Patrolmen Galway and Pangborn came
rushing upon the scene. At the sight of
| the Chinaman climbing over the transom
| they thought him sure enough burglar,
| perhaps a Boxer with murderous designs
on a Chinese Christian. The noise and
| the general excitement caused Charlie to
| make a supreme effort to relase himself.
He fell inside and darting into a rear
room hastily reappeared with a hatchet
and beat the door open.
| Meanwhile Steve was having a desper-
ate time Of it trying to explain the cir
cumstances. He talks but little English.
Waving his hand wildly he shouted
I'VE no thiefs We Chalie Sieve
| Sing. Own laundry Dloor kley
bloke. No open dloor. Charlie he climb
| inside
| The officers themselves were partially
dazed as Charlie was battering away with
| the Ratchet at the lock of the door. He
could talk better English than his cousin.
The door finally yielded and Charlie step
| ped out. He explained the trouble to the
satisfaction of the policemen, both of
whom recognized him as one who runs the
| laundry.