The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1901-11-09

An incident of the street car blockade
last week deserves more than passing
attention. The spectators in front OF
the City Hall were treated to an exhi-
bition that few would have missed.
The street car stopped suddenly just
before o'clock while the traffic was
very heavy and the streets were full
of people. Nearly in front of the City
Hall trolley wire was broken and it
fell to the ground and became entan-
gled with the wheels of a car noTthward
bound. Instantly the wire became red
hot from the overhead system clear to
the rails. The entire current was short
circuited by the fallen wire and the
cars were unable to get enough current
to move them.
There was considerable delay in get
ting the repair wagon of the street car
company to the scene of the trouble
Meanwhile the police took every pre-
caution to keep the deadly wire from
doing any further damage. The crowd
stood back and watched the glowing
wire with fascinated gaze Not often
has one a chance to see rs feet of red
hot wire dangling in the centre Of Main
Street.
AS soon as the wagon came up, the
electrician jumped out and with a large
pair of shears clipped the wire A
tremendous flash followed, but the cur
rent was restored to it's proper chan
nels and the cars all over the city be-
gan to move once more.
The dime novel has played an import
ant part in the history of juvenile crime
in the United States. 1t is not so often
that the theatre is to be blamed for
criminal suggestions. But it is cur
rently reported that Mrs Fisher, who
| has just been sent to Sherborn Prison
| for blackmail was inspired to the crime
| by a sensational play at a Worcester
theatre last winter. In fact the plot of
the play which suggested the crime
was almost identical with the details
which she had planned so far as the po-
lice can discover it.
| The attendants at the theatre recall
the fact tina. she showed a remarkable
! interest in this play and that she at
! tended every performance during the
entire week and the conclusion was in
evitable that the crime was suggested
by the melo-dramatic play with it's
highly colored suggestions.
| OF course a woman of this kind might
! have conceived the suggestion or the
impetus to commit the blackmail from
some other scource but this story, in
some way explains some of the feat
ures of the case that puzzled the public
mind. Mrs. Fisher was not a hardened
criminal; she was not in great need Of
money; she was not insane nor ire
sponsible. This method of getting mon
ey probably appealed to her as both
easy and theatrical.
| The champion billiard player of one
of Worcester's leading clubs isn't say
/ ing much about his ability to play the
game nowadays and the table on which
/ he used to sleep at the club house has
missed his presence and his faVorite
cue is covered with dust of a weeks
accumulation. A week ago he was
knocking the balls around in a careless
manner when one of his eliminates en-
tered the billiard room with a friend
! who was stranger to the champion.
The olubman proposed a game with
the champion and soon the balls were
clicking merrily as the champion rolled
up string after string of sizeable fig
ures. The clubman was too easy and
in a short time the champion had him
beaten to death. He tired of the game,
said 1t was no use and suggested they
call it off. The champion was feeling
fine and dandy and suggested that the
clubman take in his friend and he
would play the two of them for the rest
of the game The clubman said he was
too tired but perhaps the friend would
give the champion a go alone for the
rest Of the game. There were some
thing over 60 points between the two
scores and the champion had very few
buttons to move up to the end of his
string. He took on the friend and 1t
was the friends shot The balls were
in a bad position but the friend scored
on the first play and then he did things
to the ivory spheres. He chased them
all over the table with an artists
manipulation and when he laid down
his cue he had run out the string of 60.
The Worcester champion was beaten
on his own table for the first time and
explanations showed he had been up
against the amateur champion Of New
York who was in Worcester over night.
Now if anybody suggests billiards, he
wants to play casino.
If Clinton expects any kind of an at
tendance from Worcester at its polo
games, some arrangement should be
made whereby it would be possible to
get back to Worcester without having
to wait around an hour in the cold for
a car. There is one car which leaves
before the close of the game and an
other afterwards, unless a change has
been made Wednesday I took a girl
friend to the game and after the game
her raglan proved but slight protection
from the chill night air, as we had to
wait an hour for the car.
oEDMITC Tn 0pEM