Evening star., 1901-04-27

Ole poker coter1eS IN this town composed
exclusively of women. and there is many
a woman pokerfst walking around on this
fine spring afternoon in her last seasons
spring costume because OF the loss of her
regular fund for apparel at the insidious
game Of draw.
The bridge whist game for stifr stakes
In the rich home is bad enough. but whether
it is more harmful in its effects upon its
among them-than the respectable middle
class fatters poker game Is open to grave
question.
New York's Police Courts.
There's no use in giving up good money
to take in a variety show in this mans
town as long as it doesn't cost anything
to visit New York police court" remark
ed a discerning visitor from up the state
the other day.
And he spoke by the book. New York
police courts are funny. The magistrates
are funny. The tipstaffs are funny. All
of the police court officers are funny And
the prisoners themselves are funny.
A clerk in a banking house was up be-
fore one of the magistrates one morning
last week. accused of having threatened
to beat his wife. The prisoner was a big
brawny, wel-dressed man. He denied hav
inF threatened to "bif'' the wife of his
bosom, but his mother-in-law chimed in
stTenuously. and the magistrate shut the
man up and convicted him out of hand.
sentencing him to thirty days on the
island, without the alternative of a fine.
As the man was being led back by
colossal cop his rage over having been
convicted and sentenced In such an Off
hand fashion mastered him for moment.
He clenched his fist and shook 1t at his
triumphantly smiling mother-in-law across
the room. The magistrate saw this move.
Hey, there, you, none O. that he yelled
at the prisoner.
None O. that, youser echoed the gigan-
tic cop, vigorously shaking the prisoner by
his two shoulders and placing his knee in
the small Of the prisoners back.
Soak him. Toni shouted the ma gistrate
from the bench to the policeman. Soak
him good! He's a wife beater! Soak him
you give him!
Whereupon the big copper hauled off and
smashed the prisoner right on the mouth
with his great fist. and the prisoner fell up
against the back of the police court
stunned.
That's right, Tom" said the magistrate.
"He needed soaktn', that one did. Now
take him back"
If there wasn't rich and rare humor In
this the writer hereof would like to know
why not.
A Precocious Prisoner.
The funny prisoners In the New York po-
lice courts are very numerous One of
them aged eleven, was committed to the
care Of the Children's Society by magis-
trate the other afternoon. The boy was
something under four feet in height, but
he had enough precocious devfltry in his
weazened little face to give Lombroso mat
ter for a fat volume. The eleven-year-old
had record. it seemed, extending back to
his sixth year, as a pickpocket, a second
story worker and all-around porch climber,
''moll-buzzer'-a grabber Of womens
pocketbooks, that is-a hotel CRATER. and
50 on. The expression Of mingled wrath.
derision and modification with which he
regarded the magistrate when the latter
announced that he should be delivered over
to the Children's Society was immense.
''Say,' he said to the magistrate. with
horizontal movement of his hand. "is youse
deity. Bud? Wot do youse t'ink I wants
wit de kids outfit? De straight game f'r
mine. see? SEN me t de place Were dey
MARBLES twicet, an let it go at dat Un'-
stan'r'
THE place where they warble twice?"
said the magistrate, wonderingly. as he
rose to look over at the wise infant. Now.
what do you mean by that?'
"Aw youse is slow" replied the prodigy
in crime. "Sing Sing-dat's Were mean
Wot dyouse t'ink wants wit joint like
de kids play house? Me play! Ha, ha!
Aw, back t de gaswoiks!"
At this point. however, the young man
was tucked under one Of the court officers
arms and packed out Of the room, strug-
Cling and landing vicious kicks on the po-
liceman's stomach.
. A hobo. picked up on the street for beg
ging, was sent to the island for three
months few days ago.
Objected to the Rain.
"Your honor" said the hobo, with great
earnestness, 81 humbly and even gratefully
accept the punishment which you have
meted out to me, and desire to add, here
and now, that I shall always hold you In
my strongest regard. However, there is
particular reason why beg to request that
my removal hence may be postponed for
couple of hours
"Gabback! shouted a court officer, prod
ding the sentenced hobo in the stomach
with his club.
wait a minute" put in the magistrate.
''Why Is it, my man, that you don't want
to be removed now?"
Because it's ranin'," replied the hobo.
with grin, and then the magistrate looked
as If he was going to throw his inkweH at
the wag, the vag got himself prodded in
the stomach more than ever by the cop,
and the rest of the cops in the room hid
their griI.ling countenances behind their
helmets.
Divided Riding Skirts.
A very handsome woman. who has not
yet been identified even by the smart young
persons attached to the staffs Of the even
ing saffrons, rode splendid horse man
wise through the park the other afternoon. |
Her divided skirt was most decorous af- |
fair. She sat her horse well, exhibiting |
none of that Accommodating bouncing |
which even moderately good female riders |
who ride side-saddle can't seem to avoid |
when their animals are going at something !
better than a walk. Even when sne put |
her steed to dead gallop her position was |
as rock-like and graceful as that Of any |
plainsman. Yet the mounted cops who saw |
her appeared to be in more than one mind |
as to whether or not they'd better arrest |
her. They held a solemn consultation over |
the matter and at length decided to pass |
the divided skirt up to higher authority. |
All of the riding and driving folks In the |
par, stared and stared at the handsome, |
graceful woman who was riding man-fash- |
ion. and numerous fussy old persons in car |
riages were heard say things in which |
BOLD creature!' appeared to be the most |
accentuated words. and yet New |
ork claims to be the first city in the world |
in the matter of innovations of this and |
other sorts.
The cultured and wealthy women in the |
best American, English and German circles |
in no less a remote city than Honolulu, |
Hawaiian Islands, were riding a-horseback, |
an-fashion, with the divided skirt, at |
least eight years ago. The woman who |
rides side-saddle in Honolulu today is look
ed upon as a freak The society women of |
Honolulu had their divided skirts made in |
Paris. They improved on the style of the
ire to