Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-06-08
A PROVINCIAL TOWN
Major sylvestdf's Election a Surprise
to New York.
DEVERY VAS AFTER fHE HONOR
Why GothandRes 20 Not Visit the
Buffalo Exposition.
WOMEN SMOKING IN PUBLIC
DEVERY VAsh AFTER fHE HONOR
WOMEN SMOKING IN PUBLIC
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.

NEW YORK, June Z, 1901.
Mr.. Devery is still rubbing that sore spot
where he got the Notwithstanding bump
last week, when the visiting association of
top cops of The country set him over in a
dark corner, where the light wouldn't hurt
MS eyes, and chose Major Sylvester of a
lltie place near Bladeusburg, Md, called
Washington, D. c., as their president.
Jaw. w'eres Washin'ton?' sarcastically
inquired the New ork bunch of Devery-
lies IN the convention, when they ascer-
tanned that the unassuming chief of the
Washington police force was going to give
their boss mighty dangerous run for the
chiefship of the national outfit of police
men. Who ever heard o Washint ton? Oh,
yes, that's the place were they have the
MISREPRESENTATION; sure enough. But
Were does it butt in for president O.
this body?"
These words are hot frilled or fancifully
drawn. One of the most notable of New
york s inspectors Of police was actually
heard to utter them substantially as they
are set down. and his utterances were
echoed by most of the New York Devery-
ties.
Major Sylvester didn't make play for
the distinction at any stage of the conven-
ton. He was decidedly the quietest and
most unobtruSive of all the police chiefs
who attended the Conclave. The victory he
achieved was unsought. 1t was a victory
accomplished by his friends. Many of the
chiefs from the other cities We're exceeding
ly garrulous to their relations with the re-
porters OF the yeliows during their pres
ence in town, and did the best they knew
how to get themselves in print by express
ing their personaily-conducted ideas on all
sorts of subjects, from the best way to
take second-story workers to the proba-
bllity of snow storms occurring on the
moon. The Washington police chief smiled
his slow smile when the busy yellow re-
porters braced him and told them that he
really hadn't thought anything out. The
reporters We're particularly anxious to get
signed Statements from him with refer
ence to the Bonine case, but the major
didn't appear to be in a signatory humor.
This, however. didn't bother couple of the
yellows very much, for they came out with
ingeniously idiotic interviews" with Major
sylvester respecting the cause celebre OF
the old Hillman House.
Devery "Wanted 1t Bad"
On the other hand, Mr.. Devery wanted
that presidency, and he wanted it bad"
He bought the visiting chiefs pretty near
enough $4-per-bottle wine-Mr. Devery was
ever liberal at ''openin' wine"-to float
skiff. with the result that every morning
during the week the top cops were here
there were veritahle corners in the bromo-
settler market In the neighborhoods of the
notes at which they put UP. Mr.. Devery
chartered boats for them, and lugged them
around in automobiles in the rain, and fed
them the best in town some six times per
day. and developed generally into hand
shaker OF the most rampageouS type-but
it wouldn't do. "a.
When the votes were counted the New
Yorker was just two miserable little votes
shy-"which," one of his pals in the
was as bad as bein' beat off by quarter
of mile in the stretch" The fact must
in justice be recorded, however, that the
boss of the New York police took his med
icine In a game way. He didnt-w it
for the looks of the thing?-abate his wine
openin - stunt little bit after his defeat,
and it is even said that he was the wise
acre who enabled the visiting police chiefs
est knock they have experienced this year
for the big cops took not penny less than
$4,000 out of the race track betting ring
on Saturday afternoon last.
1t is pretty likely that the police chiefs
who saw to it that Major Sylvester was
elected president of their association read
the handwriting on the wall More than
one of them, in fact remarked, when the
canvass for Devery was In progress that
it would be foolish to elect man who in
all probability, wouldn't be connected with
any police establishment by the time the
date for their next convention rolled
around These boss policemen of the big
cities pretty good politicians. They
didn't need to be good politicians however,
to be able to perceive the precarious posi-
ton in which Tammany stands at this
stage of the game. That fact would be
sufficiently obvious to boarding school
girl.
Sylvester as a lobbyist.
One of the humorous features of the can
vass for Major Sylvester, at which the
Washington chief was himself compelled
to smile bit, was the manner with which
his followers took 1t for granted that the
major is a top-notch lobbyist.
One of Major Sylvesters pet schemes
and a very good one 1t is, tools the es-
tablishment of a national bureau of iden-
LITIGATION for better facility In the handling
of professional criminals The idea as
framed by the Washington police chief is
such an excellent one that Congress will
doubt take it up and adopt it in the
course Of a year or so. 1t is a measure
that won't require any lobbying. But the
visiting chiefs couldn't understand any
need to be pushed through" 1t was evil
dent from the nature of their remarks
that quite number of them gave their
votes to Major Sylvester not only because
because they figured that, being right on
the ground in Washington, he ought to
make mighty cheerful worker in the cor
ridors of Congress for the establishment
of that national bureau of identification.
Few chiefs of police-so completely are
most of them hemmed in by politics
could be induced to believe that any sort
OF a public measure, good or bad stands
a chance in the world of being favorably
acted upon by legislative body without
the employment of that sort of '"fooence''
which is best manufactured by a liberal
use of soap" One can picture Major Syl-
vester buttonholing members of Congress
to induce them to vote for the establish
ment of a national bureau of identificat ion,
That is to say, not.
Rockefeller as n Typewriter,
A few afternoons ago a ervous-lookine
man with chopped-off grayish mustache,
and dressed in baggy-looking brown suit,
with a sack coat, walked through the ro-
tunda of one of the 9Th avenue hotels and
approached a young woman who was seat
ed at typewriter behind railing in
corner &
Miss" said the nervous looking man.
"if you're not too busy, will you let me
use that machine for about ten minutes?''
The young woman pulled the bit of work
she was at out of the machine and rose
from her seat. The MISUNDERSTANDING man
took her seat in front of the machine.
grabbed a couple of sheets of paper, stuck
them into the machine and began to ham
mer the keys rapidly and expertly. He
wrote a couple of letters, tugging at his
bristly mustache between sentences. Then
he jumped up, handed the young woman
O SS hflI md hurried o1,f