The times., 1901-05-12
POLICY ON THE CURBOTONB
Its Agent Alert and Customers Al
ways on Hand
Players OF the Fascinating Game
and Their GiES-Winuings Few But
Attractions Numerous-PicksnE Out
Numbers According to Dreams

I
/ A close-mouthed little man Of shifty eye
! takes his stand in the shadow of a certain
I East New York street corner at Just
/ O'Clock every morning. To him come
( struggling groups Of laborers on their way
/ to work. office boys. clerks. and street car
I men. Delivery wagons draw up to his
/ curb and even chattering shopgirls slip
/ siyly across to his side OF the street. With
/ each of these the quiet little man ex-
/ changes a few hurried whispers. and. as
| they turn away. makes note on slip
] OF greasy paper. digs his fists deep In his
| overcOat pockets. and whistles
In the neighbOrhoOd OF this corner OF
| his the little man Is well known. Time
was when it was not a street corner. but
| the back room of a neigbbOring cigar
store where he conducted his mysterious
business with his clients. There was no
whispering then. but shouts and contin-
uous buzzing Of excitement: the calling
off Of strings of numbers and then curses
drowning out the shriu exultation of the
| few. For the little man is one Of the in
Vulnerable army Of the great policy sys-
| TEN, and the police who drove him from
his cigar store, when publicly demanded,
wink and smile as they pass him on the
street corner where he has temporarily
pitched his tent.
Mines blood today" says a hulking
hcdearrier to his mate as they make for
the policy man on their way TO work.
''Dreamt l seen one of them Boxers when
his headd been cut on Little old 5-10-i0
for mine today. Here's 10 cents says it )
a winner"
''Tain't blood that's mine today" the
other growis. Its the good old fish gig
with me. MackereI for breakfast, the
wife she puts out, and not being Friday
at that. Blood amt on the slips today,
I-I7-27 she comes, sure; that's the fish
gig. and them don't often go wrong. I'm
on the fish for fair
The mystic numbers are hoarsely whis-
pered into the ready ear Of the policy
man, and the dimes go chinking deep
into his pockets.
''when's the slips out today?'' asks the
bigger labOrer anxieusly.
Morning slips gets uD at the end of
dinner hour replies the little man
brisEIy. Night slips about T. Are
you on for the night ones. gents2"
Nit. Ten cents is my limit. Got burned
bad on the game last week or two" says
the fish-gig man. and the two stalk clum-
silly away 10 work.
house; died last night / was told. a pass
ing clerk cOnfides 10 his friend. That's
the dead one sure; 9-19-29's the dead gig.
and I'm out for sure today. Here's a
quarter says so.
The friend is not so sure. A big fight is
to be pulled off in the West. he points
Iul dIiI dS every pitt hilDWSs the
gig is 6-i6-59-59. He places his quarter on
the big gig.
Better make it on the night slips;
fights not on this morning. advises the
'.Ah. take shy at both: it's only Sd
cents against $50, crOaks the policy man.
and the two young men leave him - cents
with their string Of numbers.
And so it goes. The twittering shopgirl
has a dime for S-12-40 cause some men
cut up nasty down in saloon my way.
and there was shooting. Her gig is. Of
course, the shooting gig The next
man seen a flock of geese. and it's
dead cinch on 2-11-19-22'' - the quadruple
goose gig, while another is doubtful Of
just the spot where he met that piebald
on Brooklyn Bridge the BROOKLYN horse
gig, 6-3243. or the New York horse
gig" +-16-21. hanging III the balance. A
tramp has cents TO pin TO the beer gig,
while the colOred gcutrX-plaCe their small
coin Loyalty on E11-4 the old policy
gig"
As the crowd passes back again by the
policy man at the end of the noon hour
a printed slip is quietly passed 10 each
One, perhaps. out of all is made hysteri-
cally jubilant by the sight of his gig and
the envelope with his winnings. amount
ing TO about dollar on the cent. But
the rest file of in glum disgust as they
sean the printed slip.
They never misses next morning.
though confdes the little policy man
he chuckles and his pockets bulge. If
horse loses today it's fish with them
tomorrow. BObs I'd. all of EN-. next
morning. cOcksure, and onto a new one
Funny amt it?''-The New York Com
mercial Advertiser