Evening star., 1901-03-22
THE GOOD SAMARITAN.
The Police Station Awaits You in tn
Twentieth Century.

The Police Station Awaits You I'm the
! Twentieth Century.
] cit scarcely pays to enact the role OF the
Good Samaritan In this. the year of grace
1901 especially in the large cities" said
a well-known Washington correspondent
/ zone night, several years ago. hap
pered to be on upper Broadway In New
York, In the heart Of the Tenderioin. when
the talented young author. the late Stephen
Crane, caught it where Mary caught the
Ike, csene. 1 knew Crane very well, and as
he was high strung, spirited young man
of generous impulses. he was gentleman
enough, and also foolish enough. to at
tempt to save a resident of that district
from maltreatment at the hands Of one OF
New Yorks finest.
1 "Poor Crane! His chivalrous efforts
landed him summarily in the station house,
and he was rather roughly handled by the
police. 1t is my recollection that he was,
in addition, fined in the police court the
following morning, or released with a rep
rimand. as though he had been some GRIM
iinal toward whom the judge had decided
to deal leniently.
i I'm this instance Crane gave his pro-
itection to the victim because she was a
woman and was in need OF 1t. But he
should have let her be dubbed to death.
from New York standpoint of Justice as
administered by the police and sustained
by the police judges, rather than interfere.
he ran the FISK OF q broken ncaQ OF Jaw,
or Imprisonment or a fine, for obeying the
common impulse which springs instantly
in a mans breast when he sees woman
abused, It matters not what her social
status may be.
"A few days ago another New York
young man got a battered head and land
ed In the police court for giving his assist
ance to a woman. who was in distress, and
his case reminded me of the night saw
poor Crane lugged~ of to the police station
on West goth street. - = /,
1.-THE Good Samaritan act doesn't pay
nowadays. long experience In active
newspaper life. and such lessons as 1t
teaches, causes me to go on the other side
of the street when / see a crowd, for
prefer that it be some other fellows head
or leg that catches the stray bullet that
always wounds or kills the innocent by
stander.'
when / see man coming out Of the
house as though he were in hurry and
a female form, with a broomstick or
rolling pin in an upraised arm. a la statue
Of liberty pose, keep right on. I have
urgent business around the corner. I once
interfered when a man was beating his
wife, and they both turned on me and
gave me sound drubbing.. My chivalrous
instincts have been held in check since that
eventful night. I lost two teeth and a
weeks salary.
1T is the peacemaker that is usually
hurt. If not killed. rather than either Of
the two combatants. Every few days we
read The Star dispatches Of the mauling
or the killing Of the man who went to the
assistance Of some one. Trouble will occur.
Men will fight, and women will claw. Let
those who have grievances fight and claw,
If they will, and If no policeman, whose paid
duty it is to interfere. is convenient, how
much better it Is that either or both OF the
principals, rather than the stranger and In
nocent party, should have his claret tap
ped or eye blacked.
Good samaritanism Is all right theoret-
ically. and practically where it may be
practiced without bodily harm to the Sa-
maritan. but otherwise people, think,
should be allowed to fight their own bat
ties and suffer the consequences Of their
own foolhardy acts'