The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-01-10
A TEMPLE OF CHANCE
CHINESE GAMBLING DEN THAT
CANNOT BE RAIDED.
Cunningly Located In a Labyrinth Of
Wooden Shacks the Fortune Seekers
Defy Detection.

Close to the corner of Kukui and
River streets, on the Waikiki side Of
the Nuuanu stream and on the mauka
side of kukui street, in the second
building from the corner grocery store,
there is located a nest of Chinese
gamblers where che ia, fan tan fly loo
and other games are carried on for the
edihCatiOn Of the Chinese and Hawai-
ians of the neighbOrhoOd, greatly to the
profit of the head gamblers themselves.
The police know the existence of the
rendezvous and have several times at
tempted to raid it, but so cunning and
manifold are the precautions of the
willy owners against surprise that each
effort has so far resulted i'm failure.
The Chinese have many advantages
over western nations in conducting re-
sorts of this nature not the least of
which is the native impassibility of the
Oriental cOuntenanCe, coupled with the
! fact that they can wear identical cos
tunes without arOusing suspicion,
which combination makes it very hard
for the spies and outside watchers to
be spotted" by the police A sleepy,
/ impressive looking Oriental passing you
without curiosity in one of the many
| paths that lead towards the house in
/ question, or lounges on the steps I'm the
neighborhOOd, pipe in hand, passing
what seems to be a casual remark to
/ his neighbOr, may serve to warn the
/ house long before you near the en-
! trance. White men are seldom seen in
that neighborhOod except on the other
/ side Of the stream where St. Louis
! College lies, and every policeman and
detective on the force, or likely to be
so connected, is well known to every
! habitue of the house. Any white man
is a suspect until he goes harmlessly
away from the vicinity. There are a
| few Japanese stores, where despite
race prejudice, the little brown men
and their wives live peaceably enough
with the Chinese, Isolated from them
in dialect and customs except when
they enter the gambling house, which
| they seldom do, having ample accom-
modatOns of their own in other quar-
ters.
! Next to the grocery store is a gilded
| decorated and belettered entrance,
some few feet back from the sidewalk
and approached by a flight of perhaps
! a dozen steps, whence issue the fumes
of joss sticks. 1t is a temple, which
! doubtless owes much of it's popularity,
if indeed not its existence to the de-
voices of chance, who attempt to pro-
| pitlate the tickle goddess much in the
same way as their latin brother world
dwellers seek to win good fortune from
their patron saints. The incense is
different and the gifts vary but the in
stinCt remains the same.
A little alley way, boarded on both
sides, winds between buildings and
| separates the Joss house from the next
building, the Nuuanu Monte Carlo.
How many of those harmless looking
/ boards are contrived as doors to open
/ to avenues of prompt eSCnl in times
of stress is a matter of su picion.
Monte Carlo bellies it, lame, by its
outer appearance. 1t il a dingy look
! ing building of two stO les apparently
built for a dwelling house. There are
several doors opening on the street
some of which apparently run through
! to the rear while others open into
rooms where slauting eyed, dirty Chi
namen sit on broken chairs or lounge
over dusty desks, tables and partitions
! A staircase outside leads to the MOOR
above the lower steps being always
tenanted with smoking, watchdogs OF
| the place. You are conscious that you
are constantly under observation but
can detect no particular glances not
even covert ones.
Back of the first building, AUDITING
closely on it's rear windows, stands an
| other wooden building, as far as can
be seen a model Of the first in design
and back of that again rise shacks OF
every description connected with what
tortuOus passage ways may only De
! imagined.
In which Of the houses the lotteries
are held and the dominOes and dice
rattle Is hard to say. Probably II
! changes although the building immedi-
ately behind the one on the street is
perhaps the safest.
Proofs of the character of the place
are not wanting to the casual ana pa
tient lounger although 1t is not
| Chinaman that gives the information
They have all sworn by the twenty
/ 4. Ia M on
to divulge by glance or hint any OF
the secrets of their playground.
Several men go in and out, Chinese
and Hawaiian, there is a constant
stream all day long, singly never IN
crowd. Your true gambler loves SOIL
tude, in the first place, and the pro
prietors would never allow the sem
blance Of a rush, in the second. only
occasionally a native comes out with
the tell tale che ia ticket not yet pock-
eted or another tears one up. scraps
Of the torn pieces can be seen by the
SherlOcBian eye in the street and some
times a native who is allowed to win
ITO encourage the others is too Jubi-
liant to keep the secret. He has for
feited his right at the tables however
and no longer has the sesame TO pass
the lynx eyed door keepers.
It Is no easy matter to get IN ana
probably a harder one to get out should
an adventurous WINE 7uDSSS" ~ P'' ~,
ing the cerberus Of the inner gate. TO
catch them red handed is dimculL
task. A balloon and some method OF
suddenly unroofing the house seems to
be the only likely way, unless another
fire burns up the clump Of buildings
and compels the inhabitants to live IN
houses more requirements to Board OF
Health requirements and police discl-
pline. John Chinaman will always
gamble be he rich or poor and the for
mer SPARE no pains to be enabled 70
place their stakes undisturbed, where
liz they lose, quiet pipe Of poppy SEEDS
win send them dreams OF fortune re-
trIeved or build them golden Vistas OF
pleasures to be enjoyed on their present