Sunday Washington globe., 1902-02-02
trOnizes.

trOnizes-
The hand bookmakers have laid down
hard on a few of their dupes and there is
much wailiug and gnashiug of teeth ac-
cordingly.
To the unsophisticated It is necessary to
explain that a hand bookmaker is a travel
ing, sporting capitalist who takes bets on
the horses, after the manner of the bookes
in the betting ring and similar to the
regular pool room hackers over in Jackson
City. There is a distinction and a difference
however between the hand bookmakers
and the real pool room hackers and gentle
men who write books in the betting ring at
the race tracks This difference is an es-
seutial one The hand bookmeu lay down.
using sporting slang, that is when they are
hit they refuse to pay. In this respect
they pattern after certain bucket shops Of
fragrant memory. Recently a number of
these hand bookmen, who made certain
saloons their rendezvous to receive bets
were arrested under the gambling laws.
They are out on bond and they claim that
they will win out against the prosecution.
This remains to be seen, however. AT
present we are dealing with a special case
of a well-knowu local contractor who placed
a dollar and "PARLAYED" the same on
seven horses. Parlaying means that win
ming on the first horse the full winnings
and original bet are laid on the next horse
in the combination, and so continues until
all the horsesin the combination are played
to win It is rare, indeed, that even the
wise one guess" five winners in a combi-
nation, but our contractor friend actually
I oI
dollar bet footed up a total of sIS94I, so
winnings. He called the next morning at
the saloon, Seventh aud d streets, to meet
the handbook man, who lives somewhere
in the country, and runs some kind of a
road house. Visions of what he would do
/ with his almost $1,000 winnings made his
/ step elastic and his heart light as a uiaideu's.
! Presenting his. ticket to the handbook man
I that individual informed him thar $500 win
nings was the limit, and no matter how
many thousands he struck it for $500 was
the limit paid out 10 any individual winner.
The contractor swallowed the lump in
his throat and his disappointment having
worn of By some further talk he agreed to
accept the limit The handbook manip-
ulator was unprepared for this ready ac-
ceptance and seemed to be non plussed.
Pressed, however, for the limit he threwup
his hands and exclaimed, II will pay you
SIoo and call it square"
This the contractor uuwisely refused aud
hied him to a lawyer where he obtained the
startling information that he was indictable
equally with the hand bookmaker for gamb-
ling in violation Of the statute made and
| provided, etc.
His only redress now appears to be as a
witness against the handbook men or the
saloons where these boOkmakers are know
ingly allowed to gamble. 1t is not, of
course, known as fact susceptible Of legal
proof that the saloon keepers are aware Of
the gambling going on, or the use to which
their establishments are being put by the
hand bookmakers and the men who
| Ioolishly place their money on the horses
in such hands.
Speaking of gamblinglreminds the GLOBE
to make a few observations on the pc
culiarity of the law which allows bucket
shop gambling and prohibitsI,pool selling
or a quiet game of pokerEunless there is a
| Congressman or Senator in the game
Fact gentle reader, such are the instruc-
tons the GLOBE has beenlrelably informed
which have been issued during the sitting
| of Congress Said a well known avenue
merchant last night
Il can open poker game right here be-
/ hind the stove in the rear.of the store and
/ no sleuth or policemaniwill bother me if
can get Congressman in the game Fact
| assure you and / knowAwhat 1 am talking
about Instructions have been issued to
the cops to be exceedingly careful and raid
OF bother no game in which a Congressman
or Senator plays"
Yes" remarked an old resident, II
have a friend a Congressman, who COM
planned to me that a fellow member
buncoed him into game which was paying
a rake off TO his friend for playing or pre-
tending to play in thesgame- The gamblers
are on to the fact that no game will be
| pulled with a Congressman in it and hence
they are on the look out for impecuuious
/ Congressman who will lend their presence
to the game for a specified rake off. This
beats anything in my experience in Wash
ingtOn for forty years even when knight
hood of the green cloth was in bloom,
and the old residenter made small pur-
chase and left the store sadly shaking his
venerable head
Further investigation into the hand book
makers and the immunity Of poker games
from police raids which have Congressman
patrons corroborates the facts recitedby our
informants. The gambling laws Of this
District are responsible for this state Of af-
fairs. They are as senseless as they are alb
surd. Permitting OF licensing a bucket
shop and making the running of a pool
room or a poker game a criminal offeuse
needs no further comment than that the
craftsmanship which makes the distinction
would be vastly improved by rest and treat
meut over at st. Elizabeths!
Remember the ElksI Midwinter Carnival.