The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-03-19
LIVE TOPICS ABOUT TOWN.

A new method Of pocket picking 10 being
worked In City Hall Park This is the trick
as man saw 1t yesterday. A small boy
carrying bunch Of violets rushed up to Q
pedestrian.
Wait a minute. mister said the boy.
and as the man paused the urchin tried.
apparently. to pin the violets on his coat
lapel.
The next moment and before the citizen
could grasp the end Of this unwonted bene-
violence, the boy abandoned his foral by
play and scooted down the park plaza at
Top speed The man went sobcrly through
his waistcoat pockets.
'Nothin missing but a good cigar, he
finally informed the interested bystanders.
A lot Of citizens Of this town are busy
congratulltlng one another on their new
telephone numbers. The old ones were In
many cases the cause Of long periods Of
mental depression. This was because they
were so alike In sound as to lead to calls
from strangers In unusual places.
One man up In Harlem was aroused from
sweet slumber about twice each night 10
assure some unbeiever that he really was
not certain hospital. The maddening
voices would assure him in turn that the
case was q serious one, broken heads. man.
gled bodies, dripping oceans OF blood, all
Of which did little to make his dreams lovely
But this was not 80 bad as the. experience
OF woman well known In society. whose
| telephone bore q number similar to that
Of a nearby undertaken. 1t was her fate
to be told, night after night. that some per-
son had just died In horrible agony. The
| tale always ended with the request to
please hurry up and take charge OF the
| arrangements
A real estate agent had a call few days
| ago from one Of his best tenants who in
formed him that her lease had run out and
that she proposed to quit.
Il hope we haven't offended you In any
way said the agent. IF ii il only the fat +,
perhaps I have something else that will
! suit
.Oh, 1t isn't that replied the woman.
But l am just tired to death Of these steam
| cheated fats
Matching jaokpots Is a form Of minor
| gambling that is keeping lot Of downtown
folks busy these days. It's simple enough.
Suppose Ave men are matching quarters.
Every one Alps his coin and uncovers It,.
! II there are four heads and one tail or four
tails and one head. the man with the lone
tail or the lone head takes the money. II
any other combination Of heads and tails
presents itself it's a jackpot and every one
-sweetens" with another quarter. That
| II, tnt etNOuu 10 ioI hhh n uOiio'
That's kept up until some man has the lone
head or the lone tail and he takes the pot.
With four men 1t Is rarely that the pot
will have TO be swvetened more than three
times, but with five playing and a quarter
ante the winner is likely to take IS or $40
out Of a single pot.
A joke on Ernest Haskell the artist
il going the rounds Of the Players Club.
Mr.. Haskell was up in Westchester county
last week for a days landscape painting
A farmer came along looked at the half
finished watercolor. then gazed, much
puzzled at three fat pans containing
water which the artist had put on the
ground close at hand. Turning away
with a look Of disgust. the farmer re-
marked:
-Homeopath, b'sosh'
Somebody concerned in the arrange
ments for the st. Patrick's day parade
telephoned early on the morning Of
the great day to the stables which were
to furnish the horses for the parade. He
said that about fifty horses would be
needed and that it would be fine TO have
them all gray IL possible.
We've almost no grays at all. reJolncd
20 be a bit Of a humorist. But we've just
got in a batch Of ten green ones
Green came back from the other end
Of the line. -Thots great. But tin only
couldn't yez make thin all green?'