Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-22

| Let us De happy Tor the moment, now
ever, in that quite few thousands OF
rumageous New Workers. have put them
selves on record, if only for biithe and
| fleeing hour. Something has been gained
! for the cause of temperance when a bril-
| gade of New York whiskeyites have been
| even temporarily stampeded to state of
| sobriety, no matter what the underlying
| motive of their panic.
The chemist who is conducting the analy-
SIS of the samples of crimson-eye taken
| from the Subway saloon Endorsed by Bishop
| Potter hasn't yet made his report. The
/ town is anxiousiy awaiting 1t.
less hyster.cal movement having to do
with the rum question: but one that III the
| long run will unquestionably be produc-
| tive of better and more permanent results
| is the anti-treating propaganda, which has
| been taking strong hold upon New York
during the last half year.
This systematic anti-treating movement
originated in Chicago about year ago.
There have been many more less wab-
| bly, and ephemeral anti-treating movements,
| but this one looks like business. The Anti
Treating Association of Chicago started the
pail a-roll1ng In very methodical and eff
fectual manner. Twenty-Five chaps out in
the town of wind got together, after hav-
ing made up their minds that they were
wasting lot Of time and money and health
on the treating business, and made them
selves into the Anti-Treating Association.
Each fellow Clipped in s.. With the $125
lot OF anti-treating literature was got out
and distributed broadcast throughout the
country, the recipients of the pamphlets and
other printed matter being requested to
pass the stuff along so that it would fall
into the hands Of victims of the treating
habit.
Anti-Treating Movement.
The Anti-Treating Association of Chicago
is now an enormous institution comprising
several thousands of members, and 1t is
growing rapidly. All of the members are
solemnly pledged not to treat or to accept
treat in saloon under any circum-
stances There is no restriction placed upon
the orlnklng or the members so long is they
pay Tor their own drinks, but they are
e by the most rigid vow to abstain
from all treating in their own persons and
10 IroWn upon saloon treating wherever
they may happen to be-
Inc Anu-Treating Association of New
ork mas now been permanently organized
and requests for membership certificates
ana buttons are coming in by the score
every DAY. Any man who has ever spent
as iong time as thirty minutes in and
around New York will perceive the amount
| or genuine good that the doing AWAY with
the treating evil is liable to do in this town
Inc Lesh have mother, fellers' idiot is
Verltapiy at the bottom of an incalculable
amount OF involuntary drunkenness in this
the drunkeneSt city in the western hemis-
phere, and 1t is pleasing to be able to re-
cord the fact that his squelchment and
suppression are now undef full Roadway.
Members of the Anti-Treating Associa ton
all wear neat little button signifying their
membership, and these buttons are becom-
ing mighty familiar to the eye around
New York The modest insignia of the
ahli-treater is, OF course deSpiSed and ab-
horred by the gin-mill keeper and the bar
Keep, but the wearers of the buttons are
not apparently hanging their heads over
| this disapproval
This correspondence would fall down in
its high mission to record all events of a
structiy human-interest character in this
pastoral community did it not make men,
n har hicyhI
cation that has recently been formed IN
New York-the Anti-Touch Society.
The name of this outfit will suffice for all
except those who are not up on the patoiS
OF the period. But it is probable that even
the lingual purists know without asking
what touch means. The Anti-Touch
society, then, is an association of male
persons formed for the solitary and indf-
Vidual purpose of discouraging the touch
and all touchers The word borrow is
not used, not only because it is regarded
as obsolete, but because it has no applfca-
ton to the matter in hand, it being one of
the strongest convictions of the members
or the Anti-Touch Society that no chronic
TOUGHER ever by any chance returns the
amount for which he has touched. His
touch, consequently, is not a borrow 1t is
touch. There is a whole lot more diff
ference between the terms than there is be-
tween tweedledee and tweedledum
The Anti-Touch Society.
The members of the Anti-Touch Society
are not only pledged, they are bound by
oath, not to lend any money to anybody,
even their closest friend, unless that friend
is Hat on his back in a sick bed or some
member of his family is in the same case
NO kind of quick conversation, or can
vass, as 1t is termed, on the part of the
TOUGHER is to evoke any financial response
on the part of the anti-toucher. ConSpicu-
ouSly framed all over the headquarters of
the Anti-Touch Society are the rules and
regulations of the outfit, together with a
most comprehensive and Shrewdly thought
out list of the various, not to say multi
tudinous, kinds of touchers.
A good deal of prominence is given to the
hurry TOUGHER, the fellow who only wants
the one, or the two, the five, or the ten,
as the case may be, for ten minutes or so,
until he runs around the corner and who
makes his touch Rantingiy to give verisimil-
itude to his declaration that he is in big
rush. The chap who touches because he
left his money home in his other suit is
mentioned, is the fellow who had his
pocket picked of his rent and grocery
train last night. The sad, slow music
TOUGHER, who claims to have been wiped
out in steel common, is portrayed in all of
his dismalness, and so is the TOUGHER who
wants to run down to Philadelphia on bust
ness and who can't get check cashed be-
cause it's after banking hours. The ingeni-
Gus TOUGHER, who wants to get an UNI
brella because it's raining and he left his
umbrella home and he isn't to be paid off
till a-Tuesday, is adverted to. and likewise
the somber, gloomy TOUGHER who wants to
go up to Concord, N. H. to help bury his
favorite aunt, but who lacks just S. of the
price of round-trip ticket. Even the joy
Gus, frank TOUGHER, who just needs the
money, is set down in the list along with
many other varities of TOUGHER too numer-
Gus to mention.
Any member of the AntTouch Society
caught by a fellow-member in the act OF
breaking the iron-clad rule against yielding
to the Establishments or persausions of the
TOUGHER is subject to a fine of $50 for the
first offense, 800 for the second and eXpul-
sion from the society for the third offense.
1t is said that included among the secret
paraphernalia of the society is a large, COM
prehensive book, filled from cover to cover
with the names of chronic touchers living
in New York and it's environs.
Admirable organization from every point
of view, the Anti-Touch Society. A Wash
ington man who visited New York the
other day made himself acquainted with the
motives and aspirations of the Antl-Touch
Society, and before leaving for home he
announced his determination to start a.
branch of the Anti-Touch Society in the
District of Columbia. 1t is with the hui
name purpose of warning the District OF
Columbia touchers-if any such really exist
therein advance that this information is
,...o5 c. L c.