The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-03-26

The Tout was telling of some of the
coups he had made in the bucket shops
and some of the gratis he had known
others working
There used to be a bucket shop on
the corner of Sixth street. he sail.
That was 4 number of years ago.
There was another bucket shop further
down the street where the ticks of the
market were received over relay wire
and didn't get in as quick as those
sent to the shop on the corner by d.
rect wire. A couple of fellows worked
up a scheme to beat the shop further
down the street. They would go to
the shop where the returns came in
first and would see what the markets
quotations were and would then go to
the shop further down the street. be-
fore the report reached there, and play
the market up or down as they knew
it would come. They worked that all
right for a while and beat the shop.
The bucket shop proprietor thought
their wisdom was unusual so he final
ly tumbled to the racket and posted
an order that all broker must be in
the room for five minutes before they
made Il play, / mean deal.
THE fellows thought they could beat
that so they rented second story room
| across the street from the slow shop.
| One of the fellows went to the slow shop
to play and the other would go to the
| bucket shop on the corner, find out what
| the quotations were, before they were
received at the other shop, and then go
| across the street to the room and turn
| the Stats in the lower window blind up
or down to show which way the market
| would go when the tick reached the
| slow shop. OF course they only played
| one stock. For instance, one day they
would play cotton. The fellow who was
| to do the signalling would go to the
shop on the corner, see which way the
| market went, up or down, go over to
| the room, turn the shutters of the blind
rnr1I Il Ez11 clio
shop would play the cotton market ac-
cordingly. They beat the shop out of
| big sum of money and the proprietor
couldn't understand just how they did
| it, for the fellow who played in the shop
stayed there all the time. Now and
then he would wander around and look
f, out of the window, but the proprietor
couldn't see any signal smoke nor any
white rags hung out, so he couldn't see
how it was done. He simply had to bar
them from the shop.
| DO you remember the races last
! fall about hundred miles from here
| where they ran a bunch of outlaws?
| Well, I was down at the track and
| came on for a half mile dash. Their.
was a horse there called Poker CHIP
on the card. 1 knew he was sone-
! times called Stove Poker and some
| times Saratoga Chip and I knew he
would beat the bunch. A couple of fell
| lows wanted to bet me three to one
and they take the field against Poker
| Chip. 1 let them have couple of saw
bucks worth. OF course Poker Chip
| came in SO far ahead that you could
have switched a freight train between
| him and the bunch. The judges
wouldn't give any decision on the out
| law race. I went over and asked them
who won. One of them said there
there would be no official announce
ment. Well I said, just tell me who
won. Poker Chip?' The judge said
| Poker Chip or Saratoga Chip or some
other poker, or piker or chip won
| 1 told the fellows that. They said that
we would decide the bet according to
| the next days paper which would al
nounce what horse won. I dropped in
! to the newspaper office that night and
was talking with the fellow who wrote
up the races. Who won that outlaw
racer he asked. Why the judges said
Poker Chip. 1 remarked. The fellows
read that the next day and paid their
| bets.
remember when Blank & Black ran their
shop in Topeka years ago? They claimed
it was on the square. Perhaps err Sine, the SHOP a2l
eral fellows for enough to buy houses and
lots. Well, as | said. perhaps 3a 5, It was va
| and Black was afraid of Blank. They
kept their money on deposit in a LOCAL
bank every day at 8 o'clock to see that
Blank hadn't drawn the firm money and
| skipped, and about S;3O, after ne nad
seen Black come out of the bank. Blank
would go over, slip in the back door and
| find out from the cashier if Black had
They kept that up for months, each
afraid the other would cop the money
and blow the town. They finally met st 1T
early and he met Black there. The cash
Ter told them they were too much trou-
HE and made them draw the money.
They got the money out all right, but
Black put his back on dep ssdn after after
IN that night The money in the bank
Was levied on and Black lost Blank put
his in the cistern at home in glass jar
| tilf the trouble blew over