The San Francisco call., 1905-02-26
DARKTOWNSHOW
ENDS IN A RIOT
Sheriff Attaches Receipts
of Box Office and Angry
Negroes Start Rough House

The Sheriff held sway last night at
the colossal colored carnival"
which drew a moderate sized crowd to
the Mechanics Pavilion. The box re-
ceipts, consisting of the fabulous sum
OF $40. were seized by his deputies on
writ of attachment issued from the
Justices Court yesterday afternoon.
Jake" Rauer, the collection agency
man, was the cause of the proceed
ings. The filing of the attachment
was the result of the failure of one
Senator Harry Hamden (colOred),
promoter of the show, to pay to
Rauer the sum of $3.50 loaned in jan
uary on a promissory note for thirty
days.
AT 9 o'clock Under Sheriff William
Hynes and three deputies entered the
hall. Deputy McManus was imme-
diately installed in the box office to see
that all the money taken in found its
way into the cash drawer. Although
the hall filed with a surprising rapid
ity, the coin did not drop with CORE
spending alacrity into the till. So
many were the ''complimentaries' that
the doorkeepers were obliged again
and again to empty the ticket boxes
of their weight in deadhead paper.
Senator" Hamden tore his hair and
ragged about the hall when he ascer-
tanned that the Sheriff was to confis-
cate the proceeds.
The musicians received the tip that
the Sheriff was present and demanded
their money before dispensing any
more airs. Hamden slipped into the
office, eluded the vigilance Of the dep
uty and extracted enough coin to COM
pensate the clamoring horn-blowers.
When the moment came to gather
in the coin the City Hall station was
phoned to for aid A motley crowd
OF colored people quickly gathered and
open threats were made against the
Sheriff's deputies. Deputy Sheriff
McManus seized the receipts that were
left, $40 in all, and ran with the money
to the City Hall station. Fifty or
sixty excited negroes crowded around
the deputies and forced them to the
wall.
At this juncture Lieutenant Colby
of the City Hall station entered and
allowed the crowd to force its way into
the box office, while he held a heated
WITH fuSlllSl JACK JOnISO1l
Several of the negroes made rush
for the till, with a hope of capturing
the money and aiding their friend, the
promoter, and had it not been for Pa
trolman Cornelius and four other po-
hcemen a fight would probably have
occurred. A drunken colored man at
tempted to flourish a razor. but was
not arrested, Lieutenant Colby showing
the offending would-be assailant from
the room, letting him go free.
After a wrangle of many minutes,
Lieutenant Colby, although he had
nothing to do with the attachment,
agreed on terms with the colored
pugilists, Jack Johnson and Denver
Ed" Martin, who promised to see that
Hamden paid his just debts.
Under Sheriff Hynes, realizing that
the $40 secured would not be enough
for the thirsty Rauer, agreed to per-
NIT the show to run in the hope of
getting 81 or SO more, provided the
ratio of dead-head slips did not in
crease with the influx of late corners.
The band played on and the main por-
tion of the audience laughed, all un-
mindful that bloodshed had been mar
rowly averted. Henry A. Hellweger
was associated with Senator Ham,
den in the management of the show.