The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1905-12-27

II they made their horse bets with the
knowledge OF their husbands they depend
ed upon their husbands % get their
bets down IN the big pooiroom that was
running until q year or 50 ago. and they
found that their men folks didn't obey
orders IN making bets on horses that
seemed to them 20 have no chance. but
that won al the same,
Two or three marketmcn, at the Cen
ter market became aware OF these con-
ditsons and they let their women custom
ers know thai they could get down their
bets AT the market stalls. Thus the bus
mess began. untf now It has spread into
reilly big thing
Il was aided IN its development by the
closing down Of the big poolroom across
the Potomac All the betting on the
horsea done here now is done IN tho
handboois. and the niarketmen get the
biggest share os the play.
Government Clerks Gamble.
The game grows by accretion. like n
SNOWFALL Some lucky woman gets q
dollar down ON a 20 to ! shot at her reg
ular market stan betting place. Her de-
light Is so uncomfortable that she tells
al her women friends, some Of whom
may never have seen horse race in
their lives.
Twenty dollars for one looks so amaz-
ineiy good to them th2t they quickly re-
solve tc TACKLE the game themselves.
Thus the recruits come along All the
time. and the marketmen who take the
womens bets are nearly an Of them on
Easy street
In a large number Of drug stores down
here too. bets are taken on the races.
The business is very much under cover.
however, and only the money Of dis5reet.
non laxative women IS taken.
Several large bootblaoking establish
ments conducted by Greeks are headquar-
ters f0r the horse gambling Of small Try
bettors mostly newsboys and bootblacks
running Independent stands. who bet
from 10 cents up TO 81 g lowe- Penn-
sylvsnia avenue there Is { Chinese laun-
dry where the Chinese horse players Of
Washington get down their money. The
Cinnamon play the Califoinsa races al
most exclusively. for theS are IN constant
receipt Of tips Of more or less yaiue
from Chinese friends WHO follow the pony
game out on the coast IN San francisco
and Los Angelica
Tho handbook business Is big thing
]
Il Is particularly profitable at the gov
eminent printery and the bureau OF en-
sraling and printing. where there are
.nanys thousands OF employees. a consid-
erable proportion of whom have a little
bot down on their picks from day to
day mostly in the shape OF parlays.
The business is strictly prohibited i1
the departments, OF course. but Il goes
I
ers for several OF the departments are
nen who lost their Jobs in the govern
ment employ fc- persisting in making
handbooks for their office mates in the
face OF warnings 20 quit.
They SURRENDERED, their Jobs without
great regret, and went right on making
I handbooks for their former mates. estab-
fishing headquarters near the depart
ments from which they had been elected
They all wear diamonds and look pros.
porous. so that the loss of their govern
ment billets didn't seem TO harm Their
very much.
The money lending "symposiems.' >
which Public Printer stlllings, when he
took charge OF the big printing office z
couple OF weeks ago, Immediately begar
to eradicate owed ihei fogaation largely
to the habit ~ hclinx tie horse races
among the l9ye2 The horse players
would find themselves running behind
and then they would go to their sym.
postum" or syndicate OF money lending
fellow employees and borrow money al
exorbitant rates Of interes..
Harvest t7r Handbook Men.
Some OF these "symposiums" them.
selves have been broken up. owing tC
the fact that their. managers have goi
into the habit Of taking crack lt tho
horses themselves and thus dropping The
symposium" money. Several OF these
symposium" treasurers and manager:
have disappeared In the last few months
leaving debts and defaications behine
them. and in every case their downfall
has been traced TO the races
The bulletins giving the results OF the
races are hung In the saloons, cigal
stores. drug stores. and so on. about 7;3S
D. m. here. and this is one OF the bust
est hours Of the day in these establish
unents. There are no tickgfs In wash
ington that give the racing results. and
the tremendous tribe OF handbook bet
tors have no way Of finding out how
their bets came cut until the bulletins
are displayed.
IL il probable that at that evenine
haur moro women In Washington dev's'
excuses to run out for minute IRON
their homes and more husbands tel
their wives they are going out for
cigar than in any town OF similar size II
the country The women with bets dowI
hustle out and around tcs the nearest
drug store ln the neighhorhood wher'
the bulletins with tho racing results ar
displayed. and the men 70 20 their sa
loon or cigar store to look The results
\ over
| In the meantime poolroom men fron
different paris Of the country, particu
llarIy from New York, come down her
and look the situation over every one
In "a while. and they shake their head
mournfullg over the small chance the
see OF star,ink poolroom In or aroun
washington. IL causes them many sigh
10 see so much good money going I
waste-being picked up by whole lo
little handbook makers, that is 10 sax
when Il would be enormously produc
tive II centralized In one big pooroou
such as existed across the Potomac ant
about q year ago. when II was no uncom
, mon thing for from 1000 70 2,0e9 men
be seen playing the horses IN the bl
4 shed every we-a '.'--.
But the po5iroom game has been con
lpletely knocked out so far as Washinf
ton. perhaps the most profitable soW
for a poolro0m u the whole country
concerned. ID has been sewed up i
/, both Virginia and Maryland, and there
4 no chance as the projectors OF poolroo
. enterprises say after looking the grour