The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-07-15
BLINDS FOR %POOLROONS.
"SCARLET FEVER" SIGN BUT ONE
or MANY DEVICES. :

"6CARLE1 FEVEB' DKGN BUT "
or MANY DEVICES.
svstima Pieture Ghows'' at ono Tsnas Pres.
percd IN Chisase-AnatsnIfeaa Asu-
seuns FieuFished and enc Free aaeal.
eel Dispensary hid q 0aa,bltng Riaee.
They'll be running poolrooms in Chicago,
ono way or another, as long % there's iron
enough left In the world to make bar plates
for race horses,' observed o Chicago fol-
lower Of the ponies. Il SEQ by tho papers
that they've just snagged the boy who's
been running . poolroom under the screen
OF q pesthouse placard.
q got a bet or two down In that ingenious
dump before I hiked along ths way. It
was on Blue Island avenue. The poolroom
man who rented the house had O friend
mixed up In some way with the Board Of
Health, and from thia matey be got one Of
the big official Scarlet fever signs. He
tackled the plaoard on the front door.
sThen he moved the fixings IN by the
back way. Among the fixtngs was q scarlet
fever patient '-eome poor bum glad Of q
chance to stay in bed. with plenty Of booze.
The front room on the second floor was
fitted up as q sick room, with enough bottles
scattered around to rig up q hospital tent,
and the hobo patient Just lay back In
the bunk and absorbed tell ones as he felt
be needed 'em-pretty soft for him.
'The poolroom man thought 1t best to
work the patient gag. In order TO give the
plant an air Of verisimfitude. as Il wore
doubtful players, fellows that tina poolroom
man couldn't exactly locate, got q peek
At the room and the patient from an angle
Of the hall. for fear they might turn out to
be doing the spy thing.
sThe back part Of the layout was fixed
up for q fine poolroom. with a couple Of
telegraph keys, blackboard and all. Tho
players entered by way Of the alley. Folks
passing IN front nudged themselves of the
curb like balky horses when they caught
Gght OF the big scarlet fever sign, and oven
the COPS on the beat did their humming
and club swinging on the other side Of the
street. Maybe they were In ON the gag-I
don't know.
the dump had been running for five
moAths TO my knowledge when Il was
grabbed the other day. Some new cop
rubbering around the alley TO investigate
complaints Of overturned ash canS or some
thing noticed eight or ten cleaned onos
emerging from the back door Of the pool
room plant, and he doped them an daylight
hoasebreakers and chased EN-. Then he
telephoned the precinct and q bunch Of
oops came along In the wagon and entered
the poolroom by the alley way.
Everybody was out Of sight by this
time but the proprietor, and he showed the
cops the soaTlet fever patient on the Sec
ond floor. He was getting by with Il. but the
sudden breaking out Of the two telegraph
keys In the rear messed tho play, and the
whole gang were corralled In the back room.
In front Of the blackboard, and the pool
room man and the blissfully soused hobo
patient both were pinohed.
II there's any kind Of q gag the under
cover poolroom projectors out In Chicago
haven't tried since Carter Harrison hashed
the wide open thing, then you'll excuse me
while I takea grope for some white ohips I've
dropped on tho door.
'Ihe Fatima picture was one Of 'em.
That started on South Clark street, but GO
many. Natima pictures got to drawing 'em
when 1t was seen how the original one was
getting by that the game was tagged after
six months or so.
sThe Fatima picture was q hurriedly
p1Lut00 RoAtEbAbt obout 81 " ~ LOu6I VI
some lovely 'Circassian favorite Of the
Sultan reclining or q red satin divan,
wearing O cunnin' amber necklace, O cute
pair Of ~ourveytoed slippers. q smile, and
fine suite Of hair. Some Chicago artist
got $500 for hurting the thing together.
and Il wasn't such q dauby nude at that,
seen under the rows Of screened electric
lights that were placed all around 1t for
exhibition purposes. It was kept within
the bounds Of exhibition nudity and exhibited
for q nickel q hack.
you sea, that made tho ~plAnt-estab-
lishsd q reason why mel should DO coming
and going from that address. A barker
swished q little oans out in front Of the
place where the Fatima picture was ex-
hiblted, letting out the See the great
Fatima' Gowl for the general public, and
lot Of fatheads that never saw the inside |
Of q poolroom fell for the nickel q throw
thing and went inside to look at tho picture
Of the girl with the beads taking the moon
bath.
sThs real people, however, kept right |
through the dark room IN which Fatima !
was shown and found the big blackboard, |
with the horses names and the prices
chalked up, and the key a-working for the
call of man, In the extreme back room.
Tho right ones were tipped OF. Of course,
that the plant wal working back Of the
Fatima picture room, and that's the way
the game was set for fine business. The
fly bulls Of the Chicago gambling squad
might never have got hep to 1t, but whom
the other u Of business poolroom people
saw what a swell stall the Fatima gag was
got Fatimas painted, toe. Fatima
popped up In ABOUT eight places
town, and the bulls fell to It and
cleaned them all out.
'The whole thing. Of course, as l say, ,
is in getting some kind Of a dump in motion
permit Of the bunch coming and !,
without attracting attention and
80, when Fatima was curled up, the same
boy who invented that one was there with
else Of q similar kind. The
something else was IN anatomical museum
that he started over on Halsted street.
He bought up somewhere a job lot Of second
hand picked ears and plaster Of paris
bas reliefs of that hoy who poses for the
zodiac signs that you've seen In the almanac :
and the skulls OF famous murderer pre-
served IN alcohol and such like; scattered
The exhibits around on shelves and tables
the ground floor. put the barker out In
barker also serving n lookout
IN case Of q possible pinch--and was ready
Tor EN- at a dime per peek.
The blackboard, and the muted tele-
O-.-l