Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-07-18

No. 1908.

court he has not sentenced any defendants
found guilty of making handboooks on the
races In the cases filed in the court In
that time which are not still pending, col
laterals have been forfeited. Attachments
could have been issued for these defendants'
forcing them to stand trial, but that mas
not been done by prosecuting ATTORNEY
Ralph Given.
Judge Kimball has announced from the
bench that he will give handbook makers,
convicted before him absolute Jail SEN
fences So far the judges are concerned,
according to cour- officials, this policy has
been carried out.
When asked today why he had allowed
defendants charged with handbook making
TO forfeit collateral and had not forced
them TO trial Prosecuting Attorney Given
said that he had nothing to say at this
time He pointed out, however, that none OF
The. fOrfeituIeS allowed by. him has been
small, and most of them have near the
highest fine which is $3.50. The smallest
collateral allowed to be forfeited was $loo
the usual forfeiture was $500 to 500; and
i'm one case, where two men were charged
jointly, the total forfeiture amounted to
$3.50 These defendants, it was further ex-
planned, were before the court on this
charge for the first time.
Big Fish Uncaught.
Mr.. Given also stated that, of all the
men brought before the court charged with
making handbooks on the races, his investi-
cation of the information furnished by the
police showed that only one was backing
his own books. In other words the de-
PENDANTS In all but one of the cases were
the runners for the big men back of the
books; and that reason Influenced him in
taking collaterals In some cases, instead of
forcing men to trial. The fact that these
were runners became known to the po-
lice in the course of the investigations, and
yet, so far as the records of the court
show, according to Mr.. Given, the police
made no efforts to apprehend the men
backing the books.
1t was also pointed out today that in sew
eral cases where collateral was forfeited
the amount of collateral was fixed ct the
station houses and the money accepted
there in Maj. Sylvesters Jurisdiction for
the release of prisoners If leniency was
sh<wn then it is declared, the police de-
partment, not the courts, is responsible
More Harm Than Policy.
When the last handbook man has been
forced to quit business and those who
spend their earnings in hopes of reaping
fortune find it impossible to place their dol
lar bills on the ponies without seeking
gamblers outside the city there will be
many happy wives in this city. The hand
book men, remarked a public official today,
do more harm than the policy men did dur
ing the days when Jackson City fiourished
and when two members of the police de-
partment were openly alleged to have had
an interest in the game. Many complaints
have been made from time to time about
the work of the handbook men, sad stories
of the failure of husbands and fathers to
provide tor their families because of the
tondness for the gambling SIDE OF life being
related. So bold did some of the hackers
become, it is alleged that they discussed
fhair mn Si6
any apparent effort secrecy. There are
certain localities where such persons We're
to be seen at almost any time up to COM
paratively short while ago, but a number
of them We're driven out OF business through
fear; others because they lost their small
sums Of cash, and still others because they
refused to pay hits.
At the time a Jail sentence was imposed
upon one of the handbook men. 1t was
stated, number of others abandoned the
business because they feared similar treat
ment. 1t is stated that some of them did
not remain out of the business, long, how
ever, as such persons usually do not take
kindly to other forms of employment. The
handbook business HouriShed at and in the
vicinity of the government printing office,
and it is stated, Public Printer Stillings
took hand in the affair In that office, it
alleged. some of the employees were
personally interested in the handbooks. Not
long ago, rumor has it, quite a large book
was made in the vicinity of the navy yard.
Employees of several branches of the gov
eminent 1t is said, patroniZed the hand
book men literally.
Some handbook men have reaped a har-
vest during the past few years in some of
the markets. Not only have merchants
and persons who can possibly afford to lose
a few dollars lost money at the game, but
the handbook men have been largely pat
ronized by men and women who do buying
there.
1t is surprising that so many women
patronize these handbook men, remarked
a man who knows something of what has
been going on in some OF the markets. He
said that many women play the races as
regularly they go to market to purchase
supplies, and he took 1t for granted that
some of them probably charge their losses
TO household eXpenSeS