The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1907-03-02
Jew York's masher is doomed.

Cruelty to Children has organized a
"Masher Squad" Young women and
girls who are obliged to be about the
streets, especially in the evening, will
be safe from annoyance, if President
Lindsay can accomplish it.
These men on the detail have but
one duty-the protection of young
women from the unwelcome attentions
of these "bargaincOunter JOhnnies,' as
they are dubbed by the police. They
are already at work. and the results
are evident-in fact, they have been
so jealous that they have run across
civilian protectors, out to see that
the young women of their families
might walk the streets unmolested.
One evening last week, for instance
middleaged man was noticed stand
ing near the employees entrance of one
of the big department stores. APP
parently he had no business there, and
the detail from the squad took notice.
Presently out walked strikingly
pretty girl of IA. The elderly man
waited a moment and then followed
her. In and out of the early evening
crowd the girl hurried, the man close
behind, but out of her sight
The S. P. c. G.. men were at his
heels in turn, hoping to catch him ad-
dressing the pretty girl. But at Third
avenue there was a jam Of people
waiting to get on the cars, and the
agents lost their quarry.
OF course when they spotted the
same man on hand again the next
evening waiting outside the same door
they were sure they had a typical
''masher" The pretty girl came out
again. The man followed behind once
more.
Sure" answered the other, well
get him all right
Girl Gets on Car.
Again they trailed the two to Third
avenue. There the girl got on the car.
The man went away without speaking
to her, and the two men who were
following him had to drop it.
well get him yeti" wa stheir part
ing consolation to each other.
Sure enough, there he was, a third
time, the next day. Again he follow
the girl to the same Third avenue
corner. There, in the crowd, the girl
happened to turn around. The two
men of the Washers Squad saw her
start and speak to the man.
"Just get into this car dear" he
said
Got him at last" whispered one
Of the sleuths to the other, but they
decided to see what happened, to be
sure of good case. So they got
aboard. The car was crowded and
the two became separated The girl
got a seat finally, while the man stood
up at the other end of the car. Both
got off at One Hundred and Fourth
streets.
So did the pursuers.
They saw the man speak to the girl,
together they walked down the street
to the door of an apartment hOuse.
The man opened the door and the girl
stepped in ahead of him. Then the
officers stepped up.
1--WE are agents of the Society for the
Protection of Cruelty to Children"
said one of them. What do you mean
by following this young girl every
day."
"This Is My Daughter"
What do you mean by speaking to
me?' demanded the man. This little
girl is my daughter
1t was true He took the two men,
bers of the Washers Squad upstairs.
where the mother Of the girl was just
getting dinner ready. He then told his
story. His pretty daughter had been
annoyed so often by persistent men in
the street that he had been making it
a practice to hurry uptown from his
work every day in the hope of catching
some "masher" annoying his daughter.
Il didn't want her to know 1 was
behind he explained, because l felt
she shouldn't be frightened about go
| ing alone in the streets. l didn't want
her to think that she needed protection,
because she should not in a city like
| this"
| The upshot of it all was that the two
men dined with the family. Their
! father and mother expressed their
thanks that at last there was protec-
ton in the streets for their daughter,
though on this particularly occasion
| it hadn't been needed.
Another time two members of the
Washers Squad trailed three young
girls who were being followed by two
young men. The girls rebuffed the
men when they spoke to them, but they
kept on talking just the same. The of
ficers watched the five for a minute
and then stepped up and arrested the
two men.
In that brief time one of the young
women had lost her watch from her
belt and the other her chain purse
from her pocket. The young women