The Washington times., 1908-08-31
Existence of Traffic Admit
ted, But Evidence Is
Hard to Find.
PATHS INTO DENS
ARE ALL DEVIOUS
Party of Young Men Said TO Have
Located One Place on Ave
nue. Near Capitol.

Admitting that rafAc in opium Is one
Of the chief sources Of revenue in Wash
ingtOns Chinatown, and adding that
there may be a few 'Joints" where
white persons go to smoke hop" Of
ficiaIs OF the Police Department said
today that the only reason these places
are not closed up is because II Is al
most impossible TO get evidence that
will result in q conviction in the Police
Court
One night last week, twenty young
men. all Of them living IN the best
residential section Of the city, started
out on Summing tour. The crowd
visited several resorts In Chinatown.
eating chop suey and enjoying many or
the other dishes served exclusively IN
the Oriental rest aurants. One of the
party suggested ,hat they all hit the
pipe The suggestion met with ap-
proval and the crowd started out TO
md hop Joint"
At FIRST. the celestials denied that there
was any such place in the city, but
when one Of the crowd handed him
yellow bill, he directed them 10 a room
on the top floor of a building In Penn
sylvanla avenue. between Third and
Four-and-a-half streets. almost WithLE
a stones throw of the CapuCl-
Room Shabbily Furnished.
In this room, which was shabbily
furnished and might easily have been
taken for the sitting room IN a cheap
| lodging house, the young men enjoyed
| the soothing effects OF the drug that =
made from the poppy.
| OF course. these young SlO0ds'' were
willing to spend plenty of money. and
when they left Chinatown that night,
they left considerable money-more than
enough for the Celestial who conducted
the place TO leave at the station house
as collateral had the police happened
TO raid the Joint"
In just what building Ihis rocm IS
located the members Of the uaTty were
unable to say. The cunning Of the
play 10 prevent any possible danger OF
detection. The party entered the store
or Chinaman, were led into a rear
room and entered another building by
means OF the rear door. Through a
small passage they went TO another
| building. and back and forth through
adjoining rooms until none Of them
could tell exactly where they were sThen
they went up three flights OF steps. and
the room into which they were finally
ushered had been cureained so tfey
could get no view Of their surroundings
from the windows.
Outfit Brought In.
There was nothing in the room to fndI-
cate that it was an opium den. but in a
few minutes several Cinnamon appeared,
bringing an elaborate outnt for each
meE. Der.
T--o establishment through which the
party entered is conducted by a China
man who has been raided on at least
one occasion. After warning the Ceies-
tial 10 stop selling opium TO white men,
John Van Zant. District pharmacy in
spectOr, arrested him, and took him 10
the station. The proprietor deposited
S25 collateral for his appearance in the
Police Court, but when the case was
called he forfeited.
The police say that they are many
white men who purchase the dope 10
however, know they are being watched
by the police, and sell the drug only 10
persons whom they know 10 be ALI
right. A stranger cannot buy opium in
any Of the stores now.
Not long ago an effort was made to
obtain evidence against a certain Celes-
tial, and policeman from one of the
outlying precincts, dressed In citizen
clothes, was commissioned to make the
purchase. The proprietor positively re-
fused TO sell TO him, denying that he
kept opium, and the same answer was
given by several others.
That a large majority Of the 500
Chinese in Washington smoke opium
is admitted by the police No effort,
however, Is made TO prevent the China
men from selling to each other and
smoking as much as they want.
Smoking Eot Prevented.
'If they want to kill themselves in
this manner, let them go ahead said
one official Of the department this morn
ing. There never has been an at
tempt made 10 prevent them from
smoking opium, and it would be a use
less job, anyway The only way to ger
evidence against them would be to catch
them in the act, and any policeman who
can catch them lnust be endowed vlth
second sight. What we want to do is
10 prevent the traffic among white peo-
pie and negroes although there are
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