The San Francisco call., 1908-05-07
BARBARY COAST IS
READY FOR TARS
Dives, Dance Halls and Street
Attractions Prepared for
Sailors

The new Barbary coast and tender
the jaclies and the harvest of dollars
that will be garnered before the fleet
steams out again through the Golden
gate. The dance halls along Pacific
and in lower Kearny streets are gay
with color and flags; the women who
have been engaged to glide with Jack
over the uneven but polished floors to
the ragtime of an asthmatic piano or
wheezy accordion are decked out in all
their f1nery. The fat, sleek proprietor
wears sparkler in his shirt front that
rivals the electric lights that illumine
the scene and smiles pleasantly, for
he is mentally calculating the profit
to be derived from the sale of beer at
90 cents or twice so cents a bottle
the price to be regulated by the size
of the purse of the warsman and the
skill of his dancing partner as a sales
woman.
While the sailormen did not come
ashore last night the dance halls did
a thriving business, for hundreds Of
visitors from interior points hocked to
that quarter of the city to inspect the
new Barbary coast that has all the
allurements of the old one with few
new attractions added. The advent of
the sightseers served the purpose of a
last dress rehearsal before the curtain
rises tonight on the metropolitan
drama. Separating the sailor lad from
his money"
Before darkness had enveloped the
myriads of electric lights in the dives
and dance halls were welcoming the
throngs on the sidewalks to enter and
rejoice The ebony colored man at the
piano drummed on the ivory keys as If
his life depended on the effort and the
notes rang out on the night air not un-
like the thump of stick against a tin
can. The listener on the sidewalk
might, II he was attertive, discover a
few bars of the star Spangled Ban
ner" or some other air that appeals to
the patriotism Of the American people.
but before he could determine in his
mind what particular melody the mu-
sician was mutilating there came from
Dupont street the clash of gongs in
some Chinese household, for the sons
of Confucius We're taking part in the
celebration. Chinatown was not to be
denied it's part In the joyous occasion.
In the spaces not devoted to the
dance halls and saloons the energetic
takers set up in business to gather
the small change that did not find it's
Ndy llllO the COlleIS Ol Tile QlNe OWL
ers. There was the quick lodging ne
gro who permitted the sightseer to
hurl five rubber balls at his head, poked
through a cloth partition, in considera-
ton of the payment of dime few
doors below the visitor could try to
drop wooden ring over one OF several
hundred knives stuck in an inclosed
board-three rings for dime. Then
there was the card machine to coax
away more nickels. Above the machine
printed card announced the fact that
six checks were sold for a quarter and
that "a pair of jacks with the four and
five of clubs would be rewarded with
$5 worth of merchandise. No one
earned the reward.
The air was heavy with the perfume
of frying onions that accompanied the
hamburger steak sandwich which
found ready sale when the itinerant
vender of that delicacy made his ap-
pearance with his one-horse cart.
Pitched in the old plaza at Washing
ton and Kearny streets are ten circular
tents that will furnish accommodations
for the sailor boys who fall victim to
the beverages dispensed>on the Barbary
coast. When a jacky becomes so full
of enthusiasm and beer that he is IN
able to steer a straight course through
the forest of dives and deadfalls. the
provost guard will gather him in and
stow him away in one of these canvas
guardhouses. There he will slumber
until daylight. then to be taken aboard
ship and kept there until he recovers
from the effects of his jubilation. There
will be no patrol wagon rides for the
sailormen, unless they seriously frac-
ture the laws and ordinances. The
marines will act in accord with Chief
Biggys men and assist them In main