Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-05-21
STORY OF SAN FRANCISCO
WATER FRONT IN 1894

FRONT in 1874
was scarcely, any line OF cleavage at all
between his conduct on such occasions
and the conduct Of the men who dis
ported themselves with him. They were
was that which made you. looking upon
the scene hold your breath with sort
Of pity and sorrow for your species.
Soak. drunk proper" would dance with
waltz-wise embrace OF a drunken sailor.
while a piano-thumper in a dark corner
or the rear room pounded out tinny mu-
sic; The bear. towering high in his up
right position above the man thus locked
In his arms. would sway and reel around
to the strumming of the music. while
the leering drunkards sprawled about the
place rocked with mirth and took their
Guilty pipes from between their teeth the
better to exude their hoarse applause.
When ne was unusually spifred the
bear, thus attempting to waltz. often
would fan in a heap on the floor. dragging
they'd stretch supine I'M helped up. both
covered with the unholy offerings Of the
GROCERY floor.
Then Soak. progressing In his alcoholic
education came to the knowledge OF how
to give an imitation Of q speech or har-
Angue.
He would lean with his back to the
bar. one paw supporting him by q clutch
wooden bucket or beer. and then he would
furnish hideous imitation Of a human
being delivering himself OF an oratoricai
harangue. The sounds that came from
, the bears drunken throat were a success
sion Of hoarse. hiccoughish grunts. with
rising and falling infexions such as are
employed by drunken men in declaring
themselves. and he would accompany the
Grating grunts with gestures that were
uncannily like the gestures of a man in
the same clouded mental state. And the
gang Of saturated men, lolling In chairs
about the place, would at such times give
the entire door TO the bear. who would
stand up at the bar. Numbering on with
his dreadful chant, until drowsiness would
overcome him. when he would elouch
over to a corner. carrying what remain
| ed Of his bucket OF beer with him. ana
collapse into his corner for drunken sleep.
But they wouldn't let him sleep. They'd
rattle the rafters with their applause for
his speech ana then they'd kick him
awake and yank him to his feet and make
| him go through the performance again
and again.
| They taught him to box. They had
| a pair of huge boxing gloves made for
him. and during the hours of the day. be-
fore he became helplessly intoxicated.
Soak had a regular job boxing with the
j habitues of the place. He was very gen
| tie. or as gentle as he could be. at this
sort of work. but what seemed to him TO,
be mere light tap would send his hu.
| man antagonist with the gloves a-hying
| to a far corner OF the doggery II the
| bear had ever felt the temptation to let
himself out during these contests he
could, il was perfectly obvious to ali
hands, have killed any man standing be-
fore him with one merely half-hearted
jab from one Of his enormous paws.
The distressing. miserable spectacle az
| forded by that bear In Al Whites place
| at length was made the cause of COM
plant by decent men doing business OF,
the water front, and they made an earnest
but perfectly futile attempt to get the
authorities to put stop to the business.
| AL White stood in. being a bit Of a ward
heller, and Soak remained an inmate Of
his grogorium until
t a after nearly Year. stay n fhs
| place.
One day. being in grouchy humor. the
broken-nosed barkeep decided when he
went on duty early in the morning that
he wouldn't give Soak anything to drink
until he got good and ready. Upon his
appearance Soak shook himself out OF his
| slumber on the floor and stood up before
the bar for his customary morning snifter
of pint OF evil redeye. The broken-nosed
barkeep bawled the bear out. as II ad-
dressing q beseeching bum. and refused
to stake Soak to the stfmulant ne had SO
| long been used to. For four or five hours
the broken-noeed barkeep continued thus
| to torture the bear. At length the thor
| oughly soaked bear went to pieces. Some
thing snapped in him. for pure need of'the
| horrible stun the humans had got him
| into the habit Of drinking. and he became
a pure cinnamon bear of the Sierras all In
| an instant: bear with the d. is. He
1o har uytf
of his huge right paw almost killed the
broken-nosed barkeep. 1t took twenty
| men to arrest Soak. and eventually he
was sent back to his native Sierras. OFTEN
since I've wondered II the sunshine OF the
Sierras ever seemed the same to Soak
after that hideous experience of his with
| human beings.
CLARENCE L. CULLEN.