Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1913-01-24
A Detective
Scheme
BY JOHN GALLAGHER. j..

Every large city has it parts where
rogues do cOngregate. and as the city
grows so grows the region OF vice.
Many are the devices of the detectives.
or plain clothes men. as they are call
ed. to trap those they are after and
land them in Jail. One would suppose
that hiding in crowded community
would be easy compared with the coun.
try, where everybody knows every.
body else's business and any one I'm.
accounted for attracts attention. But
the police say that If they can get
crook they are after into the munich.
pal net they are sure to land him-that
is. If they pounce upon him so suddenly
that he can't have time to slip through
their fingers.
The underworld has its society" as
well as the upper world. though 1t Is
far more transient. AS to dancing. as
the Turkey trot song goes. Every
bodys doing it," The social bottom
has its soirees as well as the social top.
One evening young man entered
dance hall in Philadelphia where
"tOughs" and their girls met. He look
ed tougher than any other man In the
room. stovepipe nat was mashed
down over his eyes. under which were
pair Of bIeared eyes. a flaming red
nose and stubble beard. He was
very agile and put on a good deal of
style. which was comical In such q de-
graded person. Marching up to one of
the women. he made a. crooked bow
and crooked his arm Mt her. She took
it and strutted Off with him, putting
on all the airs OF the upper ten thou.
sand.
Look at 'em!'
What llligance!
where did the bloke come from?"
"And the ieddy-she'd make a pea.
cock ashamed of ITSELF"
The music struck up. and the dance
began. The couple who had attracted
the attention of the company continued
to hold it by their remarkable antics
In the dance. The gentleman seemed
made Of rubber. and the lady didn't
seem to care as to showing her ankles.
Now and again the former jumped
three or four feet from the door. and
every time he gave whoop. And aft.
er every jump Of the man the woman
would jump higher and whoop louder.
The dance over. they separated and
danced with others. but later in the
evening the man approached the won.
an again, jumped In the air before her.
made a more profound bow than be
fore. and they sailed away together
In round dance. spinning like a tee
totum. They evidently enjoyed the
amusement they created. and in order
to increase It they began to bump cou.
pies they passed. This feature was
more successful with the onioOkers
than any other.
But very soon the bumps they gave
began to come hack to them with in.
terest. One couple after another ran
into them and presently began to run
into one another. The humping be-
came not only general. but increased
in force. Then the bumpers began to
flre up.
In less than half an hour after this
swell couple started the innocent pleas.
antry OF knocking dancers on their
pins tho assembly resolved itself into
free fight. There were bowling and
swearing and whooping. and no man
made more noise than the stranger and
no woman more than the strangers
girl. The proprietor jumped on a table
and yelled at the top Of his voice:
what do you want to bring down
the police on the house for? Shut up!"
He might as well have tried to still
Z tempest with penny trumpet 1t
was bin. BID. biz! with here a growi.
there a yell. a screech from some wo.
man occasionally sounding shrill above
the uproar like the wind bowling
through the rigging Of d ship.
Presently two policemen rushed into
the room. One Of them cast his eye
over the assembly and. seeing the imi.
tator of swelldom sparring with red
headed man, q scar on bis left cheek,
went up to him and arrested him. Az
he pushed his prisoner along the lat.
ter said to him:
"Got 'em blocked beloww
ayes. Who's heref''
Cant tell. Take in the lot and sift
'em out"
There was q wild rush for the door.
but a dozen policemen stood in the
way. Then some Of the men went to
the windows, but the hail was on the
third story Of building and nothing
between 1t and the ground. There was
a skylight. and snme tried to get out
on to the roof. but there were no means
Of getting up to 1t. The clang Of pa
troll wagons sounded below. and one
by one the recent revelers were taken
down past Tine Of policemen. put into
wagons and driven to the station.
Among the others were the hilarious
stranger and the girl who bad helped
him amuse the company. The police
man who had arrested them said some
thing to the officer at the desk. and