The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-12-06
Early Closing Order Makes
Drug Store Habitues Sad.
Money Can't Buy .Shot'' From
"White-Jacket, After 5 p. M.
Topeka BONE DRY THESE DAYS
All Sorts of Schemes Tried to
Get Around the Ordinance.
OF Course, There Is No Law
Against Giving Away Drinks.

The ways of the coke" fiend are
strange and curious
Not the coke" dopes who snuff a
whfff of white dust from the hollow
on top OF their. hands from between
the thumb and first fingers, nor the
sort that shoot the speed juice" into
their aging veins with shiny little
hypodermic outfits. nor the kind that
lie sensuously in Oriental luxury on
sort couches hung with heavy curtains
in the murky comfort of mysterious,
al pervading gloom of carefully
shrouded lights
It's the sort that come busting"
into drug stores. shouting at the in
offensive white-jacketed lad behind
the bar. Gimme a coke"-"A shot in
the arm. Jack"-"Spill me out little
dope, will yuh and the guy who or
ders for the bunch. "A gang of .eokes'
and shake a mean Leg" with, Two up
and two down" from some ex-barfIy.
accompanied by the inevitable come
dian who adds casually. I'll take the
same Then the poor little bile girl
looks confused-but not SO confused
put you can see she is actively con-
templating advising you to Go to IL"
Bone Dry at 5.
The drug stores cram down the gates
and jam on the bone-dry law at pm.
sharp-absolutely. No amount of pull.
threats or bribery can entice one of
long enough to surreptitiousIy sling
you out rough slug of coke" and
all that today makes a ''fiend's" life
gloomy.
What can they do? They all get
out of work Just as the minute hand
does an "oblique" across the visage
of the timepiece.
! By the time they have stampeded.
slipping and sliding on the icy side
| walks to the drug shop, doing gro
tesque st. Vitus dance steps. crossed
with quiVering Shimmie shuttle. and
an occasional wild, weird Highland
fling, mpanied by the enthusia site
shrieks of joy and pleasure from the
multitude-it's already five o'clock
and the "cokes are taboo"
But there are ways. One faithful
ing drink, strolled into a shop the
other afternoon at two minutes of five
O'Clock. The bartender saw him COM
ing and jerked down the customary
| little shot Contentedly the ''habitue"
slipped the drink between whiffs from
"Dromedary limited. drive your
own coffin nails, cut down the high
; cost of dying. In burst one of the
wild men-one- minute after five.
He raved. snorted and rowed with the
obdurate one behind the bar taking
off his little jacket Nothing stirring
J
Buys from Customer.
Say, buddy, I'll pay for the drink
If you gimme half of what's left
| Put her away" said the other as he
slid the half-full glass down the bar
with that contented feeling of having
done something for suffering hui
mainly.
Then there is another organization
"a gang of Reds. Bolshevfsts, OF
something of that kind. One of the
thugs gets loose a little sooner than
the rest About two minutes before
the hour of doom he speeds into a
shop and orders up drinks for the
gang. Regular cabaret stuff-order
your drinks before the fateful hour
and drink them when you get to it.
Order your drink and sit there if you
want to until the manager gets ready
to throw you out before drinking it.
! Then about a minute and one-half
after the hour in comes the thirsty
crew. There is no law against a man
| giving away a drink he has already
misunderstanding on the drink,
ne c'est pas.