Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1922-04-20
co1.IRE sPRATT COMMENTS.

.uave some chewing gum," said
,,,,;-e Spratt, as he eased himself in
- chair in the Register office the
",5e- day. The editor took package
sor s,or, the handful that the Squire held
~, .,r' lake some pep'mints, too," he
OsnerousIy offered. We suggested that
o. mist have had windfall Of candy,
wbereat he looked sheepish.
well" he said, 81 may as we'll own
-, that been playing the dern fool.
seen lot of young fellers swarmlng
around these here slot machines that
have become so popular in Shepherds
,ovn and | Just had to laugh at the
vav they were losing their money. But
nm be dinged if the blame thing did
nj trap me too. | put nickle in the
.lot of one of them and got two brass
checks. They told me that could ex-
mango the checks for goods, and !
spured was FIVE cents ahead.
thought I'd get few more, and slip
ned IN another nckle, but got moth
ing that time, except the chewin' gum
or pepmintS that they give you il
Won ask for them. Well, wasn't 60
ine 10 be beat so easy, so slipped in
some more nickles. Sometimes | got
4 check or two and then again I'd have
long run without getting anything.
Believe me or not" said the Squire,
with a wry face, "but old as | am
lust acted the plum fool. When I'd
win few of them trifling checks I'd
try TO get more of them. II I'd lose,
I'd sort o get mad and keep on play
ing for spite Now don't you tell any
body" he whispered, looking around
suspiciously, "but before | could get
away from the place lost three dol
lars and fifty cents and all had to
show for it was few of these here
brass checks and a passel of mints
and chewin' gum. I'm trying to git
rid of it before go home, for | would
Mt have my wife know I'd been gamb-
ling-nO, not for ten dollars.
Course" reflected the Squire, 81
can afford to lose the three-fifty, but
| see a whole lot of young fellers
playing the machine that know ought
MT be spending the money their par
ents allow 'em, and there are others
who would do a whole lot better If
they would save their money instead of
squandering it. | heard of one young
feller who spent six or seven dollars
one week on the machines, and he had
nothing to show for it except lot Of
candy he didn't want and some trifles
that he soon got sick of. They tell me
he was a printer" the Squire remark
ed. u thought newspaper folks had
too much sense to be taken in by such
tricks-but then | thought had, too"
The Squire's face grew more ser
ious. This is just nothing more or
less than gambling" he said, "and it
is dong lot of harm. One of my
nelgh0or'S boys come to town the
other day with dollar and a-half that
MS mother had given him to buy some
goods with at store. He got > fool
ing. with the slot machine, AMI in a
little time he had showed every cent
OF his money into it, Then he had to
run around trying to borrow money to
get the goods with. Amt that demor-
aIi7lng'" ne asked. We admitted that
II looked that way. "Then, why don't
ule prosecuting attorney have these
s:ag sa:Iloing machines busted up? They
nolate the spirit of the law, il not the
ietter, and they oughtn't to be permit
'ea to tempt the boys"
me Squire sort o. chuckled. "What
:ooiS we mortals be-" he said. "Isn't
II queer the way we play the boob for
uleSe cry sharpers? Our money comes
nara n mere in the country, yet we 90
and poke II into trap, with our ewes
~, w.ue open, and then sit around and
on "asch slick shark with a big nose
eo solle up from Baltimore and take out
ana pocket what we put there for him.
II; ~ %oudnt be hard to guess what he
t,n.lks bnII OF US poor simps here in Shep-
money. p'"s iiii u"
Nov don't you put anything in the
pspeT pTpT about this" the Squire warned.
my my wife reads the Register closer
' man She does her Bible, and don't
R". R".I i her to know what a fool I am.
ba' be u IL reckon she knows that ANYHOW !"
ma .sIeu' Tor she has been watching
,bi. M ',tn' ,!,., close for forty years. I bet
me- ms , m,.le adventure of mine will cost
,be ,e more nor. than the money dropped in
70 o;,,o S,o' machine. reckon ri have
socio. So give hve dollars to, her missionary
cus 'sy ana let the boys 90 to the cir,
mos @ .e squire arose he handed out
sO,.e sU.e chewing gum and mints. "Haye
edn "'''e' he said. "l'm overstock-