Evening star., 1923-01-28

penalties imposed are largely in the
nature of fines, which. in the main,
have the desired effect and cause the
offenders to be more careful the next
time.
1t Is true. of course, that the reg
u,ars," those unfortunates that have
the unhappy faculty of getting into
trouble all the time, generally draw
fail sentences. with or without fines,
and these chronic offenders are wise
enough, in the great ajority Of in
stances, to throw themselves on the
mercy of the court after making
plea for leniency.
NOW and again you will find that
l Y some smart aleck," who Is not
familiar with the routine here. tries to
burco the presiding officer. He is gen
orally some would be wise guy who
still is OF the impression that there is
no town in the country outside OF
New York, but after ne has regained
his senses he finds that the mild
hammered man on the bench has
handed him a jolt that will prevent
him from mingling with his fellow
men for several months to come.
While the local judges are fair, yes,
even merciful men, they have been on
the bench long enough to know how
to spot and to handle any wise one"
that blows into the city, and 1t Is
rather amusing to see the change Of
expression on the faces of those who
thought that they could get away
with 1t when they find that the gentle
person on the bench has not fallen
for their line of chatter and has seen
through their thinly veiled lies.I
If YOU want to see the beginning of
the Police Court work drop into most
any station house the night before
you are going to visit the court and
you will see men and women being
brought to the desk and charged with
the infractions that the officers who
brought them in have placed against
their names. II an alleged offense Is
such that bail can be accepted, and
the accused person has the necessary
cash to deposit at the station house
or can secure the services of bonds
man, he is turned loose and told to
report at 9 the next morning at the
Police Court. If not turned loose he
spends the night in a cell.
If you want to be in at the very be-
ginning of the show you should drop
down there q few minutes before 3
am. and watch the line of officers and
others as they are waiting their turn
to be heard by the district attorney
and his assistants. 1t is a busy place,
and it is no locality for shrinking
violet sort Of a person, for every one
there is anxious TO get his or her mat
ter attended to. You don't dare even
sneeze, lest you lose your place be-
fore the railing that separates the
legal lights from the outsiders and
the officers.
About 10 o'clock you step into the
room where justice Is to be dispensed,
and If you are wise you Will sit about
three seats from the front row, for
this is the best place to hear and see
asa thst Is going on. From this point
st vantage you can hear the quiet
asides from witnesses. those about to
be tried and their friends. From this
point you can hear some of them
speculate upon their cases. and some
times, although not often. you can
hear two offenders laying a wager as
u which one will draw the larger
ffne.
: - 3 X
T~HE judge has entered the room,
i the bailiffs are shouting for
order, the district attorney has taken
his seat and the name of the
first person to be tried is called out
in tones loud enough to be heard all
over the room. If he does not an