Smyrna times., 1933-06-14
SIDE LIGHTS OF
NEW YORK CITY
Told BY Walter Trumbull in
His Own Immical Way
of DOings in City
INTERESTING SKETCHES

Kitchen had an encounter, with
Hell's Kitchen coming out poor
second. AS may be remembered
Thomas E. Armstrong, a Dallas
fTexas) young man who was cap
tain of the 1892 Harvard varsity
crew, was steered into a Hell's
Kitchen clip joint. After a some
what unpleasant experience, he led
a police escort back. The escort
was in charge of Capt. Patrick Nc
Weigh, whose son is light heavy
weight champion of the Harvard
campus. Spectators, including a
newspaper man who had a son in
Harvard, said it was a grand battle.
1t ended with four racketeers cring-
ing in a corner, freely confessing
their part in mistreating Captain
Armstrong and begging that there
be no more hOstilities. After that
the police wrecked the joint and, as
this is being written, three badly
battered gentlemen are in Jail await
ing trial, the fourth having been
turned loose for lack of evidence. A
clip joint is a speakeasy where a
visitor loses all his possessions. In
at least one known instance, the Wis
itor also lost his life.
All this is merely leading up to
somewhat similar incident, which
is not a part of police records. A
taxicab driver, who picked up fare
bound for the Pennsylvania station,
mentioned that he knew of a near
by speakeasy where the liquor was
excellent and the entertainment even
better. The stranger, who had a
couple of hours to kill before train
time, fell in with the suggestion and
was driven to an address in the
West Forties. The liquor was good
and the entertainers young, pretty
and talented. The stranger, small,
dark and quiet, bought several
rounds. In each instance the check
was exactly right. Nevertheless, at
four o'clock in the morning, he
awakened on doorstep in the Sew
enties and hurried search revealed
that a diamond ring, diamond pin
and $3.50 in cash were missing.
One evening about week later,
the clip joint proprietor. moving
about among the patrons, caught
one pouring drink on the floor. He
was Just about to make some re-
mark when something hit him back
OF the ear. At that same instant
four patrons, seated at separate ta-
bles, went into action while another
admitted a small dark man. When
the proprietor came to, he found
that instead of a clip joint, he had
only ruin, that a diamond ring
had been stripped from his finger, a
diamond pin from his tie and some
thing like $1,000 removed from his
pockets. And standing over him
was small dark quiet man who
grinned when he whispered a few
words.
These few words were to the ef-
feet that when a friend of SO and SO
and so Of Chicago comes to New
York, he's to be treated right and
not to be taken like Ii common
sucker. The clip joint gentleman
agreed with the small dark man, and
since then hasn't been seen about
his usual haunts.
City residents who spend their
week-ends on trout streams are not
doing well. That statement is based
on an assertion of a doctor friend !
whose shack is on the BeaverkiII.
When the season opened the first of |
the month, the trout didn't seem to |
be interested in flies. So some low
born fishermen tried worms, and 4
The trout are still mighty wary.
Once In a while, | see a trout fish
erman in the subway. Trout are
said TO be caught in the Bronx.
A sweet-faced little girl was max
Ing her way toilsomely across Broad
way on a pair Of crutches. evidently
a victim of infantile paralysis. AS
she was passing big car, the rat
faced driver grinned and suddenly
sounded his horn. The child col
lapsed in a pathetic heap. AS pity.
ing hands picked her up, a we'll.
dressed. wasp-waisted young man
shot his fist through the open win
dow of the car. 1t smacked the
grinning drivers face so bard his
hat flew up as If sprlng-propelled.
The driver yelled to high heaven.
But the traffic cop went deaf, dumb
and blind. A salute to him and to
the quick-fsted gentleman. And the
Bronx cheer for the rat-faced driver.
q. 1898. Bell syndicate.--wNU Service