Show I Wayward New York Girls Now Paying the Wages of Sin I 1 I f t C Z F 1 r i 41 THE OTHER DAYThe sunny velvet l vet carpets and the silken draperies of their rooms at the WaldorfAs toria and truffles and lobsters and champagne and scented cigarettes E W Y 0It K Straight ahead ordered the matron ma-tron and the line of procession I 1 cession went past the long narrow benches placed on either side of a higher narrow bench called by courtesy a table Katherine and Charlotte Poll Ion the gay and pretty sirens and hotel ho-tel beats and their fellow prisoners stopped at the door at tho farthest i end The door opened The first prisoner i pris-oner was shoved In Five minutes later there was heard a splash Its the carbolic acid bath whispered whis-pered a woman who had been an Intermittent Inter-mittent guest at Blackwella Island New Yorks famous hostelry for malefactors male-factors The first prisoner came out shining from her bath and greatly subdued In manner and smellingof carbolic acid A shiver ran through the delicate frame of Katherine Polllon For tho woman had dropped her gaudy finery In the bathroom and come forth arrayed ar-rayed In tho hideous prison garb She had seen mattresses covered with precisely pre-cisely the same material heavy white ticking of alternate broad and narrow blue stripes Its skirt was short and scant reaching to the tops of the shoes The waist was gathered into the same unwieldy belt of blue and white ticking that held the skirt It was fastened over tho bosom with cheap flat white buttons The collar was a turnover At sight of the gown Katherlno Poillon bit her lip When her eyes traveled down beneath tho hem of the skirt and fell upon the shoes the eyes filled with tears The shoes were of prison manufacture nat soled square toed lowheeled of the cheapest leather manufactured All Finery Discarded In there Miss Polllon The matrons ma-trons voice was softer than the wardens ward-ens had been but Its tone was as determined de-termined Into the bathroom went the siren No1 An attendant helped her remove the long baby lamb cloak the fashionable broadcloth gown the big picture hat of black velvet and plumes She disrobed her of the clinging pink silk underwear tho chemise trimmed with real Valenciennes lace the black silk hoso with yellow butterflies flitting flit-ting among violets embroidered upon I them All these the attendant rolled quickly and not at all gently into a sheet pinned and labeled the sheet and into a bag of gray ticking thrust the womans eight diamond rings and emerald bracelet Get Into the tub commanded tho attendant Miss Poll Ion stepped forward dipped her foot daintily Into It and drew back commanded tho attendant Aw go on tendant and tho girl took tho plungo What Is this for sho asked asher as-her lips curled and hor nose tilted at the whiff of carbolic acid Antiseptic hath dont ask questions ques-tions answered the woman In the bluechecked uniform of the prison attendant who tendant A moment later the girl the Peacock Alley at tho amazed had WaldorfAstoria with the magnificence I came forth a humbled i of her gowns In the blue and I woebegone figure white stripes of penance Charlotte eNo So fared i tho procession they Following Iron stairs at the the narrow mounted hall to the second the meSA coot oC You Into 18 said the oC cells tier You Into Katherine to attendant and the Iron door Charlotte 19 to clanged after them YSuch a supper no truffles no lobsters no champagne Merely Mere-ly dry bread and bologna and coffee cof-fee a tin plate a tin cup one tin spoon The notorious Irrepressible Poll Ion sisters were repressed at last Young Womens Criminal Career Tho young women who have figured conspicuously and flagrantly In Now York in eviction suits In damage suits In suits for slander who have been the bane of hotel keepers and one of whom was a particularly prickly thorn In tho side of the Now York mil lonalre W Gould Brokaw whom she sued for breach of promise and with whom she settled for 17000 have subsided Into tho peace that outwardly outward-ly at least broods over Blackwells Island Latterly the young women had concentrated con-centrated their energies upon ingenious In-genious devices for beating their hotel bills In tho metropolis Tire Waldorf Astoria the Breslin the Bristol have all complained of the success of that ingenuity While practically penniless penni-less the young women had lived In ho most luxurious manner at these hotels for periods extending Into weeks and In some Instances months When weekly bills wore presented tho debtors showed a positive genius for evasion They were not In their rooms when tho bellboy tapped gently but firmly with ono hand while he held the weekly reminder In tho other Though he slipped tho bills under the doors the Polllon slstprs said they never received them Airily Air-ily they asked the bookkeeper when he telephoned their rooms about the overdue hills to add them to that for next week And tho bills for the next week wore accorded tho same reception recep-tion as the last Satan himself Is not more Ingenious Ingeni-ous than those women exclaimed an unhappy manager as ho ordered them evicted from his hostelry Retribution at last But at last Ingenuity failed The last coup of charging a Now York magistrate magis-trate with connivance In their manner of life was defeated The fluffy and furbelowed young women having made their last face at the presiding judge their final grlmaco of derision at their keepers in tho Tombs departed for Hlackwells Island The small snorting steamer Its original whiteness veiled In many accumulations ac-cumulations of smoke carried them from the foot of East Fiftysecond street across that portion of tho East river that separated the shore from tho Island which Is the workground for city prisoners Tho sisters drew their furs about them and elevated their dainty noses when the closo quarters of tho little steamer caused contact with the oddly assorted consignment con-signment to the island Katherine had recourse to a cutglass goldmounted vinaigrette Charlotte rose and paced tho deck with her wellknown athletic stride Fancy the contrast to tho gay Indolent Indo-lent afternoons when the sisters In flue furs and big picture hats they never paid for flashed through the park In automobiles In luxurious abandon At the landing a man In blue uniform uni-form whoso voice was as coarso as the whistle of tho river tugs met them and shouted Fall In line there I When Katherlno the smaller of the pair did not understand tho I order he grasped hor shoulder and thrust her beside a bent old Italian woman who horribly grinned and gibbered I gib-bered Charlotte walked beside a no gross who had been arrested for disorderly dis-orderly conduot on Twentyeighth street Within the Prison Doors Tho sorry procession ludicrous In spite of Its wretched significance as Falstnfla army marched from the landing to tho broad doors whoso stone steps had been worn by tho feet of thousands of the citys criminals Tho door of tho great castlollko Jail swung back grindingly on Its heavy hinges To tho right shouted tho man with the oleo of a tugboat whls tie and tho motley human assortment wont In at tho open door of tho wardens ward-ens office Warden OFallon white haired bureaucratic of manner with crisp metallic voice sat at his desk and peered from under bushy brows at tho women Javert himself could not havo been less emotional Your ago ho said peering under tho bushy brows at Katherine Twon Oh well 30 And you to Charlotte I am 24 I brought her up volunteered the volublo Katherine And right badly I should say camo In tho wardens crisp biting tones Murphy call Miss Moriarlty Tho matron stout soft volceti firm willed entered Sho looked the women wom-en prisoners over with level glance Knthcrlno preened and fidgeted trying to display hor prettiness In a good light Sho flualicd when she saw by Matron Morlarltys cool glance that for her she had no Individuality Sho was merely on of the vow batch The First Night In Jail Come this way said Miss Moriar Ity and tho female prisoners followed marching in pairs Katherlno still the companion of tho bent mumbling Italian woman leering at hor own untranslatable un-translatable jests Charlotte striding besldo the regress Across a wide roofed court whose stono floor rang with echoes of tho footsteps of tho prisoners Miss Moriarity led her or rather drove tho prisoners to tho female fe-male department of tho workhouse The long highwalled narrow room repeated tho sound of their footsteps hollowly for tho female department was empty The women were at work in the laundry tho kitchen or tho scwing room Tho women sat down upon their narrow nar-row cots for tho very good reason that thoro was nothing else to alt upon In the narrow gravelike room whitewashed white-washed walled was a small rough triangular bracket that held a candle a drinking cup with space left for one book a small Testament At tho foot was an electric light On a rough stand stood a basin That was all Tho prison smell hung heavy upon the tiny room for the only means of ventilation ven-tilation was tho barred door through the spaces of which filtered a slight hint of tho outer air that came through tho corresponding windows In tho great gray walls opposite the cell No Dainties at This Meal Such a supper No truffles no lobster lob-ster no champagno Merely dry bread and bologna and coffee eaten from a tin plate or drunk from tho cheapest tin cups with but one aid for knives and forks are prohibited at Blackwells Island There primitive hands and primitive teeth are supplemented sup-plemented by one tin spoon Instead of damask napery wero rough narrow boards scrubbed clean but boards nevertheless This after the sunny velvet carpets and silken draperies of their rooms at tho WaldorfAstoria truffles and lobsters and champagne and scented cigarettes The elder of tho Polllons dampened threo handkerchiefs while sho sat thoro waiting for tho nasty meal to be overTime over-Time Polllon sisters on their first evening atJJIackwells displayed no appetite At the end of the 1C minutes min-utes meal they Joined another procession proces-sion It seems to mo they do noth lug but march here complained Charlotte i Char-lotte peevishly Sho met tho steel gray eyes of the matron You will find out differently tomorrow to-morrow she said dryly There will bo processions but there will bo work alsoTo To cells 18 and 19 they went again after tea There although tho electric elec-tric light may burn until malf past nine thoro was darkness and a hilarious hilari-ous regress rattled tho door of her cell and cursed softly because tho sound of her neighbors sobbing fretted her Beginning the Long Day At flvo the next morning tho gong sounded Every prisoner sprang out of bed If she lingered she would bo punished Punishment sho know meant a brief Interview with tho warden ward-en and then tho dark cell behind the big Iron door at tho end of tho mess hall The dark cell every prisoner can tell you breaks the boldest spirit and renders tho wildest captive humble hum-ble In a few hours It Is they tell you an Inferno of silence and darkness dark-ness Tho women thrust themselvos into time ugly striped uniforms combing their hair back plain and smooth from their foreheads and fastening It In n tight unbecoming knot at time back of tho head as Is the rule at Black wells and putting on tho black knitted prison hood grasp the cell palls In their hands and set forth on I the first procession of the day Down tho stairs through tho corridor past tho big doors Into the dawn of the fresh day they go If a thought of flight visits them a harsh voice at their elbows calls Hurry on there No fooling you They march to tl shore ompty their palls and go u I through thb prrxt door Into tho tainted prison r once moro Up time stairs to their ifs hoots off palls 4 deposited and they resume their march Into the mess hall below Plain Dill of Fare If It Is Monday thoy breakfast from tho tin pan and cup and with tho aid of the spoon off bread and hash and coffee If It be Tuesday their meal It oatmeal and coffee If Wednesday they have bread and jellY and coffee They march around the tables do posit their spoons In a box at the end of the table and go In regular file to tho work that has been assigned them Tho Polllons as a first essay at hard labor were ordered to tho big square sowing room Thoro Katherlno darned socks Chatlotto mended torn sheets and tattered blue and white striped dresses They sat on rough chairs and stooped until their backs achod over their tasks Through Charlottes mind flitted recollections of tho diversified golf links Beforo Kathorlnos vision danced tho gay invitation of the spring shop windows By noon they wore faint but their e dollrato stomachs rchclKd nt the midday mid-day dinner vegetable soup roast rump steak potatoes eabbago and thick though not strong coffee Kathcrlnos tears dripped Into tho big tin cup of coffee Charlotte frowned heavily Back again for the afternoons work They wore Interrupted only by nn attendants at-tendants Cant you do bettor than t that Every woman ought to bo ablo to do a little light family washing During tho morning sowing Charlotte complained that the brass thimbles might cause blood poisoning But no ono paid any attention to tho pair who had been In tho public eye until they had grown to like It Their follow fol-low prisoners when they looked at thorn at nil looked Insults When they spoke to thorn thoy jeered 2 Jeered by Companions How do you like the Hotel Black well whispered n hard faced dame over the wash tubs during tho afternoon after-noon session OFallons a mighty sharp hotelkeeper 4 hotel-keeper Nobody over beats his bills Tho Poillon sisters reddened and were mad through and through Char lotto thumped her washboard viciously At five came tho call to tea then back to their cells went tho sisters to rend a little If they chose from books in tho prison library Lights r must bo out nt 930 tho hour at which these gay women of upper Bohemia wero wont to dlno rime next day both sisters wore heavyeyed and pale Knthcrlno I could not answer the matron when sho spoke to her Huh prison sore throat I suppose sup-pose said Miss Morlarlty and sent for the hospital physician Ho or e t l 1 L I r YHow do you like the Hotel Blackwell whispered a hardfaced dame over the tubs OFallons a mighty sharp hotel keep Nobody ever beats his bills dored her to tho hospital For lesser symptoms of tho same sort Charlotte followed her When this temporary Illness has ended they will go back to tho prison routine and the sewing and tho soapsuds Those rules will again face them from the blackboard In tho mess hall Rules for the Mess Hall 1 Prisoners while at meals aro forbidden for-bidden to talk or make any unnecessary unneces-sary noise 2 They aro forbidden to spill soup on tho table or drop bread upon tho floor 3 Those wishing to pass reading matter or any other articles while al the table must obtain permission from tho office I 4 No ono shall leave her beat at tho table without permission 6 When leaving the mess table each prisoner will bring her spoon and deposit It In the spoonbox C Violation of limo above rules will subject the offender to punishment From the Now York American |