Chicago and its cess-pools of infamyWilson, Samuel Paynter
History
Chicago and its cess-pools of infamy
Wilson, Samuel Paynter
Chicago (Ill.) -- Social conditions; Prostitution -- Illinois -- Chicago
The visitors to these houses are men of means. No one without a
full pocket can afford such indulgence. Visitors are expected to
spend considerable money for wine, which is always furnished by
the proprietress at the most exhorbitant prices, and at a profit
of about 200 per cent. A large part of her revenue is derived from
such sales, and she looks sharply after this branch of the business.
The shamelessness with which men of standing and prominence, many
of whom are fathers of families, resort to these houses and display
themselves in the parlors is astounding. Indeed, the keeper of one of
the most fashionable houses boasts that married men are her principal
customers. Sometimes the visitor desires that his visits shall not be
known. For such persons there are private rooms, where they are sure
of seeing no one but the proprietress and the woman for whom their
visit is intended. These houses are largely attended by strangers
visiting Chicago; these, thinking themselves unknown in a large city,
care little for privacy, and boldly show themselves in the general
parlors. The proportion of married and middle-aged men among them is
very great. You will find among them lawyers, physicians, judges of the
courts, members of congress, and even ministers of the gospel, from
all parts of the country. This may seem a startling assertion, but the
police authorities will confirm it. If the secrets of these places as
regards their visitors could be made public there would be a terrible
rupture in many happy families throughout the land, as well as in the
metropolis. Men who at home are models of propriety, seem to lose all
sense of restraint when they come to Chicago. These same gentlemen
would be merciless towards any female member of their families who
should display a similar laxity.
To return to the women: the inmates of the first-class houses rarely
remain in them for more than two years. Their shameful and dissipated
lives render them by this time unfit for companionship with their
aristocratic associates. The proprietress quickly detects this and
remorselessly orders them from her house. She knows the fate that
awaits them; but her only care is to keep her house full of fresh and
attractive women.
The Next Step.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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