New York, unlike other large cities, does not permit doubling of parties in taxis, and neither the passenger nor the driver is permitted to make an exception. Main reason for this rule is Gotham's huge transient population. Permitting strangers to share cabs would open an easy avenue of access for thieves and trollops to meet and make up to their quarry. Under our law, a cab must take you wherever you want to go inside the city limits. If the driver refuses to carry you to your destination order him to take you to the nearest police station. There are no extra charges on or off the meter, other than 50 cents for trunks and waiting time. Pay only what appears on the meter, plus a tip. * * * * * If you are waiting for a cab at a public place, such as a hotel, theatre, night club, railroad station or hack stand, you must take the first in the feed line, if there is one there, instead of grabbing the one discharging passengers. This is a city ordinance. * * * * * It is next to impossible to obtain theatre tickets for the hits, and those you can get you won't want. * * * * * There are, of course, the licensed ticket agents or "brokers" which you will find in every hotel lobby and around Times Square. They are permitted by law to charge a nominal premium. But these brokers seldom have up-front seats for hits for the same night. For any sell-out show or for an important baseball, football or other sports event, you must figure in an added premium of from two to five dollars per ticket, often more. Your bellboy may be able to dig the ducats for you, or he can recommend a scalper who bootlegs them above legal price. Otherwise, try your luck bribing the ticket agent's clerk. If you don't have to plan in advance, a good tip is to go to the box office just at curtain time. Quite often you can get excellent seats at list price, and sometimes even cheaper when the last-minute returns come in from the agencies. The choice tickets for the hits are in the hands of brokers and scalpers long before the shows first come to Broadway, through what is known in theatrical parlance as "buys." The big agencies underwrite the shows before they are produced by buying anywhere from $10,000 to $50,000 worth of tickets in advance. Many expensive shows could not be produced if this money were not forthcoming from the speculators. At the same time, the specs take a terrific gamble, for if the show is a flop they are stuck with worthless pasteboard. That is why the premium for the hits is so steep, to let them recoup losses. As aforementioned, the licensed officers do not sell tickets to strangers above legal maximums. For that reason, strangers rate only the secondary choice of seats, if any. The good ones, way down in front, are held back for regular charge customers, for clubs and for the guy who tips the bellboy liberally.