The Strand Magazine, Vol. 27, February 1904, No. 159.Various
General
The Strand Magazine, Vol. 27, February 1904, No. 159.
Various
English literature -- Periodicals; Short stories, English -- Periodicals
The track has a total length of about sixty-five yards, inclusive of
loop and exit. The loop is about twenty-four feet high. The wheel rolls
in a mould-shaped groove. The slightest mistake in the construction
of the track, which is an extremely ingenious one, would result in
an unsuccessful performance and a dangerous, if not deadly, fall.
Especially ingenious is the mechanism of the trap-doors at the entrance
and exit. These are in charge of the artist's colleague, and form the
most important part of the track, as any failure in this part would end
in dire catastrophe.
LXX.--A BONFIRE OF GAMBLING APPARATUS.
The Anti-Gambling Leagues of British cities have their counterpart
in the various Law and Order Societies of American municipalities,
and their labours are much the same. Just as the societies in
England attempt to protect the poor and middle-class people from the
encroachments of vice by initiating prosecutions against wrong-doers,
so do these Law and Order Societies fight in the interests of the
American public. They go to excesses sometimes, it is true, but their
labours have a positive value for good. In England they keep an eye
upon the book-maker in the street, upon the sporting tipster with his
betting circulars and notices, and upon gambling in general. They
prosecute where prosecution is needed, and carry on in Parliament a
fight for virtue.
Never, however, have they prepared a fire for the benefit of their
supporters such as the Law and Order Society of Philadelphia got up
last May. It is, perhaps, not wholly correct to say that when the
Philadelphia Society seized and burned over thirteen hundred gambling
machines in a public place it did so merely for the benefit of its
followers, but that was practically the case, and among those who
saw this unique conflagration there were none more interested than
the crusaders against vice. It was an actual destruction of valuable
property, but not a wanton one, and when the fire was over the charred
metal and molten tin represented a sum of not less than one hundred and
thirty thousand dollars. We doubt if England has ever had the privilege
of witnessing such a sight, for the vested right of the Briton is too
sacred to permit of his property being done away with in such brilliant
manner.
[Illustration: WAGGONS UNLOADING GAMBLING MACHINES TO FORM THE BONFIRE.
_From a Photo._]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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