he latter are virtuous and these are infamous.
Thus does one touch of vileness make the whole world kin."

V. THE DANCE HOUSES.

The dance houses differ from the concert saloons in this respect, that
they are one grade lower both as regards the inmates and the visitors,
and that dancing as well as drinking is carried on in them. They are
owned chiefly by men, though there are some which are the property of and
are managed by women. They are located in the worst quarters of the
city, generally in the streets near the East and North rivers, in order
to be easy of access to the sailors.

The buildings are greatly out of repair, and have a rickety, dirty
appearance. The main entrance leads to a long, narrow hall, the floor of
which is well sanded. The walls are ornamented with flashy prints, and
the ceiling with colored tissue paper cut in various fantastic shapes.
There is a bar at the farther end of the room, which is well stocked with
the meanest liquors, and chairs and benches are scattered about.

From five to a dozen women, so bloated and horrible to look upon, that a
decent man shudders with disgust as he beholds them, are lounging about
the room. They have reached the last step in the downward career of
fallen women, and will never leave this place until they are carried from
it to their graves, which are not far distant. They are miserably clad,
and are nearly always half crazy with liquor. They are cursed and kicked
about by the brutal owner of the place, and suffer still greater
violence, at times, in the drunken brawls for which these houses are
famous. Their sleeping rooms are above. They are sought by sailors and
by the lowest and most degraded of the city population. They are the
slaves of their masters. They have no money of their own. He claims a
part of their infamous earnings, and demands the rest for board and
clothes. Few have the courage to fly from these hells, and if they make
the attempt, they are forced back by the proprietor, who is frequently
aided in this unholy act by the law of the land. They cannot go into the
streets naked, and he claims the clothes on their backs as his property.
If they leave the premises with these clothes on, he charges them with
theft.

Let no one suppose that these women entered upon this grade of their
wretched life voluntarily. Many were drugged and forced into it, but the
majority are lost women who have come regularly down the ladder to th