THE NIGHT SIDE OF MELBOURNE.

Waikato Times, Volume I, Issue 50, 24 August 1872, Page 3

THE NIGHT SIDE OF MELBOURNE.

(•"'Daily Telegraph," June fo.) :W v ru:\ Melbourne's ordinary day of respoctj»l)i 1 ily ends, another phase of it.s life begins. When the busy bee retires forest, to earn in repose the reward of a days' labor, the mole begins Id burrow, and every kindred animal to follow out its natural laws of "every beast after its kind." Wlion the day is spent, -Weibr>ui iio ceases to bo the Melbourne of legitimate business, and gives plaeo to midnight prowlers. The streets and places as public as the streets then become the heritage of- obscene birds, which, with cat-like eyes, see in the dark, and of belated pigeons, dazed by the glitter and glare from .seeing the way to their own nests. Moving amongst them and noting and controlling them, is that type of modern civilisation, the straight-backed policeman. I f informat ion had been received - —if Lais, in the matter of purses Lad been indiscreet, then the executive type receives Lis instructions', and the mole and the obscene bird and the belated, pigeon »re driven forth from the glitter and glare of artificial night

into the sheen of the next morning's sun, and the busy bees look with wonderment at the strange animals intruding on their domain, and say, "Can such thbigsb;?" and with a, shrug return to their buying and selling, and resume their work, and give the whole thing a. passing thought., and forget, it. Jt remains for the daily courts to resuscitate the unclean things and for the dii'y observer, as a matter of duty, to put it before the community. It must, be premise I, however, that there are ' officers wluo have every now and then to go out amongst the pmwlers, and acting upon informal ion received, do what they can to proteel; respectability from the schemes and i notions of those who are the workers during ; the time which (unbraces "tho night-side of: Melbourne." The records of the- District : Court of yesterday go only a little way to show what is g ung on in our midst, aid should form suggestive matte.- to legislators and moral teachers. Let a few of the ! brought, before that court, but shortly suffice i to call attention to what is really an every- j day state of things in Melbourne. The illus- ; t rations are strung at random from one of tho ! daily bunches, as they come before tho Dis- i

trict Court. Mr. (lordon I , ]vans, the inspector of the city revenue sued Mr. Ohar'cs Hutton, thy keeper of the largest common lodginghouse in the city, for having his,rooms overcrowded, for having bedding very dirty— "nearly rotten" was the Inspector's phrase — blankets and coverlid black, and in one dirty room two dogs sleeping on a bed. Mr. Hut.(on was fined tOs. and ordered to pay l?os. costs. Mr. .Kvans also sued Mr. Zeplin, keeper of a dancing saloon in Bourke-street; for having, on the morning of the 11th inst, kept his place open until one o'clock in the morning, when (lie city bye-law for the regulation of such places of entertainment declared that they should be closed at the latest at I"J o'clock. The bye-law under which Mr. I'lvans proceeded was found to be imperfect, ami no conviction was obtained against Mr. Zenlin, but the evidence given in the case was of some public interest. Mr. Evans, on his visit was accompanied by constable Llnrke, who stated that he had paid Is for admission to Mr Zeplin's dancing saloon at fifty minutes past 12 o'clock on the morning of the 11th instant; that when he entered there were fifteen prostitutes assembled there, and a large number of larrikins; that shortly after he entered, a band stationed in a gallery to play dance music, and the assembled crowd joined in what Dick would call "the mazy." .During (lie dancing playful badinage was indulged in, such as the snatching of cigars by the girls from the boys' lips, and upon the latter attempting to recover them they received from the girls (to quote constable Burke) "digs in the ribs," and the girls generally managed to waltz away gracefully smoking the stolen cigars. After the dance, the young ladies disported themselves a little more, and twirling their umbrellas and parachutes began to"" poke people in the ribs and about" (constable Burke is quoted again), and do other things foreign to well regulated ball-rooms. The constable pointed out to Mr Zeplin that there was an unusual number of larrikins present, and Mr Zeplin. accounted for that anomely by saying that one of their number had won a sum- of money at> a Chinese lottery, nnd the others were kl shepherding" him. '"When the constable reached this part of his evidence, 31 r (iillot, who appeared for the defendant, objected to (he line of evidence,, saying that it had nothing to do with the offence, bring- j ing his client there. After that, the whole j thing assumed the form of a legal argument, I nnd until the council ameuds'its bye-laws, ' Air Zeplin's patrons may amuse themselves ! to the " tops of their bents." Three cases'; were afterwards 'called against Mrs Sarah ! Praser, of Stephen street, T\w first charge \ was that she, being the keeper of a common ; lodging house permitted persons of different ] sexes, not being married couples or parents \ with their children etc., to occupy the same \ apartment therein contrary to, etc. The [ second charge was that she did sell certain i liquor, viz., porter, contrary to, etc. ; and the ■ third, that she, being the keeper of common . lodging*; luuUpglecred to register the same, i A diffcivueo was observable be- ;

tween the appearance of Sarah Fraser and many of the others who frequent the District Court. She sat outside the Court, in a ban- ; sum cab- in gorgeous array, waited on by a young attendant rind poodle, both looking as ■ resplendent as herself in the way of attire. i The charges against her were postponed for ! further hearing until a future day, at the request of a solicitor.