Lights shone from many windows, and from
within came the sound of loud laughter and ribald song. They were
evidently in a quarter of the city where vice reigned supreme and where
poverty, crime and immorality held full sway.
Passing through this neighborhood without molestation, for Manning's
companion seemed to be well known and universally feared, they reached a
long, rambling frame building, which was gayly painted and brightly
illuminated. Men and women of all ages were entering and leaving the
place, and crowds of people were gathered about the entrance. Above the
noise of the clinking of glasses and the loud orders of the waiters,
could be heard the sounds of music, and a general confusion of voices
that bespoke a large assembly.
The detective had frequently heard of the character of a dance-house in
the far west, and here was an opportunity to view one in full blast.
Elbowing their way through the crowd, Manning and his companion soon
found themselves in a large, brilliantly lighted room, almost entirely
bereft of furniture. At one end was a raised platform, on which were
seated the orchestra, consisting of a piano, sadly out of tune, a
cracked violin, and a cornet which effectually drowned out the music of
the other two instruments.
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