Page:Edward Prime-Stevenson - The Intersexes.djvu/458

 cannot say 'pockets'—his couple of florins, or his three crowns, without any "Krawall". The respectable client is always protected thus, by the bath's personnel. The reputation of the house must not be compromised. Scandals connected with it always have been hushed up. The place is a local institution. The local police are of course perfectly well-acquainted with its character, its sexual, offices as a mart and brothel, day by day in each week; and in no city are the laws more explicit against homosexuality, and against any places of its proxenetism. But nothing seems likely to be done to close this temple; first, because it seems an absolutely necessary outlet for the vast homosexual life of the city; second, because it is managed with outward decorum; and especially because its clientage is so much of the best citizens in the place, along with the rabble of the town, that it has a sort of inherent and general protection. There is. not anything else of its class so notorious, and on such a scale, in Continental Europe. For all of its freedom, per the bath-ticket price, the bather pays about two shillings.

In Paris, are at least a dozen baths that are homosexual rendezvous. Five or six are of wide popularity. In London, is a small group well-recognized. New York has several. But these, as most others, cannot be utilized, then and there, for homosexual practices. They are merely establishments for—anatomic inspections; for making appointments to meet elsewhere—some near hotel, for example. Berlin has a considerable list of such baths, with an homosexual personnel of impeccable discretion. In Italy there, are almost none; other rendezvous are efficient substitutes, and in Italy there are few vapour-baths of the kinds and sizes so common in other parts of Europe. The vapour-baths of Constantinople, Smyrna and so on have notoriously homosexual aspects.