| Location of house | St. | House receipts (½ fees) | House expenses | No. inmates | No. maids | ||||
| No.—W. | 43 | $500 | $189 | 3 | 1 | ||||
| " " | 45 | 600 | 235 | 3 | 1 | ||||
| " " | 49 | 700 | 259 | 4 | 2 | ||||
| " " | 50 | 700 | 264 | 4 | 2 | ||||
| " " | 55 | 600 | 261 | 4 | 2 | ||||
| " " | 58 | 800 | 143 | 4 | 2 | ||||
| " " | 58 | 800 | 175 | 4 | 2 | ||||
| " " | 58 | 1,000 | 440 | 5 | 2 | ||||
| " " | 60 | 500 | 208 | 3 | 2 | ||||
| " " | 65 | 600 | 144 | 3 | 1 | ||||
| Total | $6,800 | $2,318 | 37 | 17 |
We have deliberately refrained from attempting to make even an approximate calculation on the basis of the foregoing tables of the profits annually derived from commercialized prostitution in New York City. But a moment’s reflection will suggest the enormous sums involved. If, for example, the table dealing with thirty parlor houses, i. e., less than one-half of those investigated, even roughly represents the monthly volume of business, over $2,000,000 a year are paid to their inmates, one-half of which is at once paid over to the houses; the running expenses of the houses are about one-quarter of a million; but the profits are not reduced by this sum, for the payments of the inmates for board and lodging are supposed to be equal to the expense of conducting the establishment. Moreover, the estimates above given entirely omit certain very important indirect sources of revenue,—for large profits are derived from the sale of liquor, tobacco, lewd pictures, booklets, verse and other reading matter. Finally, patrons often tip lavishly, leaving “gift” or “luck” money, and in innumerable other ways add to the revenue of the resorts. The total expenditure incurred and the net profit to the exploiters, therefore, run high up into the millions annually.[228]
A partial confirmation of the scale of the estimates above given is furnished by the following incident:
During the evening of May 3, 1912, one of the owners of a house of prostitution in West 25th Street was trying to sell a one-third interest in his one-dollar resort. He had written on a sheet of brown wrapping paper the receipts and expenses for one month in connection with the business in this house. This document is in our possession. The items which interest us in this connection are receipts for four weeks and two days, or 30 days in all: First week’s receipts, $1,735; second week, $1,612; third week, $1,463; fourth week, $1,401; two days, $243; making a total of $6,454 for the thirty days, or an average of about $215 per day. The average number of inmates in this house is 15. In that case, each inmate earned $15, that is, received 15 men each day.
The income of the street walker is probably subjected to greater fluctuations than that of the house or flat inmate, weather and other conditions greatly affecting her earnings. It is therefore impossible to gain any conception of the volume of money that changes hands in consequence of street business. Samples are, however, available; the account book which was secured from a young prostitute, neither very aggressive nor very attractive, who solicits on East 14th Street and receives usually one dollar for her services, runs as follows:
| Wednesday | $7.50 | |
| Thursday | 7.00 | |
| Friday | 9.00 | |
| Saturday | 9.50 | |
| Sunday | 4.50 | |
| Monday | 7.50 | |
| Tuesday | 8.00 |
a total of $53.
The items for the next seven days are as follows:
| Wednesday | $6.50 | |
| Thursday | 6.50 | |
| Friday | 7.00 | |
| Saturday | 12.00 | |
| Sunday | 10.00 | |
| Monday | 9.00 | |
| Tuesday | 6.00 |
a total of $57.