F I R S TP R E V803NEXTLAST

Looking Backwards Down California Street
San Francisco like most cities it has some bizarre and antiquated laws and statutes. Let's take a look at a few of the weirder rules that, over time, have made their way onto the municipal code: You may not play the national anthem as part of a medley, dance to it, or use it as an exit march. It is illegal to offer a harmful substance to a bird, reptile, or animal. Another statute makes it illegal for persons classified as "ugly" to walk down the street. It is illegal to use undergarments as wiping rags. It is also illegal to carry a basket on a pole, to belly dance, own an unleashed elephant, or build a mechanical device that reproduces obscene language. Don't dare distribute information about birth control while standing in a doorway or engage in marathon dancing anywhere. It is as illegal to reuse confetti as it is for a woman to drive a car while dressed in a housecoat.

Laundry workers would be well advised not to "spray the clothing of any person with water emitted from the mouth." You can manufacture cigars but just don't bite off the ends before selling them. A plane may not execute an emergency landing in the city without the Park Commissioner's approval. As for sex, perversion and degeneracy are illegal but so is 'sexual inversion' (which I can only imagine is a really tricky position). Finally, if you think these laws are too strict take heart, a statute dating back to the Gold Rush bars the police from entering any brothel, gambling hall, or saloon. So if you're up for a little inversion action with your elephant, be sure to confine your activity to the Tonga Room.
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