Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1875-07-20

covered panel-houses in the Eighth
Fourteenth and Twenty ninth pre-.
cincts, in the neighborhoOd of the large
hotels. and he spoke to several Of the
women. who confirmed this belief
Next he discovered that there was a
rivalry between the panel prostitutes
and the honest prostitutes, the latter
generally getting arrested and locked
up, leaving the monopoly of the
sidewalk to the panel girls. The
honest girls, being requested, pointed
out to him the panel girls, and one by
one he followed them home, and saw
them take in victims or suckers" He
took the numbers Of the houses, and
next day found that they were known
as panel houses TO the neighbors. He
ask d if the police knew about them,
and was told they did. This was in
January. 1874. At this time a gentle
man called on him and said he had
been robbed of 5000 in Capt. McCul-
lagh's precinct; that he had gone to
the Captain who had given him this
paper:
amy member of the Twenty-ninth
Precinct Police will arrest any man who
may be pointed out as the one who has
robbed the bearer of $780,"
John II. MCCULLAGH."
Dir. TwOhey continued: | told Mr..
Matsell about it and gave him the
Of the house; be said he would
speak to Capt McCullagh; afterwards
he told me that McCullagh denied
having any panel houses in his district;
IN the meantime l had discovered sew
eral others; I saw McCullagh and Of
fered to accompany him to six panel
houses IN his precinct that had been
running for months, and I also said
that the one house he had broken up
was broken up because the thieves had
failed to make an arrangement with
him." be called me a scoundTel, and I
told him he was a disgrace to his uni
form; Sergeant DAVIS heard this con-
shortly after I met one
Sporting who had specially engaged a
smart young woman, who knew all
about the panel busine and had
the run Of the houses, to get
for him on the same point;
with her aid we discovered every new
house and knew all the panel-thieves,
1 went to Gen. Duryea and told him,
and he said he could do nothing; he
said he YVES IN a minority In the board
and powerless; we went to Mr.. Russell,
and he introduced US to Mr.. Charlick,
and he promised to see into 1t and have
these houses broken up; l had two or
three interviews with Charlick, and he
me to Mr.. Smith. and sue
,eeded in seeing him, and handed IN a
request that he would crush these panel
he got very indignant, and
ordered me out of the Office; said It was
none Of my damned business; l then
vent to Russell and reported the inter-
new with Smith, and he told me to see
Matsell, the Superintendent; I saw him,
md be was ludifferent-lOOked disgust.
ID; he took the numbers down and said
le could do nothing, as his captains
denied II; / had several interviews with
Captain Irving, Of the detective Office;
ne said that he knew that these houses
sXisted, and had incurred the animOsity
# several Of the captains for his efforts
% break this panel system up; be said
here was something behind 1t all; /
Jaw that he was DESTROYS Of doing his
luty IN the matter, but from some IN
cause his hands were tied.
Why, sir, continued Mr.. TwOhey. in
I burst Of energy you can't imagine
now bold those panel thieves are. At
las Mercer street they used to put out
he sireet-lamp every night, and 1 have
seen the officer on post talking to the
nan that did 1t. / went TO the parlOrs
# the house next door, which was a
dollhouse, and saw those men drive
he victims out. In one case a man
vas brutality beaten. That was IN
Capt. Williams precinct. Invent there
he next day and saw a cOlOred woman
who lived up stairs. She said it was a
PANEL house, and that she often heard
hem quarrelling over the division of
he spOils. / once saw a girl take IN
N old man-they always select solid
men, as they say-and [ ran right to
headquarters and saw Inspector Nc
OermOtt, and asked him to send
.ome detectives over there to
.atch the thieves in the
let He said, See Irving" I saw
lim and he looked puzzled. I sug-
rested To hin. to send men over with
laudcuffs aud arrest these men. Mr..
Ieahey was there and he said, 1T is
10 use our going over there. They all
know US. ] started down and saw
Captain Williams. He asked me who
old me the nature OF that business; he
said it was Of no use; he did not be-
ieve it was a panel house. "What eV-
dcnce haveyoU cot: said he; "havey you
1eenrObbed;' l said, No; but I know
{ is a panel-house;" he said it had not
been reported to him as such; said !,
There are two more that I know Of
me, IS Greene. and the other - Woos-
5er street, and l grve him the names
Il the persons running them; I then
,alled a few days afterwards and said
10 Captain Irving that l had been ad-
7ised by a lawyer that the only way Of
those houses was by mark
ne some money and having some man
% represent a victim. and I got $50
marked and engaged a couple Of men;
be asked me what officer l would have,
md l said Eustache; and ] saw him
md he said, 1T is Of no use" ! said,
Why" Because, " he said, Capt.
Williams is master here, and he is a
great friend of Mr. Gardner" He said,
Il don I want 70 be injured; really
think we cannot succeed, and I don't
want to incur the hosJili.yof the Police
Commission RS, 50 we both abandoned
the case.
When these panel thieves used to
boast in the liquor saloons Of the
mounts of money they had robbed
NON Of. I cultivated the acquaintance
# the square girls, gave them liquor,
stc.. aud they told me about the panel
houses. and you Will have respectable
witnesses here TO substantiate all that
[ say.
An UNPRECEDENFED Kun or HAM