The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-04-19
THE CINCINNATI RIOT,
The Causes that Led to that Social Disturb
ance-Remedies for the Evil

is a matter of fully as much importance to In
dianapolis as to Cincinnati, for no man can say
how soon it may be duplicated in our streets. 1t
is matter of gravest moment to all the people.
have carefully examined some of the
Cincinnati and other papers as to the under
living causes of the state of affairs in
that city. 1 wish to produce those facts,
for such 1 deem them to be- in clearer light.
They seem to be mainly twelve
1. Alarge foreign population of antiAmerican pro
clivties.
2. An immense traffic in liquors and other intox
eating drinks.
3. Many city officials who largely controlled by
the liquor power
4. Some of the aldermen and other city officers are
saloonkeepers.
D. Caucuses and polling places are held to some
extent, in the saloons.
6. Ant-Sabbath customs, as excursions, public
amusements open saloons and beer gardens, and pub
lie meetings for communstic and nidelc purposes
z. The presence of a communstic element in the
population.
g. Corrupt courts
8. Packed juries.
10. Professional criminal lawyers.
IL. Unjust verdicts
IL. Open violation of Sunday and liquor laws.
These twelve facts seem to underlie the crimi-
nality of that city, to foster that condition Of
things in which crime is engendered, and out of
which disorder and mob violence may be eX-
pected to come.
and disorder, OF mob violence, or even an occa-
sion for the same it is well to know it. If there
are other causes, public safety may well demand
that with great diligence they be searched out.
Whatever tends to crime should be entirely
removed, or reduced to its lowest possible mini
num- Whatever can secure the just punish
ment of the criminal should be welcomed by
every good citizen as one of the best securities
of public safety and promoters of public we'll
being. Whatever tends to take the place of the
properly constituted and lawful agencies for the
punishment of crime should be deprecated by
every good citizen as in the end producing more
evils than it can remedy
In other words: l. All incentives and encour-
agements to crime are to be removed p Law
is to be allowed its just course. 3. Mob VIC
lence is to be entirely discountenanced
There is grandeur in the growth of aw-the
RELOCATING first of private disputes from the pro-
cess of blows and personal quarrels to the de-
cision of COURTS then the development of the
scope of law up through the overwhelming
interests of civilized society until it
reaches and regulates international affairs What
centuries of careful thought; what centuries of
the nice weighing of rights and obligations; what
centuries of experience in legislation and in jul
rispudence to give us what we now have of com
mon and written law! Law is one of the most
stupendous and sublime monuments of human
skill, patience and wisdom. 1t is a pyramid
whose base would stand upon the four corners of
the earth, and whose apex would pierce into the
pure empyrean of the heavens.
But, what is a mob? A club in the hand of the
primitive savage. A fire sweeping through the
stacks OF corn. A flood bearing all before it in
merciless violence A cyclone tearing its way
with indiscriminate destruction.
There are few things more fearful than the
binding passion of a mob
Let us consider the three conclusions at which
we arrived:
l. All incentives and announcements to
crime are to be removed When I say ''re-
moved" l do not mean by violence, but volun-
tar1ly, where they refer to matters within range
of personal control; otherwise, by law,
First-We need a renewed public sentiment
against habits of idleness and in favor of in
dustry Let idleness be branded as disgraceful
Let it be written over the great structure of So
ciety: mo for loungers here"
Let the polite vaSabond be held in equal disgrace
with the tattered vagabond. There must be
new coronation of industry to prevent corona
ton of idleness, and a coronation of ideness
means a reign of crime. 1t is already fearful
fact that it is almost impossible for Young man
to learn trade if he wishes to, and that schools
of trades are becoming necessity to our land
But every mother who teaches her daughter to
make bread or cut a garment is a contributor to
the law and order forces of society, and every
father who trains his to employment is
public benefactor From the idle classes come
criminals, shysters and mObs.
Second-We need a decided stand against vici-
Gus literature There is vast amount of pernici-
Gus literature in the land 1t is in every possible
form-printed and illustrated,i in leafet periodical
and bound volume. 1t is widespread in it's cir
culation, and insdious in its methods. 1t seeks
entrance by every door. The mails are not I'M
frequently burdened with publications which are
poison to the people, especially to the young,
while express companies are made the distribu
tiers of this vile stuff through all the land. Some
time ago Mr.. Anthony Comstock declared
that nearly three hundred persons had been
arrested through the agency Of his society for
publishing and dealing in obscene literature
He also reported the following matter as having
been seized and destroyed: Over twenty tons
Of ohc AY,nt
tons of which were bound volumes; over 200, 600
pictures; nearly 5000 charms set with lewd pho
tographs; over 200 negatives of photographs
of filthy and demoralizing subjects; more than
seven tons Of stereotyped plates with representa-
tions that respectable man would show
another; and. if possible, even worse than all
this, there were seized thousands of letters
many of them written by boys and girls
in correspondence with these vile agencies and
that from every class of society. What else did
Mr.. Comstock indl Listen: He tells us that he
found a man in Brooklyn who had large pile of
catalogues Of female seminaries, and that he was
addressing the names of the students on envel-
opes, and furnishing these envelopes to the pub
fishers of vile and obscene literature in which to
send their circulars to the young ladies of Amer
| lea. You send your sons and daughters away to
these schools, and these vile wretches follow
them up through the catalogues and seek
to poison their minds, corrupt
their morals and damn their souls
Mr.. Comstock at one time seized over 100, 900
envelopes containing lewd circulars, anu adj
dressed ready for mailing. This nefarious work
is going on all the time. Is it any wonder we
have crimel Is it any wonder that there is a
mob element among the boys on the street,
Parents, ponder it, Citizens, ponder it! Is it not
time that this were stopped! Do you know that
there young ladies' seminaries that dare not
publish the names and addresses of their stu
dents2 Do you know that there is systematic
effort to corrupt the youth of this land! Is it
not time that indignant people
demand that the news stands be cleared of vile
literatureY Is it not time that they who scatter
pernicious publications in our door-yards be in
dicted? Are we parents to stand guard at our
very doorsteps to pick up and destroy vile and
of them? It is time this business were stopped
of showering the villages and cities of this land
every month or week with these publications
And is it not time, as we prize the well being of
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