The Portland daily press., 1885-07-18
THE MARSHAL AND THE POLICE

1t appears from Mayor behring's address
to the police that certain officers have been
persistently shutting their eyes to the viola
ton Of the liquor traffic, in pursuance, APP
parently, of some private understanding
1t appears, also, that the Marshal has been
fully aware of this fact but has taken no
measures to bring to justice the officers who
have thus violated their oaths, and conspired
with the violators of the law. Furthermore,
it appears that certain officers have been in
the habit of swearing that they did not know
the owners or occupants of places where
liquor is kept for unlawful sale, when, ac-
cording to the Mayor, there is not an officer
on the force who could not find out in twen-
ty-four hours the proprietor of any of these
places. The failure of the Marshal to bring
these unfaithful officers to justice cannot be
because he does not know who they are, for
the Mayor says his attention has been called
to the fact that ION certain beats liquor is con-
stantly transported in defiance of the law,
and even before the eyes of the police OF
course what beats these are is perfectly well
known to the Marshal, and the officers on
them are perfectly well known, also
The question arises, therefore, why, in
stead of bringing Mayor Deering down stairs
into the police office and instigating him to
deliver a harangue to the entire police force,
guilty and innocent alike, did not the Mar
shall notify the Mayor who the actual cul-
prits were and have them discharged The
restraining effect of such a course would
have been infinitely greater than the har-
angue of the Mayor possibly can be. 1t is
not only the privilege, but it is the duty, of
the Marshal, when he finds man on the
police force shutting his eyes to violations of
the law, to promptly notify the Mayor, and
it is the Mayors duty to promptly discharge
the man. There are, doubtless, some dere-
Lotions ON the part of the police, which may
be properly treated by reprimand, but
''persistently and seemingly with private
understanding shutting his eyes, to viola
tions of the law is not one of them For
such an offence as that an officer ought to be
promptly discharged.
Does anybody suppose that if Marshal
Andrews had evidence that the officers on
certain beats in this city had been persistent
ly shutting their eyes to acts of burglary or
larceny he would have sent up for Mr..
Deering to come down stairs and deliver a
lecture on the culpability of such acts, wind
ing up with warning that if they conspired
with burglars any more they would be dealt
with to the full extent of the Mayors author
ity? Does anybody suppose that man
guilty of such an offence as that would not
be promptly discharged from the force !?
Why is it, them that when the police are
caught conspiring with rumsellers the names
of the guilty parties are carefully sup
pressed, and they are only warned in a
general way that if they keep on conspiring
they will be liable to be dealt with to the full
extent of the Mayors authority? Do the
guilty parties know too much in regard to
the true inwardness Of this recent ''letting
up on the rumsellers to make it safe to
unseal their mouths by discharge?
Another question arises in this connection.
Ii Marshal Andrews knew that his police
force or some of them were ''persistently
shutting their eyes" to the rumshops; if he
knew shops were wide open, as he must I'M
less he has persistently shut his own eyes,
why did he not sally forth and shut them up ?
Two years ago he was active enough in shut
ting up Sullivan and Cady. He found time
to visit their shops every day. Ever since
encampment week the rumshops of this city
have been wide open, and the Marshal has
been aware that his police force has been
persistently shutting their eyes to them; but
instead of taking squad of policemen and
raiding them as he used to do Sulliyan's and
Cady's, he has lain back waiting for Mayor
Deering to get back from Washington and
deliver lecture on the iniquity of con-
spiracies between the police force and vio-
lators of the law. But still the Marshal and
the Mayor, we are told, are exceedingly
anxious that the rumshops shall be shut up.