Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-02-23


, down the Sunday law, which was an epoch in
Sacramento's history, and this prepared the
! way for breaking down the law against gamb-
ling and this led to the attempt, happily failed,
:. TO license prostitution. The licensing of the
crime of gambling, in defiance of State law has
occupied public attention for over year. But
, the subject of gambling, and the criminal &C
ton of our city authorities cannot be under
stood, except in connection with long train of
,, evils goins before. The gambling hell is the
natural associate of the whisky saloon and the
brothel, and all three have for years run riot
; unrestrained in this city. They have had too
! much influence in politics TO be restrained.
The licensing of gambling surprised no one
who has watched the political history OF Saera-
mento.
Twelve years ago there was city ordinance
prohibiting gambling. 1t was repealed. A
gambler told me that he and others procured
its repeal in the interest of their nearious bust
ness present Government official was
then Mayor, and he voted for The repeal of the
ordinance
About seven years ago petition was present
ed to the City Trustees asking for that ordi-
nance, or similar one. to be re-enacted. The
petition was signed by the leading business
men OF the city, but the Trustees, by majority
OF one, refused to grant ii. Why did they re-
fuse? They knew the reason, and the people
knew also.
Then followed the shameful experience of
corruption in the police department officials
bribed to look the other way and at last the
payment of regular salaries by the gambling
houses to the public policemen. This luxury
begot pride in the officers and they raised their
price, whereat the gamblers complained to the
city authorities, and requested that license
ordinance be passed They wished to decrease
their assessments, and they thought that their
money might as well go TO the city direct as TO
the policemen, and they wished to have gam
bling recognized among the legitimate indus
tries, and Saddled upon the city government
| forever 1t was thought useless to wait for the
repeal OF the State law against gambling
and so a city ordinance was boldly passed
i'll defiance OF the State law, licensing gambling
| at so much q month. The city herself became
the corruptionist and accepted Il bride. and
when gamblers were arrested under the State
law the city sent her attorney to defend them,
and got their eases slowed away i'll pigeon
hole.
A great show of virtue made in passing
the license ordinance, and il was declared To be
the intention of the city authorities to take this
vice vigorously in hand, with the hope that ulti-
| mately it might be entirely cradicated.
| Said Shakespeare:
NO vice so simple but assumes
Some show of virtue on its outward parts"
But when a principle is surrendered an end
less train of evils viii surely follow. The ordi-
nance provided that All games shall be so
carried on i'll rooms on the second floor of the
ton little out of the way. But
the State Fair came on and the demand was
made that games be allowed on the street floor.
The Trustees accordingly ignored their own
ordinance and granted the impudent request
Last spring heard that the Mayor had agreed
to the same plan for the next State Fair, and
/
would not be allowed again. However, when
State Fair time came around again it al
lowed TO a most shameful extent. The Trustees
explained that legal talent had advised that the
first floor meant the basement, and so they were
really commanded to have the games on the
street floor But they have not even kept to
that, for there are now gambling games in the
basement, on the street floor and ON the floor
above the street, so the city authorities are
stultified whatever they say the second floor "
means.
| Tho nresant Situation is that ,,enbIino is
legalized in Sacramento contrary TO State law
and a movement is on foot to get the LegiSa-
ture to repeal the law against gambling and
license it throughout the state, which | think
they Will be very slow to do.
have given plain recital of facts in relation
to the licensing of crime by the authorities of
Sacramento. ] have done because such q
history is necessary to understand the present
crisis in our city affairs. We cannot treat
gambling by itself, for il is only one among
other cancerous sores on the body polite II is
a sign Oh bad blood within, and can be cured
only by constitutional treatment.
have now several remarks to make in clos
ing this sermon:
l. First-I protest in the name of God against
the licensing of crime by the authorities of Sac
ramento. care not what arguments are offered
| in lis support; the principle is wrong, and no
good ever came of sacrificing principle. A gen
| teman who was Il member of the Nevada Sem
ate, when the Legislature of that State licensed
gambling, said to me the other day: =. Of course
the whole principle was Wrong, and vet he had
voted for license. How much worse when q
| city ordinance licenses crime III defiance of
State law our City Trustees have compromised
with sin. They have made Il covenant with
death and an agreement with hell" Several
| murders have already been committed in this
city in connection with these licensed games
and more may be expected, besides all the other
crimes which are bred in those hot-beds of vice
| 2. Secondly declare my conviction, based
on personal observation, that our city authori-
ties have never, curing the past ten years made
one sincere effort to suppress gambling i'll Slcra-
I mento. How dare they say tile State law can
| not be enforced when they have never tried to
| enforce il a.?
| 5. Thirdly reply to their argument that the
licensing of gambling adds S25 900 yearly to the
! city revenue, in the words of Scripture Woe
unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and
men of strength to mingle strong drink which
justly the 1cicked for rclCdrd, and take away the
| righteousness of the righteous from him." lisa.
", 22-3.) The price of the citys honor is small
enough surely But the operation is not
financial success. The expense to the city
and county entailed by only three murder
| trials has already been more than the income
| from the gambling license for a year
| 1. Fourthly-I deny that the license system
| has any material etfectin decreasing the amount
of gambling. The Trustees estimate that there
will he permanently under this system twenty
| five games in the city. Any method of regula
ton that cannot reduce gambling games below
that number ought to hide its diminished head
| for very shame. No one believes that Chinese
| gambling is leSSened at all by the ordinance.
| And among the Americans The proprietors of
one game, played on the first floor Of Il prom
| inent hotel, are said to regard their business
| worth $4,000 n year, and 10 pay 500 q month
rent for their table in n corner of the hotel
! saloon. That game was just as public before
| license as now. The uprising of pub
| lie opinion over the fact that a Deputy
State Treasurer had gambled away $4,000 OF the
States money has had n salutaTy effect, and en-
| ployers are now watching their clerks more
| closely, and the show OF virtue on the part of
| the city authorities may have frightened some
! young men away from the tables for the present.
| But it is the verest nonsense to think this
| license ordinance will in the long run lessen or
rcprcsS the vice OF gambling. IN my Judgment
| it was not framed with that intention. and rs
| we have seen, one clause which should repress
| this crime and contine it TO the upper floors
was Immediately transgreSSed, and is trans
| crossed to this day The licensing of gambling
| instead of depressing H. will, in the course of
! years, saddle 1t permanently on the city, will
| encourage this vice among the youth of the
| rising generation, viii maintain the present
| number of games, and will plobably increase
them from year to year, in proportion to the in
crease in population: 1t will tend to encourage
| the spirit of gambling in other ways and the
people will soon be as familiar with the idea of
betting their money as are the people now in the
great gambling centers OF Europe.
s. Fitthly-if the licensing of crime by the au-
thorities of Sacramento continues, and if the
people do not wake up from their lethargy and,
with Gods help, bring about a reformation in
this city, there will be sorrowul tales recorded
| in the chronicles of the daily press.
The next step will certainly be to license
houses of prostitution. Then we may eX-
that dark cloud which now hangs threat
ening in our horizon will spread to
the zenith. Then we will have free LIQUOR, free
opium, free gambling, and free prostitution. A
fiendish quartet, indeed But what else will
we have III the meantime? All what else ?
We may have the cholera among us before long.
And if it comes to Sacramento in its present
condition, the dreadful mortality which will ell
sue cannot all be laid to uncleaned sewers
and cesspools. The pestllence fattens on the
bodies of men who already diseased through
years of dissipation. The ordinary cesSpools are
bad enough but the saloons, and the opium
dens, and the gambling hels, and the houses of
prostitution more deadly, and this people
will know it when the cholera comes TO Sacra-
mento.
But what else will we have? All ! what else?
Do you hear the cry of the unemployed work
men throughout the world? Many of them are
the noblest of men and the best OF citizens
But what about the mutitudes who have spent
their earnings for drink, and are now drinking
more and more? All here is the secret of
many mob. Here is the secret of many de-
spairing heart. When that despairing heart has
burnt its tender feelings out with liquor, and
is joined by another, and they by another and
the open saloon invites them to intlame their
passions still more, who can tell what then will
follow?
But what else will we have? All! what else?
Shall ! count the tears of the drunkard's wife
and the gamblers wife? Shall tell you of the
sutferings of his children. Shall ! count the
funerals of Sacramentos citizens who
have died through dissipation? Shall I tell
you of those who are on the road to death? No,