The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1888-01-26

Il
| and have witness TO the fact. For the ben
| eft Of the Mayor, / will say that the saloon
/ referred to Is in the lower and front part OF
large brick building nearly directly IN
front Of the Centre street school building
| and on the left hand side Of Centre street
/ when going down towards Fore street. The
i number Is IL, and was informed that the
| place Is known as Tom O'Nieps saloon. The
i window sashes are painted red, the panes Of
/ glass are painted white, and the whole gem
\ eral appearance Is that Of rum shop. Al
/ ter passing through the front doors one en-
/ ters small entry way, out OF which TWO
/ green doors having small oval WINDOWS In
/ them, open into the 'gin mill'' proper. Yes
/ terday a very suspicious looking young lei
| low stood out in front Of the premises, cast
/ ing his eyes up and down the street, presum-
ably looking for the coming Of the marshal
/ or police.
SupDosng, however, that this one saloon
| had been closed for year, what good would
| it have done as long as several more In tire
same vicinity we're allowed 10 run IN iuli
| blast all the time. This Is the story about
| drinking habits Of the boys" In the Centre
street school, which the Mayor has charac-
terized as ''grOtesquey untrue"
In conclusion wish to say that have wit
nesses 20 prove the truth OF every statement
here made from beginning to end.
CHARLES X. CRANDALL.
lIt seems to us, in spite Of the considera-
tions submitted by DIR. Crandall that the
school committee was in pOss sssion Of all
the evidence necessary to enable them to act
intelligently in regard to the Centre street
school, and that formal Investigation, such
| as the Doctor suggested. would have thrown
no additional light on the matter. The com
mittee were informed as to the statement OF
the teacher with regard to the drinking
habits Of the scholars, what they drank and
under what circumstances. They had the
4 a r(t ba
| of the school, who had frequently visited the
school in the line Of his duty. they had the
testimony also Of seyeralOther members Of
the committee who had made, special ex-
aminations with a view to ascertaining the
facts in regard to the particular mattefnn-
der discussion. There was no probability.
that any more evidence could be obtained by
a special committee than had already been
secured. All the evidence on which the
original statement, that ''every scholar but
one allows that he drinks" was made was
before the committee and It was shown
concusively that that statement was mis-
leading because many of the pupils
who had allowed that they drank had not
allowed that they drank alcoholic liquids
though that was the manifest Implication Of
the statement as made by the teacher and
afterwards repeated by the Rev. Mr.. Bayley.
1t was perfectly proper, therefore, for the
school committee TO correct this statement.
| In our view the committee ought to have
/ gone further and set forth in official form
| the facts concerning the habits OF the pupils
in each and every one Of our public schools.
Mr.. Bayley's sermon has created abroad, IL
not at home, an erroneous idea Of the
| condition Of our schools. OF course
Mr.. Bayley had no intention Of pa
rading this Centre school as a sam
| pie Of the public schools Of the city.
Nevertheless, by concentrating attention on
! this one school, where there have been cases
of drunkenness, and ignoring the dozen 9TH
/ er public schools of the city where cases Of
intoxication among the pupils are unknown,
/ that has been the result. One would infer
| from reading the comments lof the press up
/ on his disclosures that our schools were
reeing with drunkenness. and that a sober
scholar was the exception rather than the
rule. There was no improperly In Mr..
Bayieys pointing out and reprobating in the
strongest language the condition Of things In
the Centre street school, but he ought. at the
same time to have made 1t clear that this
|
the pupils in our public schools were entire
ly free from the vice Of intemperance. 1t
would be very proper for the school commit
tee to supply the omission.
The condition Of things existing in
the Centre street school. after all the
exaggeraticns are eliminated, is lament
able, and if the officers Of the law are
in any wise responsible for 1t they should
be sharply called to account The fact Of
drunkenness among the pupils, while not
4 sufficient proof that the enforcement Of
the liquor law has been neglected, or as DR..
Crandall suggests, that rumshops have been
allowed to keep open in that vicinity is a
fact, however, that should make an imp
sion upon the officers and urge them to great
vigilance in that locality especially. II there
is a rumshop near the schoolhOuse open, as DR..
Crandall asserts the officers ought not TO
rest until it Is closed up and its proprietor
prosecuted to the full extent Of the law. The
conduct Of the officers should be such as to
preclude the possibility Of laying with any
show Of reason any future cases of intoxiea-
tion that may occur in this school to negli-
gence on their part. While we have no In
tention Of defending or apologIzing for any
neglect on the part OF the officials In the en-
forcement Of the law, it is proper to suggest
that at this time Of year especially there Is a
very strong tendency to exaggerate any de-
linquency on their part for political pur-
poses.
We do not mean to insinuate that DIR.
Crandall is animated by any such motive;
but some of his assertions seem to be
founded upon very insufficient evidence. He
charges, for instance, that rumshops on
Centre street have been allowed" TO run.
which means if 1t means anything that the
officers Of the law have eonnived at the bus
iness. The only evidence he offers Of this
is the existence Of these shops. But DIR.
Crandall must know that rumselling has
always existed in that locality in spite Of the
most vigorous of enforcement. Breaking up
rumselling there is not the easy task he
seems to think. No mayor OF marshal or
sheriff has ever been able to entirely sup