The Sunday herald and weekly national intelligencer., 1890-09-14
FORGET-ME-NOTS.

Something ought to be done with the police.
The newspaper reports Of the outrageous arrests
made during the past few weeks go far to prove
that If the police force of Washington are not as
awhole gang of rufians there are some unmiti-
gated ruflians among them The arrest of Mr..
John H. Smith, ex-United States Minister to
Hayt by Officer Trammell was q ruffianly pro-
ceeding, and the action of Officer Lotus in col
laring Mr.. Charles Z. Leonard in front of the
Census Office where he was attending to legti-
mate public business, ani in driving him through
the streets in the police wagon to the police sta
tion, was even worse There was no justification
for the arrest in either case. Mr.. Smiths Of
fense consisted in cautioning number of negro
boys against gathering around the officer, who
had an old negro in custody, and Mr. Leonard
was subjected to the outrageous treatment of
Officer Lotus because he didn't take to his heels
and run the moment the officer ordered him to
depart from the place where he was standing on
the public street. The real secret of the arrest
in each case, fancy was that the officer did
not like the color of the mans hair or the shape
of his nose.
1t has apparently come to this, that If po-
liceman doesn't like you he will ruin you in, and
to crafty his dislike for you he will subject you
to more indignity and ignominy than was in
tended for burglars or pickpockets. An emf
nently peaceful and law-abiding citizen, whose
name 1t is not necessary to mention, was ar
rested the other day on Pennsylvania avenue,
and charged at the police station, and after
ward at the Police Court with fast driving.
The charge was very ridiculous, for the horse
couldn't have travelled above six miles an hour
to save his life, and at the time the arrest was
made the team was actually standing still. The
real secret of the arrest was that the policeman
didn't like the man. The style of his hat or
something about him impressed the officer un-
favorably, and he conceived dislike for him,
dislike which, of course, could only be graft
fed by running him in. The Office Of police
man is the office of tyrant. The best laws are
useless in the presence of a ruf1anly police. A
police officer has no more right to lay hands
upon citizen who has violated no law than
highwayman has to rob or shoot you. a citi-
zen ought to have as much right to protect him
self from the violence of the one as the other,
and if these outrageous assaults by the police
upon private citizens should continue it is not
to be expected but that force will be met by
force, and the ruffians will be brought to their
senses some fine morning by some OF them re-
ceiving their deserts.
X X X
Herbert j. Browne has severed his connection
with the Washington Post and resigned his po-
sition in the Post Office Department in order to
go to Roanoke, Va, to take charge of a news
paper there. Browne thinks Roanoke is great
town and needs great newspaper. One thing
is certain, it will be a better town for Mrl
Brownies presence in it. A man with Brownies
talents and energy is valuable acquisition to
any community and especially to new one like
that of Roanoke. During the last half dozen
years he has done some Of the brightest work
that has been done by any one in that period
for Washington journalism In Roanoke he
is likely to be even more useful than he has
been in Washington. The bent of his genius is
toward building up new towns, developing the
latent resources of new countries, and training
up new communities. He is full of schemes and
yearns for pioneer life 1t is wellwe are not all
built the same way. 1t is lucky for the bigger
and older cities that some of us don't care for
pioneer life. l don't envy the lot of the man
who pushes his fortune away out on the from
tiers of civilization. Let those build new towns
who like that sort of thing, but the big city, l
think, is the place for gentleman.