The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-05-26
IN AND ABOUT THE CITY.
BREAKING UP THE GAMBLERS.


Seventeen Surprised by Justice
Davidson and His Deputies.
Justice of the Peace George A Davidson
of Smithville made two raids upon the
criminal classes in. the suburbs early yester-
day morning, taking seventeen Skin"
players, and planting bullet from his re-
volver in the leg OF the eighteenth, who
played 'possum" and made good his escape.
-Four Of the prisoners were lodged IN jail to
answer in the city court TO the charge Of
gambling.
The first raid was made by Deputy Sheriff
Christian Hansen, assisted by Davidson,
upon the house Of a colored man named
William Green, in Eastvllle. Green and
twelve others were caught at the Skin"
table dead to rights, Deputy Sheriff Hansen
securing the cards and some of the gamblers
lucre before the astonished gamblers could
recover their wits. This was about ls:3O
O'Clock yesterday morning. The prisoners
were taken to Justice Davidson's Office and
gave bond for a preliminary hearing at
o'clock next Friday afternoon.
GAMBLING ON THE ROADS.
This raid was 80 successful that Davidson
deputized two colored men named Frazier
the Waters road for a point where it has
been the custom for colored men and women
to assemble in the middle Of the road on
Saturday nights, and, by the light Of a
candle stuck in sand hillock, play skin till
daylight.
AS the raiding party approached the rem
devious, they could see the light OF the can
die and hear the gamblers talking 1t was
then nearly 4 O'Clock, and the female gam
blers had drawn out and gone home, but
about twenty men were squatted around
the candle in q circle and half a dozen or
more revolvers were within easy reach of
the gamblers. and on the stacks Of coins for
which the game was being played.
A sudden raid was made upon the gang
and there was a scramblefor the pistols and
scurrying away like rats. -Four Of the
gamblers, Wallace, Anderson, Osborne and
Williams, were captured.
A FIGHT WITH CAPT. KIDD.
One of the party, known as Cats, alias
capt. Kidd,n the bully of Waters road,
confronted Justice Davidson with knife
and was advancing on the officer when the
justice drew his revolver and fired, the ball
striking Kidd in the fieshy part Of the
left leg. The wounded man fell
and the officer thought he had shot him in
the body. Leaving the four other gamblers
In the custody of his deputies, Davidson
neipeQ Une wounded man into his mouse on
Dieters place, and, after arrenging him as
comfortably as possible, went to his Office
and made out commitments for the other
prisoners. and then returned to the cabin,
but Cato had flown.
Justice Davidson says that Cato is a ter
ror, and has served a seven years. sentence
in the penitentiary by Judge Tompkins for
an assault with intent to murder. The
justice says there is also a warrant out for
Cato's arrest for stabbing man last April,
but the officers have not been able to appre-
bend him.
SCENE OF THE RAID.
The raid where the shooting took place
was on the Waters road. south Of Meyler's
shop, and near Dieter's place.
The justice, from whom the facts were OBJ
tanned, told a MORNING NEWS reporter that
there has been general complaint of the
criminal classes openly gambling near the
church on Waters road, and at Eastville,
using the most perlicious language and
firing Off revolvers at all hours of the
night, to the annoyance of peaceable
citizens, and to the great danger of life, and
yesterday mornings descent was the be-
ginning of what Is to be determined effort
to break up the Saturday night and Sunday
gambling in the neighborhood where the
arrests were made, and from which the
complaints have been brought.