The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-12-01
A SCRIMMACE IN ASANCTUM.
A Jacksonville Editor Assaulted by a
Police Commissioner.

/ The Official Takes Exception to an Edi-
torial Scoring the City Authorities for
Not Closing the Gambling Rooms and
the Back Doors of Saloons on Sunday.
The Editor Refuses to Comply With
the Request and Is Hit over the Head
With Cane-He Attempts to Retail
ate, but the Fight Is Stopped.
Jacksonville, Fla, Nov. s0.-In the ed
itorial office Of the Daily Florida Citizen
last night Police Commissioner w. b.
Young of this city made an assault with
a walking stick upon Lorettus S. Metcalf,
the editor of the Citizen. The blows were
| severe ones, upon the head and shoulders,
drawing blood in one or two places
AIr.Metcalf seized heavy cane which
stood by his desk and raising It high up
with both hands directed return blow at
Mr.. Young's head, but Mr.. Young warded
it off by catching the cane in both
! hands
DR.. George Troup Maxwell Of this city,
who had accompanied Mr.. Young to the
editors office in the interest OF peace,
here rushed in between the combatants
and stopped the fight. While he stood
thus grasping both canes and insisting
that not another blow should be struck,
Mr.. Young asked Mr.. Metcalf as he glared
at him across Mr.. Maxwen's elbow: "Win
you retract that article, 1 still insist upon
| it?"
"AIr. Metcalf replied very firmly, mo.
I viii not"
Then" was Mr.. Young's rejoinder, Il
will kill YOU" and he pulled an ugly look
ing pistol from his hip pocket.
But" pleaded Mr. Metcalf. 'I am not
armed. / have no weapon. II you kill
me you kill an unarmed man.
/ Mr.. Young then tossed his pistol upon
a sofa near by and upon Dr. Maxwell In
sisting that the affair should so no fur
/ ther, both men released their holds on
/ their canes and MIR. Young passed the
| pistol over to the doctor, who put it in
/ his pocket, and after some further par
| leying between the combattants, led the
excited police commissioner from the
| room.
In an editorial published by the Citizen
/ on Wednesday morning. the presentment
! of the grand jury recently in session here
| was discussed and the following portions
/ of it reproduced: 1--WE find il rs an open
secret that gambling houses have been
running in the city of Jacksonville for the
/ past five months, and we have reason to
( believe that the same has been known to
the sheriff of the county and to the pO-
/ lice Of the city of Jacksonville and that
/ they have not made the proper effort TO
stop them. We would further report that
a number of saloons in the city of Jack
/ sonvlle have side or back doors open on
Sundays and carry on their business in
the sale of liquors, and we believe that
/ the same is known to the sheriff and to
the officials of the city Of Jacksonville and
that no effort is being made to stop II,
although the same is in violation OF the
state law and of the ordinances OF the
/ city of jacksonville"
Commenting upon this the Citizen said:
Probably not two per cent. of the $1,000
residents of this city 90 to gambling
houses or visit barrooms on Sundays
/ Public opinion rises high and strong
/ against these vices. Now, If, as the
grand jury says, the sheriff and the city
police permit these practices, the police
and sheriff must have covert reasons for
/ exposing themselves to public blame by
not doing their duty These reasons per-
haps, are in the nature of political bar
gain whereby protection Is given on the
one side for campaign contributions, and
votes on the other. If gambling houses
1 and Sunday liquor selling are not permit
! ted to exist as the result of political bar
gain with the city authorities, then the
searcher after a reason is carried on to the
darker conclusion that plain bribery Is
practiced. What did the grand jury mean
] when, in speaking Of gambling houses
and saloons, IL is said that although II
was contrary to the wishes of the courts
the violation of the law in some respects
has been so fragrant that we feel il our
duty to investigate The grand jury
ought not to be so lacking in respect to
the court as to intimate that 1t was
against his honor's wish that the jury
should Investigate all crimes within the
courts jurisdiction. There seems to be
room for some explanation here"
Police Commissioner Young looked upon
this paragraph as a reflection upon his
I honor and his Integrity, and in Mr.. Met
calfs presence he denounced it as a lie
and demanded a retraction of it in so far
/ as it concerned him as one Of the city au-
thorities. Mr.. Metcalf attempted TO ex-
plain that the article had nothing personal
in il and that IL was the custom OF the
press in the larger cities of the country
to criticise public institutions and
public officials in a general way,
but Mr. Young didn't care he said,
what the custom was elsewhere or here.
He could not permit such charges to be
published about him. The assault then
followed as detailed above.
No reference was made TO this affair
1 by the city newspapers to-day, but In a
card published in the Times Unon, Judge
Young scored the grand jury and those.
who in his opinion, misrepresent the con-
dition Of affairs here, closing with this
threat: "Any one who asserts that the
foregoing statement Of facts is not true,
is a miserable liar. and If I ascertain that
any man who said that they are not true,
1 will slap his jaws
Mr. Young was formerly judge of the
fourth judicial circuit Of Florida. He is
an Alabamian. about 50 years old, weighs
/ about 30 pounds and is very sensitive and
I fiery in his temperament
Mr. Metcalf is a native of Maine, was
formally editor Of the Forum, and has been
IN Florida only about a year His wounds
are not serious. 1t is said that he viii
try to have Judge Young indicted for as
sault with intent to kill.
Mr. Young furnished the following YER
sion of the affair: "On Thursday, in COM
pany with DR.. Maxwell / went to the Of
flee of Mr. Metcalf, and placing before
him a copy of the article. said: In that
article you have charged the city officials
with bribery and corruption. ] am one
of the officials. and you must retract
the charge
Mr. Metcalf replied; The article does
/ not mention your name