Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-05-15

to state to this meeting just what I found.
1 discovered that a very large amount of
money is invested in these two tracks
across the river, 50 large a sum that I
was surprised, Yestetday at st. Asaph' S
I founi from 1,500 % 1900 people in attend
ance. 1 saw nothing very disorderly there,
no very prominent citizens were to be seen,
nor any very prosperous men, but did see
men there risking money who cannot pay
their honest debtssEhere at home I saw
numbers of young men there, learning the
lesson of gambling and tasting of the dam
gerous sweets of an occasional winning.
The proprietors were very gentlemanly, but
that did not shut ourreyes to the fact that
the place was a dangerous element.
Great supns Invested.
"At Jackson City we also found that a
large amount Of money had been invested.
There were over 500 horses running there
and President Jones told me that it costs
1850 day to run the track. There was
not SO good crowd there as at st. Asaph's.
that is to say not quite so respectable.
saw one young man who had recently failed,
and who now owes many people in con-
sequence, and is in my debt among others,
plunging on the races. saw another man
whom l know to be in the debt of local
bank riSking some odds. With a continual
ton of this state of affairs men are going
to continue to be lured from their bust
ness pursuits no matter now gentiemanly
the proprietors are or how orderly the
tracks may be. There will be great loss of
time money and character to many citi-
zens. The thing becomes a mania after a
while.
Then too we are going to have attract
ed to this city a large number of bad char
acters, both male and female, and yet we
ought to be more particular here at the
national capital than In any other city in
regard to the character of our people and
those who stay around the community. If
we are going to have this sort of thing the
year round we shall soon find a moral de-
cay going on among our young people.
Gambling PerniciOus Anyway.
zone of the proprietors of one of these
tracks confessed to me In private CONVEX
sation that though these places may be
conducted fairly gambling is pernicious
anyway There is gambling going on in all
large cities, and maybe it cannot be en-
tirely suppressed. but it can be kept in
great check 1t is not difficult for us to
remember how we killed the lottery in this
country, by the sheer force of public SEN
timent. But there must be some equity
about the way in which we fight these
evils. We give the poor darkey a jail SEN
tence for playing craps, and yet We allow
our doors to allure thousands to them in
the vain hope of making a fortune. The
better people of the District feel that this
condition of affairs ought to arouse their
no easy matter to fight the gambling inter-
ests. Many ramifications of trade are in
terested. The tracks have a large follow
ing, and the hotel patronage is enormous
Then there are great bills for feed for the
horses, and for supplies for the men who
live at the tracks. The moneyed interests
affected are very large. You can easily see
the number of people affected. 1t was es-
timated that at least $4,000 changed hands
on the result of one race, which also re-
suited in the outlawing of the ST. Asaph's
track. which will sink low as that at
Jackson City, because it is now outside the
pale of legitimat e racing. We are not to
consider legal racing here tonight as il
legal racing, and the best methods to pre-
vent it from corrupting the morals of this
community"
Who Owns the Land:
Mr.. Warner then asked those present to
express themselves, and Mr.. B. T. Janney
presented the following resolutions: Re
solved, That it is the sense of the board Of
trade of Washington, D. c.. that az earnest
effort should be made tending toward the
restoration of Alexandria county to the
District, and that a committee of five be
appointed to look into the matter and re-
port as to the feasibility of the scheme"
This was a rather unexpected turn to the
tide of affairs. as il opened not new, but
considered by many in, this connection. Mr..
Warner, however, did not give time for dis
cusson to begin Immediately upon this
matter, for he called upon Rev. Mr.. Allen.
assistant pastor of the First Presbyterian
Church. who. he said. would soon have to
leave the meeting. Mr. Aliens address was
filled with force and suggestion. He recon-
mended radical measures, and made some
suggestions that, he himself confessed.
might be considered as rather strong for a
clergyman to make. Those before him
were there as business men, and he sup
posed they were going to act as such. The
evils of the places across the river need not
be spoken of. as they were well known.
A Plain Statement.
1.-THE situation" Mr.. Allen went on, 'is
just this The law of Virginia allows horse
racing and betting on the track, but does
not allow gambling. Gambling places do
exist on the shores of the state. They
may be found at Jackson City. in open de-
fiance of the law, and there are at least
three places conducted at Rossyn where
games of chance are operated. A boat
plies between the foot of 32d street and
these three places daily and on Sundays.
The two officers of Alexandria county
elected to enforce the law are the sheriff
and the attorney for the county. They
claim that they cannot get evidence
against these places sufficient to convict
their proprietors, and they take refuge be-
hind this weak plea. One Of them admits
that he owns horses that are run at one of
the tracks. Both are candidates for re-
mttted by him to be correct, has declared
There is no power on earth or on this side
of hell to drive me out of my position "
Mr.. Allen went OF to tell of his own ex-
periences as a resident of New Jersey,
where the race track kings ruled the state
and passed laws to suit themselves, until
| the people arose IT. their might and chang
| ed the order of the day and restored peace
and good rule to the community. These
officials said, the sheriff of Alexandria
| county has said that there was no power
to remove them, but they have been re-
moved. and the fight was led by the min
| listers of the gospel. The laws that gave
birth and life to the race tracks and gam
| bling dens have all been repealed, and q
| committee is now engaged in uncovering a
| mass of corruption incredible to contem-
| plate.
How to Crush the Evils.
81 say that this man, and all men like
| him. continued Mr.. Allen, "can be re-
| moved from his position If all the good
| people here will lend their assistance, aid
| ed by the good people of the county across
| the river. Send out a ringing protest
reaching from the governor of the state to
| the sheriff. 1t may be very slow work
| but all reforms are slow. This protest will
IN, low he