The San Francisco call., 1897-12-07
The Chief Censured for Refusing
to Retract an Assertion About
the "0pen Town"
MR.. GUNST WILL NLTER RESIGN.
Will Stay on the Board as Long as
he Lives to Advocate Needed Re-
forms-His Mind and Health.

Moses Gunst has disc beyed the juno
ton OF his medical advisers, and allowed
himself to become excited and angry.
The lapse from studied and serene com.
posure took place al the meeting of the
Board OF Police Commissioners yesterday
afternoon, when Chief Lees was reelected
for term OF two years. Mr.. Gunst did
not roar and become uncomfortable, but
the effort to suppress his feelings gave his
countenance strange and unnatural ex-
preston. He pitched his voice high,
however, when he informed his associates
on the commission that he had no notion
of resigning but, on the contrary, was
full of firm and resolute purpose TO stay
on the board as long as he lived, and urge
in the fu ure, as in the past the reforms
Which were so necessary for the good of
the service.
commissioners Alvord and Tobin,
knowing the precarious state OF Mr.
Gunst's health, and fearing that undue
excitement might preci pitate crisis, lis
tened with surprise and astonishment TO
the outburst, but deemed it wise under
the circumstances to refrain from speech
Chief Lees had his own controlling stakes
we'll set and said not word.
Here is the true story of the beginning
and the ending OF the scene yesterday, a.
though the ultimate finish may be traught
with greater frenzy. W hen The !our Com
missioners assem- bled-ChIef Lees being
counted as one-Mr. Alvord moved that
the reading of the minutes of the pre-
vious session be omitted. Nj. Gunst
looked firm and resolute. but did not op.
pose the motion. 1t was carried without
dissent.
Tbeleupon Mr.. AIvord brought forth
resolution and introduced it, The reso-
luton provided for the appoiL tment of
Isaiah w. Lees to b. Chief o Police for
term of TWO yeas. Mr.. Aivord moved the
adoption oil the TeSolutlOn ana Mr.. TObin
seconded the motion. Meanwhile Moses
was getting warm about the neck. Find
ing the tension so great that something
| would snap il he did not talk he disobeved
the injunction of his ooctors and the
friendly warnings of his associate COM
mlssioners and talked. He asked that the
resolution be Indefinitely postponed, ana
| as reason for making the request said
that Lees was not proper man to fill the
office of chief. Aud Isaiah spake not.
Moses further said that he had a per-
sonal grievance. In one of the newspapers
OF the town Lees had been quoted as say
ing that he (Moses) desired the town to be
run wide open. Said Moses: II went to
see Chief Lees in his office and asked him
to retract the statement that l wanted a
wide open town and the Chief refused TO
N Ike the retraction. l then left the
office of The Chief and have not been there
Stree" Lees was still silent, holding his
pent-up wrath in magnificent style.
AS much as Me>srs. Aivord ana To bin
love Moses and desire to please him IN all
things, mall and great, they are still true
to Lees, and therefore Gid not postpone
the resolution either definitely or indeii-
nltely. Mr.. Gun>t remarked that he
would be compelled to vote mo- If a vote
were pressed; yet Alvord and Tobin did
not yield, and Lees did not so much as
murmur. The vote was taken and re-
corded-three for the resolution and one
against it. Moses ran up against 1t hard
but he was overwhelmed by superior
weight and mum bers.
Lees surely desired that the vote should
be un animous, but that happy and much
desired result ne could not accomp ish.
Still he reflected in Iong-sustained silence
that if he could not make it wholly unani-
nous he would make 1t nearly unani-
nous as the eXigencieS of the occasion
would permit, and therefore he voted for
himself and reduced Moses to minority
OF one. Commissioners Tobln and Alvord
who have often been constrained to advise
both Lees and Gunst that silence is golden,
highly com mended the Chief for his
mastery exhibition of silence at the ses-
| sion, but sincerely regret that his tongue
got loose in the corridor when the report
| ers were around.
| They regard the remark accred tied to
| l. es, that "Gunst was losing his mind"
| as uncallcd for and un iustidable. Neither
| Mr.. Alvord nor Mr.. Tobin will aver that
Mr.. Gunst is losing his mind or is in any
| immediate danger of losing it.
As to Mr.. Gunsts health, that is quite
another matter. One of tle Com ssion-
ers, who is prudent and conservative in all
| things, advises The CALL o ask the doctors
about The state of Mr.. Gunst's health
| Should the health of Mr.. Gunst DE much
impaired by reason of excitement, nervous