The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1898-01-05
LEGAL LIGHTS GONFERRING
.aonlInnod lrom TIrsl 49,

satire. "No license shall ever be
granted for any house of prostitution,
gambling house, gambling device,
game Of chance, or any disordcrly
house or practice, aud no city officer
shall accept or receive any bush money
or any money or Valuable things from
any persons engaged Ia any such bust
ness or practice OF grant any immun.
ity or protection against a rigid en-
forcement OF the laws and ordinances,
enacted 10 restrain, prohibit and sup.
press any such business or practice.
The author OF this measure surely
must have been perpetrating a grim
joke when he penned these wordo. IN
there ever was tester calculated TO
breed a disrespect for law and TO ger
inmate corruption in Official life, it Is
this very provision OF the law which is
willfullv set at defiance Ia every i'm
portant town in this territory, except
when interrupted by some temporary
reform fever, spasmodic In It's chRrac.
ter and Of no particular duration and
which teaches the vicious lesson that
the laws are sometimes made not to be
enforced but to be set at defiance,
which makes an official oath a trile,
MOTTO be observed in execution Of the
>eaws, and which brings the gentry de-
nounced by this law INTO police court
once a month for a periodical hne, the
rigors OF which are mihgated In hard
times and increased IN good times, so
as to foster their vicious calling and
to all the city officials pockets with
fees and to bring little money into
the public treasury as an appeal TO the
taxpayer 10 permit these things TO ex-
list.
am not reformcr, as that term
goes. ! am not one who believes from
q very close observation OF numerous
abortive attempts that the legislature
can eoerce to personal morality. / have
lived ia Kansas and have seen that
hideous farce called prohibition.
have seen the habit Of screening the
liquor dealers with per jury ripen into
a degraded view OF the sancity OF an
oath that breeds in the minds Of the
g1uple and renders liberty and prop
erty precarious in its courts and char
acterzes litigation in its precincts af
mere swearing machines III you have
occasion 10 doubt my assertion, inves'
tigate the antecedents OF the two OF
three hundred persons convicted oil
perjury IN this territory and find out
what state they came from. Hence,
do not assert, nor do / mean TO assert,
that the law is capable OF wiping out
the vices mentioned in this section.
do mean to say that # the cities of
this territory are permitted to work
these dives for revenue, il ought tC
be called by It's right neWe and
they ought TO have the power TO H.
eense them over and above board aud
TO face the world with It's result
ing apETo5rn6m, or else this power L
runish which has been so grossly
prostituted into mere power 10 lew
blAckmail, wiped out, and let thes,
offenders stand before the TERRITORY
law and take their chances in esca pins
its punishment 1t may at leHst b'
said TO the credit Of Sodom and Go
morrah that their dives ran wide opeI
and history does not record that thl
government OF either CITY was sid,
partner or sustained itself or its Off
cials with part of the rAke.off from
its gambling tables or share in thl
receipts from depraved womanhood
IL is generally true that whatever tn
power to create oifenses and TO pro
vide for punishment therefor, hal
been entrusted to a city government
with the exception OF spasmodic ant
temporary periods OF virtue in tn
goxarpipg bodies. That trust ha
been grossly betrayed. The time To-
this commopwealtb 20 got the mRste
hand is nowNWheH the cities are few
aRd unimportaut, because by and bl
these cities will grow TO the poin
where their political significance Il
such that party cowardice will be
stronger power than public virtue.
In th.s brief space / will be unable
to touch on other defe Is in our sYs
tenn of municipal government, but
submit the entire subject 10 you a
worthy OF earnest consideration
and with view OF leading t,
discr.ssion which may aid our com
p ing legislature in enacting measure
for the creation Of system Of city
governments that will secure the high
est degree OF efficiency and purity II
their administration, and which MAJ
enable this commonwealth to avoid
the rocks on which others have foun
dered.