The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-08-14
HARD TO PASS The LAW.
POLITICIANS DIsCREDIT THE POSI-
BILITY OF GAMBLING ACT.

| entail Element in Every Legisla-
ture That VIII Use Every Endeav-
or to Defeat a Law SO Manifestly
TO Its DiSadvantnEe-And They Re-
lieve the Effort VIII BE Sufficient
10 Prevent the Laws Enactment.
Police Officers without Authority
to Enter Houses fer the PuorOse of
suppressing Gambling.
| There is a good deal of talk among the
/ politicians in regard to the act that the
present grand jury will ask the represent
| atives of the county and the senator from
| this district to introduce and endeavOr 10
| have passed by the next legislature, pro-
! viGipg that in the hereafter convicted
violators of the gambling laws shall be
| punished by terms of imprisonment. with
out the alternative of paying a fine.
Those of the politicians who are known
emnently as practical scout the possibil-
/ ity of securing the passage of such a law
! declaring that such hope is an Utop.an
vision, that could not dwell in the con-
seriousness of one who is accustomed TO
deal with facts. They have no belief,
| confidence or trust in the ability of any
man or set of men to secure the enactment
! OF law oil TINS character.
"Why" said one of them, who does not
wish his name 10 be given, 1.-The
legislature could no more be induced to
enact law like the one proposed by the
grand jury than it could be successfully
urged to levy a tax on the pursuit of
! happiness or the desire for political pre-
! ferment."
THE Legislature of Georgia" said the
politician, lis breeding place of prospec-
tive solicitors general They come there
/ primarily'to meet Legislators from all over
the state, the election of such officers in
the past having been entrusted to the leg
/ islature. II is true that in the future
| these officers are to be elected by the peo-
/ pie but it will nevertheless be true always
| that many gentlemen, who desire to be
made solicitors general for their circuits,
VIII go to the legislature in the first place
as an admirable stepping stone to such
! preferment.
Now, without discussing the expediency
! of the method now in vogue to suppress
! gambling or its success or lack of success,
/ it goes without saying that the fines that
| thus come into the registry of the court
/ are OF direct pecuniary advantage to its
| officers and that without such fines their
! accounts for insOlvent costs would largely
| exceed what is now the case. There is al
ways a OclClt III the luIll LOT the pay
| ment of these costs and the officers of the
| court who feel that they should receive
| what the law allows them for their ser
| vices, contemplate it with no feeling of
| satisfaction"
Now. is it natural to suppose that the
prospective solicitors general in the leg
islature are going to permit the enact
! ment of a law of the nature of the one
proposed, that viii surely diminish their
! emoluments? l think not"
There has been a desire on the part OF
some persons to know why the gambling
that is confessedly in existence in Savan-
nah is not suppressed by the police, whose
natural duty, these persons think, IL should
be. To crafty, if possible, this curiosity,
a Morning News reporter asked Superin-
tendent of Police Screven to state the po-
sit0n the city authorities and the police
occupied on the situation and what they
conceived to be their duty in the prem
ises. The superintendent was not willing
to be interviewed or to discuss for publ
cation what he should or should not do in
the line of his official duty. This he does
not feel would be proper
! 1t is known. however, that the police do
| not consider ii their duty to enter houses
for the purpose Of suppressing misdemean-
ors and that they have no legal power, as
police officers, to do SO. Before they can
make a raid on a house where gambling
is carried on they must be armed with a
warrant ana sworn in IS special officers
| for Is execution. Under The cirCums tanCes
they do not conceive it to be their duty to
make raids on gambling houses or to at
| tempt TO suppress a wee wi h which the
stale and county officials are perfectly
competent 10 cope. This statement OF the
position of the police is in no sense official,
| but il IS substantially correct. 1t is the
view they take of The matter
Ii would seem, therefore, and has been
widely suggested, that there might be in
corpora ted in the law that the grand jury
proposes 10 have introduced a provision
that the police shall have the authority 10
| enter houses where gambling is known to
| he in progress and 10 arrest those who are
found engaged in the violation Of the law.
1t is doubtless true that the police, who
are constantly on The streets, might be
able to gather evidence that would lead
to the conviction Of gamblers that could
not be secured by other means and that
| they might time their raids with that nice
certainty that would ensure a goodly haul.
Another of the gamblers recently indict-
ed by the grand jury VIII be tried in
the Superior Court to-day, and it is ex-
pected that the evidence adduced on his
trial will throw some further light on the
business of gambling in Chatham county.
| Frank Fulton. the second of those indict-
ed, who refused TO plead guilty, is charged
with running a policy lottery, and belongs
to that wing of the gamblers who feel
that they are entitled 10 q kick. 1t is
rather thought that in his statement to
the jury he win make one. and he has an
inimita bic manners that renders what he
says lucid and impressive.
Some discussion by Judge Falligant of
the me hods at present in vogue for the
suppression of the evils of gambling in
Chatham county. that formed part of an
article appearing in the Morning News
of yesterday, was not intended to be and
was not in fact an official statement from
the judge. Judge Fa.ligant does not feel
that his position in this or any other mat
ter requires that he be placed on the de-
fensive or that he be the subject of ex-
p.auation and he would not therefore give
out a formal interview on a matter con-
nected with his official duties The views
expressed in the article referred to, he
stated in substance in con-
versation with Morning News
representative and number of
= others. They were reproduced as an in