The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-03-19
PEEP-HOLE POLICEMEN.

From the testimony of Representative
Law. which is no longer important save
as a confession of the methods of the
conspirators and the prostitution Of the
police department of Salt Lake City
for partisan purposes, it appears that
Chief Pratt's whole conduct during the
planning and springing of the Mon
tana sensation" was spiteful, uncon-
scionable. puerile and petty; that it was
in full accord with the policy suggested
daily by the peep-hole organ, which has
a record for misrepresenting and ma
ligning people, claiming that it is all
for their own good.
There was a time when it didn't ap-
prove of peep-hole methods in police
circles, but lit all depends on whose
OK is gored"; it is never actuated by
principle; it never hesitates to favor
one day what it condemned the day be-
fore, if its personal ends are subserved
by such contempt for truth or consist
ency.
Nor is it possible for our neighbor to
extricate its chief of police from the
peep-hole in which the public found
him several weeks ago. After Law and
his fellow conspirators had a talk with
Pratt in Senator Cannon's headquarters
on the evening that Pratt told Law he
had been looking for a decoy with
nerve, they all adjourned to the head
quarters of the chief. This and the con-
Chief Pratt are revealed in the follow
ing from Mr.. Laws testimony before
the committee:
You went up to the police headquarters
about what hour? 1t must have been
near u o'clock or a little after.
Then what did you do? We arranged
a plan whereby we hoped
Tell US what YOU did. What we did?
Yes. We went in and sat down.
Go on. And smoked.
Go ahead. And took off our overcoats
and our hats
Yes. And that was all We did.
What did you say? Oh. well what we
DOM get cunning. We arranged plan
whereby we hoped to catch Mr.. Nc
Cune-
Well, tell US what you did in that re-
gard We Detective Sheets, and ] went
over and arranged about rooms in the
Who paid for them? The chief of police
Mr. Pratt? If they were paid for he did.
Don't you know whether they We're paid
for or not? No. sir.
You didn't pay for them? No. sir.
From whom did you rent them? 1 don't
know the lady.
Some lady. was il? Yes. sir.
What rooms were they? Rooms 3 and T.
Which one did you occupy that night?
Is that the one on the corner? Yes,
And is in what direction from 3? This
Well, west do you mean? No; it is
east.
Well. is 3 "A corner ROOM l don't know
whether it is corner room or not
Don't know whether it was corner
room or not No. sir
Were you there that night at all? Yes.
And vet YOU don't know-you selected
the rooms. selected the one that you We're
to occupy that night; you did Occupy il
that night, and don't know Whether II
was corner room or not? No; sir.
DO you know the number Of the room?
Yes sir: ! do.
Number 3? Yes. sir.
Was there any communication between
and l. any means of communication?
There was a door.
was mis- on the second or third floor?
On the second from the ground
Up at the head of the first flight of
Was there anything done with room or
SO that spies could ascertain what took
place in that room? Yes, sir; .,o,,... =.
What2 1t WASH done lndI HlSHt II
was done the next morning.
What was done? Cut the top of the
So they could look through and hear
as well? Yes. sir.
The confession of female con-
spirator in a badger game could not
show up the alleged injured hus-
band more completely than Laws
testimony reveals the littleness, the
sneaking viciousness of the present
control and management of the police
department Of this city. And the news
paper that defends such infamous
methods has no respect either for itself
or for the public.