Waterbury Democrat., 1901-03-05

-AVA In one of the sovereign states of this republic the laws prohibiting the sale of alcoholic and other liuuor cannot be enforced without force; hatchets and other implements being used without discrimination or consideration of moral laws. Moral suasion is out of the question in that locality.
 When officials charged with the eX- ecution of the laws violate or seem to violate their oaths of office, pubic sentiment often takes the place of law and order. This accounts for the resort of minimizing people to lynch law, which means the violation of all law. Fortunately for the reputation of the national capital the officials here are men of the highest order or integrity and they usually enforce the laws to the best of their ability. We have an unusually efficient chlef of police.
 Mai. Richard Sylvester was for al- most 20 years the Washington cofre- spondent of several west tern newspa- pers, while he acted at the same time as chief clerk of police headquarters. In his newspaper work he became well acquainted with the congress- man from the Eighteenth congress sional district of Ohio, one William Mckinley, Jr., and when that con- gressman became president of our re- public he remembered Sylvester and appointed him chief of police of the District of Columbia; and he made no mistake. In making that appolnt- ment he selected the man of all men who knew most, practically, about the work of the police department, and a man of superior education, eX- perience and probity of character.
 The chairman of the inaugural com- mittee has made Maj. Sylvester chair man of the committee on public order during the inaugural ceremonies; and everybody here approves the selection as a wise one. Our chief of police has already taken steps to conserve the public order during that important cer- emonial and when the time comes his additional special policemen will be thoroughly drilled and instructed con- corning the duties which they must vigorously perform; and also concern ing the limitations of the authority in- trusted to them.
 The Limitations of police power car not be too well defined for such an oc- casion. The writer has in vivid mem- .ory an occurrence during the inaugura- tion of President Harrison March 4, 1889, when a domineering mounted po- iceman, instead of forcing back the crowd at corner actually drove his horse into crowd. trampling citizens down and seriously injuring one of the state officials of Wisconsin, who was unavoidably in the crowd because of the loss of his horse by runaway before the procession started.
 But. before preparing for the presi- dential inauguration, Maj. Sylvester has inaugurated system of moral sua- sion which is rather intolerable to gen. tlemen in the realm of society who are devoted to gambling and excessive in- dulgence in drinking ardent spirits. He has. decided to make gambling prac- tically impossible during inauguration week by employing additional detec- tives. who will carefully watch for crooks of all sorts; and all suspected d gambling places will be closely watched
 Moreover, our chief of police has decided upon a permanent enforce ment of the law against the sale and use of liquor after the midnight hour.