The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-06-09
AGAINST TWO EVILS
THE FIGHT FOR LAW AND ORDER
WILL BE WAGED.
THEY MUST BE STOPPED.
PUBLIC GAMBLING AND SUNDAY IL
QUoR SELLING DOOMED.

Be Included an Campaig n-COm-
mIttee Composed of Leading BUSH
ness and Professional Men, who
Mean What They Say.
'Public gambling rooms must go and
the sale of liquor on Sunday must no
longer be permitted in Savannah. This
sentence expresses the purpose and the
fixed intention of those who compose the
executive committee, which is to carry
into effect the newly inaugurated law and
order movement"
The gentleman to whom common report
assigns a principal part in the Law and
Order movement made this statement TO
a Morning News reporter yesterday. Those
men whose names are signed to the $500
or more cards of application for member
ship in the league are not to be called
upon to do the active work. Their part in
the movement will be to give it their
moral influence and support and such
other aid as they may be called upon
from time to time. The executive COM
mittee will conduct the campaign.
It's members are not men to talk idly,
nor promise vain things Its organization
has been perfected and several meetings
have already been held. The committee.
started with few prominent lawyers as
the nucleus of its membership, and to
this were added others, until it is COM
posed now of about two dozen men,
whose standing in the professional and
business life of the city is of the highest
and best. They are not politicians, but
their interests in the city are large and
their interest keen.
They say they are not embarked upon
any Utopian project, but that the reforms
they mediate are within the bounds of
both necessity and practicability. They
are not going to fritter away their ener-
gies in trying to stop the sale of soda
water and cigars and bananas on Sunday
but confine their efforts to the suppress
sion of the two evils they regard as par
amount. These are public gambling and
the sale of liquor on Sunday.
A member of the Savannah bar has been
employed as the attorney and prosecutor
for the Executive Committee. He has
been instructed to employ every legiti-
mate means for the suppression of pub
lie gambling and Sunday liquor selling
and he does not regard the obtaining of
evidence against the violators of the laws
prohibiting these practices as matter
of any particular difficulty. These prac-
tees are to be stopped, say the members
of the Executive Committee.
The only thing to stand in the way of
the suppression of these two evils" said
the member of the Executive Committee
first above quoted, sis the failure of the
courts to enforce the law. If penalties
that the law affixes to the commission
and conviction of these crimes are inlct-
ed by the courts, the suppression of the
evils in Savannah is a matter of abso-
lutte certainty"
This committeeman repeated to the re-
porter an illustration of the evil of the
principle of filming convicted gamblers,
which had been given him by a leading
member of the Savannah bar.
Suppose" this Savannah lawyer said,
there existed in the city band of pick
pockets, who had no other means of max
ing living, and did not pretend to have
amy other Suppose members of this band
were brought up periodically and fined,
with the complete understanding that as
soon as they had paid part of their
ill-gotten gains into the registry of the
court they were to be permitted to go
back upon the streets and resume the
same practice.
what would the community think of
this, and how long, do you suppose, would
it be permitted to continue? And yet.
what material difference is there between
this imaginary case of the pickpockets
and the real case of the gamblers? 1t
is not more lawful to run a gambling
house for a living than 1t is to pick
pockets for a living, and, in my opinion,
not more respectable. The gambler is as
much a drain upon the community as is
the pic1pocket, possibly greater drain,
in that his earnings are greater and the
~, Nn Iro uriJ a1f inc in
its results. Isn't 1t time that practice
which permits one class of criminals to
20 from the Court House, where they
have acknowledged their guilt and paid
their fines, straight back to the commits
sion of the same crime, should be
stopped?'
The Executive Committee say 1t is going
TO be stopped. Its plans will be put in
operation at once and no real doubt of
their effectiveness is entertained The
committee predicts and promises that
within the next few months there viii not
be a public gambling house in Savannah
and the sale of liquor on Sunday will be
stopped.
In the courts, or the Superior Court
at any rate. the reform movement is ALSO
having an innings. Judge Falligant and
the solicitor general had conference yes
terday morning, and as a consequence
ell the cases for keeping gambling houses
and selling liquor on Sunday, made by
the indictments returned by the grand
Jury Of the last term of the court, were
called up and assigned for trial this week
and the next
The gambling cases are assigned for
next Thursday. on that day Charles
O'Dell James l.. Doss, Cad Bryan. julius
Rosenthal, T. o. Mcbride, John Mcbride
and Simeon Sternberg will be placed on
trial. unless they can show cause for
continuance. The two men missing from
the bunch OF nine the grand jury indicted
on the testimony furnished by Horace r.
Hunter are Male Henderson and Jack
Monahan. who were out of the city before
the officers OF the court started out with
bench warrants for their arrest, and
haven't returned since.
For Wednesday of this week have been
assigned for trial the cases against
George c. Schwarz. william Diers, John
Meyer and John +. Meyer. all of which
are for keeping open bars and selling
liquor on Sunday. on Friday j. X. Tay-
lor, owen Travis. c. f. Luerson, George
Christopher. Neil Gildea and j. X. Ped
rick will be tried for the same ofrense
on Monday OF next week will be heard
the cases. for the same offense, against
S. l.. Bird George Pappedeas, George
Christopher and G. c. Warn.
For other days during this and next
week have been assigned the cases
against those indicted for selling cigar.
cites 90 minors and selling soda water
"a and q her artfelaa ~ a "a OH