The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1901-04-03

~ serious as 10 make II Impossible 60 SUP
press It's dissemination as In tae case ~
~ "u,nreak Of the negro soldiers Ia Yves.
!, eNas last year. the papers never heard 81
lt May this then, aoI acconn, Tor III.
exaggerated. n not entirely false rcports
" ahe scenes at lighwood on last pay day;
~ Your columns on this special sou
nave the following 10 SAY.
"a ma y" remarked here that prior 20
.lp establishment Of the army canteen
nv II. p0ss IN tne country Was surreunicd
~" Fnhl SHOP the dance hall and other
iinces OF similar character. Tho eau,
IN at rue posts caused the extinction OF
$3.50, now that the cantoen has oseit
ola plnccs. '''ui"'u " '"'
-, army officers and those who have
hcu,lta the situation thoroughly do nGl
nm MT usnSn moral improvement either.
S nu. these same officers, az least about sW
p'l cent ~ them, favored the army gan.
I'm mt their arguments were disregard
spurncd n' ~, practical recommendations
w. i r. Ferguson, Editor Of The New
f,"'Se' IN MS book. "The Canteen In the
V, !, Army says pages los ana I6el;
MNen Is the assertion that II keeps tac sol
ulvls from the worse places ana thar III
= We're abolished dives would immediate.
Posts up mn tne s, lfIniy gi ths army my
lorts and posts and soldiers home the
Salooh always nourShes. the ''outside dive
~ almost as iuVarahlc an accoinpanimcnt
parade ground. IN" canteen "a
i1r from Keeping the soldiers from these
i bt'ucSs, Whets their appetites for the
stronger liquors. sold there ami hy tempt
ins my recruits provides patrons for the
outside saloons who would never become
ddrriinEElng men had they not learned to
uinh IN the canteen II the reader Is
anxious To study the outside dive a fow
localities might he named where the oppor
s annie Tor such study are good. For ex-
Fort Wayne near Detroit: Fort sheridan
Just north of Chicago: Army officers
arr not fond of asserting that since the
opehlng OF the cantecn at this or that place
me aNes have been closed | have been
unable to ind an Instance where there has
ntsen any real closing Of dives on account
Note that one Of the places mentioned
Wwhsre The outside dive can he found Is
Fort sheridan. the place this special"
would by implication have us believe was
SUCH nice place before the abolition OF
the Cnnteen
Below present a report of conditions
~ Fort sheridan on March I. made by a
mVmOer ot the New Voice stan:
Fort Sheridan Village. March 1-(Star
torreSnondeuCe.) IL came here this after
noon to ascertain. the cffect upon the sa
merly called Hlghwood-or the closing Of
,he beer cantcen at Fort Sheridan | first
MiGrvlewed the editor Of the IIlghwood
independent who told . that the closing
OF the governmental grogshop had failed
10 work as anticipated, and that instead %
there being more drunkenness In the VII
lagc than formerly, the opposite was the
c0se.
"rhere are now about 700 men stationed
az the post, which Is double the number
chartered there at the time Of my previous
visit, and although I then found dozens
OF soldiers In the saloon here In q can
vaSS ot the entire line today | found but
Que soldier The saloon keepers declare
that for months the soldiers patronage
has been falling on and one OF the bar
tenders assured me that In his opinion not
$50 Of soldiers money had passed over the
Highwood bars since the Issuance of tina
order closing the cantcen bar.
81 visited every saloon In town and in
tervicwcd the proprietor or bartender of
every place and without exception they
agreed that the closing OF the crnteen had
NOT been benefit TO their business Alfred
Smith Of the FIRM Of IIeustis & Smith said;
4 do not think the closing OF the beer can
teen at the fort will have any effect on
our business. II certainly has not bene-
ficd us any yet, and ] doubt If 1t VIII
''Thc bartender of NJ j. Gibbs saloon,
who modestly declined to give me his
name, declared with much eagerncss that
the soldiers at the post We're n lot OF pic
caters. They are not ut all sporty, said
he and Of coure. when they can not get
hcrr to drink In the cantc"n, they viii
draw checks just the sam' and spend
their money In the restaurant and store.
! used to ha q soldier myself, said he, and
served in the philippines. know how u
u
their money, but the fellows up here are
either sending their money home, or else
spending It for grub, They certainly aye
mot blowing 1t In with MS
In the face of this testimony, think the
promises on which you base your con
illusions are disproved.
As 10 the consensus Of opinion OF army
officers favoring the canteen. Tho report
al Adjutant Corhin dd show this. But
AdIutant General Corbln only prosecute
the replies Of IFS officers out Of tota
Of 1894 officers on the rolls at tho me-
he made his poll Again, II is known thai
the replies of several officers oppused t.
the cnntcen were plgeonholcd and that
other officers known to he opposed 10 tnJ
cnntcen were not asked for, AIMING this
latter number hclng tho three ranking gen
erals Of the United States army. Is 1t not
reasonable conclusion. therefore. thai
Corhin made his poll. not TO get tho rea
0p'uion of the officers as n whole, hut q
bolster up his side Of the question and that
officers known to be opponents Of the can
tccn were not canvasscd? OF what value
Is Snch poll2
IN conclusion. | viii add lat Mr.. Nc
Kinley was very bitterly assalcd last year
especially by the tempcrnnCc people mn
churches, for his permitting the nullify,
ton ny GriEgs OF the unticnnteen law, an.
that n Is but n1tural to sGapnse ne wOuld
like to have anti-cAntcen legislation proven
a failure. Hence these reports.
r. u Rptlpy