The Savannah morning news., 1901-05-26
BACK AT GRAND JURY
MAYOR MYERS WARM REPLY TO
ITS CHARGES AGAINST HIM.
SINGLES OUT THE FOREMAN.
ARD DIRECTS SHAFTS OF INQUIRY
AGAINST FOREMAN SHELDON.
Mayor said He Was Surprised That


aty in Attacking City officials.
Grand Jurors Are Pharisees, He
Says. NVinlSfnE at the Sale of LII
quors in Their Clubs on sundays.
One Grand Juror Owned BRrrOOm
where LIQUOR Was Sold on sun
day-Denies That Community Is
Corrupt.
Mayor Myers feels that the grand jury
far overstepped the confines of its juris-
dfction, when it made him the subject of
a presentment. When seen yesterday
about the matter he was ready 10 ex-
press himself in no uncertain terms
against the action of the grand jury, sin
CLING out the foreman, Mr.. James X. Shell
don, and bringing to his mind conditions
that the Mayor alleges are as pertinent
as any of the violations for which he is
charged with responsibility. When asked
about the charges brought against him,
the Mayor said;
81 was surprised that the grand jury
should attack me. I was surprised that
it should exceed its jurisdiction and offer
gratuitous criticism in regard to things
" hich were none of its business. The
grand Jury is organized as part OF the
state judiciary, and it has supervision OF
county officers and county affairs, but
the law gives it no power or authority
with reference to city matters or city Of
fcers and l am surprised that, instead
of attending to It's own business, it I'M
dertook to attend to mine.
Its conduct is such as TO lead me to
believe that it was actuated by motives
of Phariseeism rather than a desire to
observe the public good. The grand jurors
themselves have willfully violated their
duties as grand jurors. They pose as re-
formers, let us see If they are not Phari-
sees. Their honorable foreman took the
following oath: Il, as foreman of the
grand jury for the county of Chatham
shall diligently inquire and true present
ment make of all such mat
ters and things as shall be
given me in charge or come to
my knowledge touching the present ser
vice-I shall not leave any one sunpre-
scented from fear, favor, affection or re-
ward or the hope thereof, but shall pre-
sent all things truly and as they come
TO my knowledge
And yet, this foreman, with this oath
upon his lips, failed to perform his duty.
! am informed that he is a member of
one of the prominent clubs of this city.
He knows that every Sunday since he
has been member of the present grand
jury that club has run a tipping house
in violation of the law. The honorable
foreman knew that this was against the
law because in 1898. when the Supreme
Court decided such houses were tippling
houses, his club as a sham, closed down
on Sundays for a time and then opened
up again. This foreman knows that on
every Sunday for the past two years his
club has run a tipping house on Sunday. =
and knows that this was in violation of
the law. Each member of the grand jury
took the same oath, and many of them
belong to some club in the city or suburbs
and had the same knowledge a s the fore
man, and yet. knowing all this, and with
their oath fresh upon their lips, they re-
Trained from presenting the clubs, and
concluded their misconducted labors by
a pharisaical declaration that i am hol-
fer than thou
But this is not all. Since the publ
cation of their presentment, It has come
TO my knowledge that one of their men,
bers has within two years owned bar
room where liquor was sold on Sundays,
and yet he. guilty as he is before the law,
has the audacity to charge me with neg
lect OF duty.
Il deny and denounce the statement OF
the grand jury that this community is
nah are as good and law-abiding as any
in the country l have always directed
the police TO use every effort to detect
and prosecute all Sunday violations and
] believe the police force has discharged
its duty in this respect. To further en-
force the sumDtuary laws, it would be
necessary to employ the spy system, and
this i win not do or permit to be done
long as l am Mayor of Savannah.
ct annolluced when I WAS a candida "a
for Mayor that l would not re-introduce
the old spy system. reiterate it: 1 VIII
not employ men for this purpose, nor VITA
] ask the police force of the city 10
climb poles, or creep into back yards. or
send men into barrooms 20 purchase
liquor for sick wives, or resort to any
such devices to catch a man selling liquor
on Sunday.
II Will do my duty as / consider right
for me to do 1t. 1 suppose the members
of the grand jury did theirs as they
thought proper when they kept quiet
about the safe of liquor at their clubs on
Sunday and refused to make an example
of such violations when the means was
I'm their hands. l can assure them that
the police wilt not spy on them to de-
tect such violations. II the grand jury
shuts its eyes 40 what a number of its
members see every Sunday, it need not
expect me to do its work for 1t In that
respect.
IF the Mayor was TO follow their i'm
piled advice, and raid the clubs of which
they are members on Sunday next, they
would be among the first to denounce his
action II he were to engage some one
10 spy on such clubs, to Climb pore,
or sneak Up the stairs and catch the
members buying liquor. they would be
9oudest and longest in denunciation of
such a policy. Yet. according to their
presentments, they desire the Mayor TO
do unto Others what they do not want
him TO do unto them.
THE grand Jurors also charge bribery
and corruption at the polls. These
charges they cannot sustain. 1t Is their
peculiar province to investigate bribery
and corruption. They claim they have
done so. They claim they could find no
evidence upon which to indict, and yet,
after this claim, they charge the COM
munlty with wholesale corruption. They
are not acting like good citizens. They in
3ure this city by publishing charges
which they cannot sustain. II their
charges are true, 1t is their business 10
correct the abuses, and they are respou-
sibie for any failure. II their charges are
not true, they have deliberately slandered
the community. In either event they have
called 20 perform their duty
They RETAINED from indicting the clubs
from one OF the three causes, because
they do not wish 20 enforce the Sunday
hrN Ia