Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-03-07

pline of regular troops and when ranks are
broken it is inevitable that some OF them
will get into mischief and disgrace the UNI
form they wear.
1t is very earnestly hoped that we have
seen the last of military inaugurations, ana
that the next President Of the United states
Will restore the reign of the civil law. II a
military escort is still considered desirable
and there not enough regular troops
about Washington for the purpose, rev
representative organizations of the militia
of the neighboring states might properly
take part in the parade. But they ought to
be carefully chosen and their visit to
Washington should be recognized as one
of duty and discipline, not of pleasure and
license
1.-The purpose of the Mckinley managers
evidently to show the world the coun-
much more desirable to show to ourselves
our preparedness for peace. Men who can
not control themselves not fit agents
to control the liberties of other people"
What Correspondent Curtis Said.
William Eleroy Curtis. in his Washing
ton correspondence of the Chicago Record,
has the following, among other things, to
say on the subject:
"The Pennsylvania militia will not be in
vited to Washington again. Eight years
ago they committed depredations upon pri-
vate property which were so serious and
extensive that the governor OF their state
was compelled to send down a commission
to make an investigation and appraise the
damages. which were afterward settled by
an appropriation from the legislature. They
plundered stores and private houses, mall
treated innocent citizens, particularly col
ored people, and acted like lot of mood
lums generally. This year their conduct
was even worse. They had several en-
counters with the police, and on two occa-
sions the entire reserve force of patrolmen
had to be called out to quell the riots they
occasioned. They shot two innocent by
ISLANDERS, smashed windows and bars. in
imitation of Mrs. Nation, tore down signs.
robbed bakeries and eating stands and
swept clean several street fruit stands and
peddlerS wagons. This morning they at
tackled a pie wagon in front of the treas
ury The Connecticut Pie Company deiv
ers goods every morning to hotels and res
taurants, and one of the drivers halted his
wagon in front Of restaurant on 18th
street just as party of fifty or sixty Penn
sylvania mlitamen came bowling down
the street. In less than a minute that pie
wagon was empty, and to divert the atten-
ton of the driver, they unlocked his horses
and started them loose down the street.
LAS rule the members Of other regi-
ments Of militia behaved we'll, but the
Pennsylvanians have disgraced themselves
and created a reign of terror in the diSrep
utable part of town.
at is quite remarkable that no fatal or
even serious accident occurred throughout
the entire Inauguration season, and there
was very little drunkenness and disorder
except that of the Pennsylvania militia The
police We're instructed not to arrest persons
except when necessary to preserve the
peace. and strangers who were locked up
for disorderly conduct were released as
soon as they were sober enough to behave
themselves. During the last week. with
the assistance of detectives from all the
principal cities of the country, the Wash
ington police had been Kidding the town of
suspicious characters, and the fact that
only eight persons were arrested for pick
n md Il -e-1,k
thoroughly the work was done"
Philadelphia Record Mans Descrfp-
ton.
The correspondent of the Philadelphia
Record. under date March 5, wired his jour
nal about the alleged disorders, which ap-
peared yesterday morning as follows:
1.-The whole National Guard of Pennsyl-
vania has been again brought into disrepute
in Washington by the rowdyism of a few
of Its members during their stay here Sum-
day and Monday.
1.-THE chief offenders against good order
and decency appear to have been members
of the 18th and 10th Regiments. The for
mer comes from the central part Of the
state, mostly from the seventeenth con-
gressional district, Col Charles NJ. Clement
of Sunbury, Northumberland county, being
the commander. The sixteenth Is from the
western counties. in the oil region. Col.
Willis ]. Hulings is the commander. 1t IS
were chiefly concerned in riotous outbreaks
in the disreputable section of the city south
OF Pennsylvania avenue on Sunday and
Monday nights.
Ohio Troops Stopped 1t.
The affair Of last night was SO serious
and the number of miltiamen engaged in
resisting the police so large that the local
authorities at one time considered the ad-
visibility Of calling out the District troops
to aid the police in protecting life and prop
erty. This would have been done II de-
tachment Of Ohio militia had not volun-
teered to act as provost guard In the dis
turbed section and rendered valuable aid to
the police force in restoring order.
THE authorities were not disposed to be
severe on the offenders, and overlooked
many minor infractions of the city ordi-
nances, but they were compelled to step in
when the drunken militiamen began to
smash furniture and assault the inmates of
admission. and to smash the windows of re-
sorts that refused to entertain them
Tried to Storm Police Station.
"a few arrests Of soldiers were made IN
the attempt to quell these disorders. the
arrested men being taken to the 10Th street
station house, which Is In the heart of the
notorious Division" Other arrests were
made on the streets where members of the
National Guard had strung ropes and COM
PEELED all passers to jump over them, on
pain of rough handling and insult. Women
were treated the same as men. Finally the
intoxicated militiamen took 1t into their
heads that the soldierly thing to do be-
fore going to their quarters or starting on
their return journey to Pennsylvania was
to take the police station by storm and res
cue their imprisoned comrades 1t was this
undertaking that led to the serious riotine
last night, during which pistols were
brought into use and several people were
wounded, including two policemen and a
girl named May Wellington, whose home Is
said to be in Philadelphia. The police re.
serves were called out to protect the sta.
ton house and dispense the disorderly
crowd of guardsmen in the neighborhood
This was done after hard struggle.
Wanted in Washington No More.
I'm addition to the disorders on the streets
members of the Pennsylvania regiments
| who were quartered in the State. War and
! Navy Department building showed thei,
| rowdyism by defacing the walls of the cor.
| ridors by hacking the hard plaster off with
| their bayonets.
1.-THE corridors Of the floors on which the
| Pennsylvanians were located are wrecked
| and the officials are very indignant at the
1 hnf