Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1901-02-01

houses desires to execute the law on
! that subject he can do SO. In the past
the dereliction has sometimes been
chargeable to the county officials. some
times to the city officials, sometimes TO
both: but in all cases it has been
through official corruption or official
apathy that the evil has tiourished. II
gamblers throughout the state once
fully understand that the present law
is going to he enforced, they will stop
gambling If they understand that
modification of the present law. making
the offence misdemeanor. is going to
be enforced they will likewise stop.
But so long as they know that month
without whose Jealous cooperation
there can be no successful prosecution.
So long Will the games so on and
human suffering result To license
sambling is simply to confess that the
people OF Montana are IltdptpIS "
self government: that they are unable
or unwilling TO elect honest men to
office. or else that there are among
them no honest men eligible for certain
positions of sponsibility-either that
or it is confession that the people of
Montana are in favor of lesalizing a
vice aud placing before the weak and
unwary the temptation to sluander
their wages. neglect their families, and
talk the downward track. If the party
III power wishes to confess tina. its Of
ficars Of The LAW are wholly untrust-
worthy: that gambling Will he allowed
t. 60 on unmolested so long as me
gamblers are willing to be held up"
Then let rs have license LAW. say some
good citizens. and make the evil profit
able. on the other hand, they say, if
Montana Is opposed to encouraging an
evil Which yearly claims thousands Of
Victims to their everlasting ruin and
disgrace. then let the law be changed
only to the extent Of making it the
duty Of certain officials, under penalty
fpr neglect. to enforce its provisions.
All that is needed is honest men in
office, it matters little whether the Of
fence of gambling is made a felony or
misdemeanor.
There are men in the Montana legis-
lature who claim to be the particular
champions of labor. They know that
the suppression of gambling n this
state would be greater boon 10 thou
sands Of laboring mems homes in this
state than a 80 per cent increase in
their wages, on 80 per cent decrease
in their hours of toll. They know that
the suppression Of gambling would re-
store happiness and plenty to thousands
of neglected wives and children: that it
would improve legitimate business;
that it would reduce taxes. decrease
clIlile anu tlllpt. JdliS all oAfi MOll-
tana and among all classes of people
They know gambling can be suppressed:
the law they can suppress it, and that
the fault lies not With the gamblers
With putting them out of business. If
there is no way of electing honest men
state, there is a way of making dis
honest men do their duty or stand ex-
posed and discredited before the bar of
public opinion, objects Of general con-
tempt
At present the moral element of the
state seems fully aroused-would it
We're equally aroused in political CAM
pasns and willing to make it's inhu-
ence felt in conventions and at the polls
Fer tWenty-seven years in Montana the
struggle against gambling has gone on,
and SO far it has failed. The gamblers
have not been fairly treated, for some
times the law has made them public
benefactors and sometimes it has made
them criminals. All they ask now is
definite information as to their status
Let the men charged with the execution
of the law execute the law and notify
! the gamblers of their purpose and gam
| bling will stop and remain stopped But
as long as public officials have their
'mltts out gambling will flourish and
the men who work the hardest for their
money will keep the sports in ease and