The Kalispell bee. [volume] (Kalispell, Mont.) 1900-192?, 1902-08-19
TUESDAY, AUGUST 10, 1902.
REDLIGHT DISGRACES

This is the situation in Kalispell. For
the past two weeks the west siders
have been considering the best propo-
sition to awaken the city fathers TO
their duty, ana finally decided upon
circulating petitions calling upon the
mayor and city council to enforce the
ordinance which at present encum-
bers the city statutes without force
or effect. Several of these petitions
are in circulation and have been
pretty generally signed especially by
the residents of the west side, and
are couched in the following terms:
To the Honorable, the Mayor and
Council of the City of Kalispell: We,
the undersigned residents Of the
city of Kalispell, beg leave to call
your attention to section 8, article |,
of chapter XIV, revised ordinances of
the city of Kalispell, which reads as
follows:
Section g. No bawdy house, house
of i'll fame or disOrderly house, shall
be maintained within this city; and
no person shall keep such house or
be an inmate thereof or in any way
connected with any such house, and
no person shall permit any tenement,
building or premises in his or her
possession or under his or her control
to be used for any such purpose"
We believe that the vigorous en-
forcement of this ordinance will free
the city of KalispeIl from disreputa-
BILE houses and the occupants there
Of. We respectfully request that you
require the officers of this city to Wig
orously enforce the provisions of
such ordinance.
And your petitioners will ever
pray
When this petition, signed by hun
dreds of the lawabiding citizens of
Kalispel is presented to the council,
as it will be at their next regular
meeting, the honorable representa-
tives from the various wards of the
city will be forced to go on record for
or against the enforcement of the
laws. They cannot evade the ques-
ton and must either turn down their
constituents or the prostitutes.
Which will they do?
Within the past week one of those
disorderly houses which the council
has had under it's protecting wing, fol
value received, was the theater of {
most outrageous defiance of the laws
Properly armed with warrant TO
the arrest of a proprietor, two of thu
nominal guardians of the peace mad,
raid upon the worst joint in tn,
tenderloin. The man was found, tn
warrant read but no arrest wa
made. The offender upon whom tn
warrant was served fatty refused t
go with the officers and was backe
up in his defiance of the law by
parcel of thugs who make his plac
their rendezvous. The officers ten
porized and finally agreed to accept
cash bond for the appearance of tn
man in the morning The insoleI
peace disturber demanded a receil
before he would pay over the none
then pocketed it without paying ar
invited the officers to do their wors
for he would neither go nor pay. U
fortunately, the night force is of n
much force and could see no way o.
of the dilemma, and were probab
considering a requisition for the mi
tia to help them in their extremit
two policemen in uniform and @
duty afraid to take one defiant re
light boss, when help came from
HhO
quietly paid the craven policem
and the double offender was p,
mitted to continue his career
woman smuggling and booze fighting
his own good pleasure.
He was fined the next day for be
offenses, pleading guilty and getti
off light, whereas had the Judge p
formed his duty he would have be
given a term in jail
These policemen should not
asked to resign, for they have sho
their thorough unfitness and lack
nerve, and should be incontinen
fired. The police magistrate, as
elective officer, may do as he pleas
but he certainly is not the right m
in the right place.
But it is, after all, the fault of
city government that a proprietor
these disorderly houses becomes
contemptuous of the laws or it's {
Gals He knows that as a party
crime, permitting him to carry on
illegal business, the authorities d;
not prosecute to the full extent
the law, and governs himself acco
ingly.
The enforcement of the ordina1
demanded by the foregoing petit
would break up all such disorde