New-York tribune., 1902-12-29
YONKERS POOLROOMS MUST GO.
BUSINESS MEN AROUSED OYER CONTINUED DE-
FIANCE OF LAW And IN-ACTTVITY OF POLICE
Mayor Opinion Of Citizens Shq Their Eyes to
Gamblers Operafous-Grand Juys Prrsentnent

can, with proper help and vigilance pursue
the vfOIators of this law SO closely that
continuance of these Illegal acts in the City
of Yonkers will be impossibIe.-CGrand jury of
Westchester County in presentment to the Supreme
Court
The grand jury believed as 1 do that
Yonkers he cleaned of pooIrooms In
short ordered Young. District Attorney Of
Westchester County
The best citizens of Yonkers have been stirred
to indignation by impudent and persistent de-
fance of the law against poolselling- Several
poolrooms have been running in YOnkers for
months. They have inflicted on that city of
pleasant homes and thriving business indus
tries financial and moral injuries. The police
have been forced by repeated complaints and
the pressure of public opinion to make raids on
of the gamblers. and for the first time in
the history of Westchester County there have
been convictions of poolselIing. The only re-
suit. however, has been that the convicted men
paid fines and resumed their violations of the
law. The poolrooms continue to run. The
grand jury of Westchester County. after
full investigation of the situation. has laid the
responsibility for failure to close the poolrooms
at the door of the police authorities
Mayor Walsh shares with Police Commits
sioners Loweree. Fox. Hick and schaefer the
odium of permitting the gamblers to operate
in Yonkers in the opinion of observing citizens
He is believed to be largely responsible for the
mastery inactivity of the commissioners HIS
brother appointed to a position in the
police telegraph service, which some lawyers
of Yonkers have said without legal justifi-
cation, and there has been talk that the
Mayors brother could be of to the gamblers
by giving tip to them If orders went over
the wires for raid.
YOUNG MEN AND BOYS CORRUPTED.
The infiiction of poolrooms on Yonkers was
made more serious account of the suppress
sion of MANY pooIrooms in New-York early in
Police Commissioner Partridge's admnistra-
tion Many inveterate gamblers of Manhattan,
unable TO find ready bookmakers at home. went
to Yonkers to bet on the races in the newly
opened places there The word was passed
about among the sporting fraternity that pool
selling could flourish without police tnterfer-
ence a little way up the river For a time the
riffraff of Manhattan, including some mem
bers of the New-York police force, furnished a
good share of the custom of the Yonkers pool
sellers The fact that policemen who did not
dare any longer to make bets on the races IN
places within their own jurisdiction went up
the river to indulge in gambling encouraged
many others in the same pursuit
While men with gambling propensities have
continued TO invade Yonkers. however. the pool
rooms there have been means of corruptins
many young men and boys. who found IN the
opportunity to gamble near their homes
temptation too strong for them to resist most
of the poolrooms are run In connectloh Win
saloons into which the young men ana boys
have been invited by the gamblers Crookeu
.cranu games and roulette wheels have been
added to poolselling in several places 10 III
crease the attractions and swell the pronts
90 tho nronrietors Sorrow has been brought
+o MANY families by the discovery that sons
and brothers have been led to lose money ana
ba,,e had their moral sense blunted by the gam
bling fever.
C1argvnen and members of the churches In
yonkers have become alarmed on account OF lne
bad moral effect of the poorocms. Tnelr anxiety
has been shared by many Of the business men
The knowledge that employees have been Visltlhs
tho nooIrooms has caused some business men to
resort to disnissals. They have had the sense
tn know that a young who becomes affiict-
- -,,+b tho Gaming craze is likely to lose more
money than he can spare and that stealing is
the next step to reckless gambling They nave
faared for the effect which the reputation gwen
n the city by the invading gamblers would nave
in business way.
PAY FINES; RESUME BUSINESS.
Months ago the situation became so intol-
erable to the respectable elements in Yonkers
that pressing demands made on the police
To close the poolrooms One of the worst places
was in Warburton-ave.. in the heart OF the
business section and il was being run so open
" as to be a disgrace to the city There was
abundant evidence ready to hand for the pol1ce
TO act on and raid was made on the place
About ninety persons were arrested In the rald'
aroone them several members of the NewYork
police force who gave assumed names The
rronrietor of the pooroom and two of his as
sistop+s were indicted District Attorney Young
rHoNy -pra .
and compelled to pay fines of $1,000. Having
,,;d +beir fines they resumed business in
other place.
Having shown that they could close pool
room If they wished, the police became inactive.
and there was a suspicion that the raid mad
been more of demonstration than some or
tho nolce officials intended it to be. Public
cIamor could not be stopped, however. and IN
JuIv there was another raid. in which fourteen
arrests were made. Two sets of indictments were
found against the persons arrested, and some
of the circumstances attending the finding of
the indictments have been regarded as peculiar.
,rne evidence on which the raid made was
givan nv a detective named Rich. who made
ha+s on races at the place on July 10. but was
unable to see the persons who were behind a
nartition and who took his money and operated
the pooroom The raid was made on July Is,
ond when the police broke through the PARTITION
tbev saw c. C. Gall stuffing the money into his
nockets and able in that way TO identify
him as the proprietor. f. F McCabe was identi-
fed as the landlord of the place
The twelve other men who were caught behind
the partition were John Price. Jacob Harlin.
U1iI1iann Stone Frank Barnes. John Smith.
Steiner Davis William F. Macy Harry Frank
lin. Owen Troy. Michael Mccarthy, George Rob-
tnson and Harry Morrow. They were indicted
with Gall and McCabe for poolselling on July II,
two days before the raid, when Rich could not
sraar that any of them were in the place. Then