The Minneapolis journal., 1902-07-04
MAYOR AMES'
NEW DUTIES

Continued From First Page.
in the little community that the mayor is
under indictment. T h q ] o urn al
representative talked with half dozen
persons connected with the hotel manage
ment and all but one expressed the
opinion that the trouble" which was
not defined, was due to the "persecution
of the newspapers.'' :.
Ames' Trouble at a Distance.
~ And in this connection an attempt was
made to glorify DR.. Ames by explaining
that he was too independent to cater to
the newspapers, consequently the papers
knocked" him. s- >-r II
The dissenter from this general opinion
who stands very close to Lee w. Sinclair
Of the hotel, said that the trouble
originated in the fact that DR.. Ames had
once been democrat, and when ne be-
came republican and was elected mayor,
those who were most influential IN MS
party antagoniZed him and were -endeav-
oring to head off any further political am
billions he might have by discredltlng his
administration. %.-- -.
Apparently no hint Of the real trouble
has reached this little village, and If 1T
had 1t would not besso likely to make as
much difference in the. public estimation
of DR.. Ames, as it would in city like
Minneapolis. An Indictment viewed from
the standpoint of the: average transient
resident of West Baden Is a nightmare,
and throws no real light on the actual
character of the person. It may cause
annoyance, but if5the indicted Is good
fellow is genial and knows the ways of
the world, his place in the public opin-
ion here is assured. In fact, the public
estimation Of a person here does not de-
pend upon his previous career. So many
= Radon
that inquiries are bad form and pertain
| only to the question whether the past
has netted sufficient sum to enable the
visitor to pay his hotel bill, his gambling
bills and other trivial obligations which
indicate his character as judged from the
standard of good fellowship"
Carlsbad and Monte Carlo.
In his new position, DR.. Ames will still
be in the public eye. West Baden is de-
scribed both as the Carlsbad and the
| Monte Carlo of America. 1t is the Carls-
| bad, because of the great curative pow
ers of it's spring waters, especially their
potency in regenerating inebriates and
others similarly affected. In this re-
spect it is claimed that chemical analy-
sis shows these waters to be horsepower
| full than those of famous Carlsbad, and
that even more remarkable cures have
been effected than at the well-known
| German watering place.
But the inebriate, or the one afflicted
with serious nervous or stomach disor-
| ders who takes t the waters at West Ba-
! den must have constant medical attend
| ance and must be under the constant d1~
rection Of an attendant or serious con-
sequences may follow. This is especially
true if he has BEEN "higher roller and
his system is filled with alcohol. In that
| event, as soon as he commences taking
the waters he must absolutely discon-
| tinue HheIuse of stimulants. For II ne
takes both the waters and strong sltquors
| at the same time he will rapidly pass into
| delirium tremens and will either have to
| be strapped down to prevent him from
| doing injury to himself or others or II be
is unattended he. will become maniac
| and disappear among the wooded hills a
raging madman.
This latter is by no means an uncom-
mon occurrence. An old resident stated
to me that every year the hotel keepers
had to organize hunting parties among
| their employees and that days and occa-
>sionally even weeks would be spent In
hunting for some patient who had not put
himself under medical care, but who had
Eimbibed both the mineral liquors and
strong liquors at the same time, as re-
suit of which he disappeared madman
and buried himself in the deepest parts
of the surrounding forests. :
The Gambling Palace.
AS the Monte Carlo of America. West
Baden is also making rapid strides. In
nearly every hotel there are gaming lay
cuts, or if not in the hotel in the con-
yenient so-called clubhouse" These
gaming plants are among the most ex-
tcnsive in America and public gambling
is indulged in by both sexes openly. :
1t is stated that the gambling conces-
sion at the Sinclair hotel viii! be one
| NJ re In Of me.I
and that it ought to be good for at least
$4,000 per annum to the hotel manage
ment, and as much more to the persons
who secure it. In this connection 1t is
stated that it. has already been let to
one Ballard, an old resident - Of West
man. Ballard, it is claimed, was former
ly a saloon keeper of West Baden, but
three years ago secured the gambling
concession at the old Sinclair hotel,
which burned June Is Of last year. In
this three years he made sufficient money,
it is said, so that when the bonds OF the
new property were placed on the market
in the winter, he took 100000 of them,
paying nearly par. ...s.. a......... = ~
/ The manager and owner of the Colo
NAL hotel, which has a capacity of
sixty-fve to one hundred guests, assured
me that he was about to close out his
gambling concession for $4,000 per an
HULL, anu 1iC So14 tLoI Aoi 4Ao1s etAO "
ceipts from the gambling concession at
one hotel at French Lick Springs,
amounted to $65.000. ....Z II, -.
While at West Baden saw women
playing for high stakes regularly, and
with as much enthusiasm as men. A
woman who recently arrived from Hot
i Springs, ladylike in appearance and de-
pertinent, young and fair. but with the
gambling virus in her veins. was at
tracing the most attention. Within four
! days she won $400 at roulette. She was
an inveterate gambler, as could be seen
4 by her professional air Of calm interest
and her devotion to regular System"
which she claimed had always won for
her.
This is the picture in brief of West
! Baden, and it is in these surroundings
that Doctor A. A. Ames will take UP his
new work. AS chief medical officer Of
one OF the largest >hotels en- the conti-
nent, he will be in a position to do much
good work for his fellow men in help
i ing them to fight off from one of the
most common and demoralizing of habits.
4 1t does not appear that he will have any
4 financial connection with the vices and
the frivolities of this remarkable place;
i it is certain that his duties will be wholly
those of medical adviser and practitioner.
4 FEARFUL ELECTRIC STORM.
I Port Antonio, Jamaica, July "A great
a electric storm, which lasted three hours be-