The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1905-11-09
The District Attorney Prosecutes
Tainted Women Who Were
Promised Protection
HAS MUNICIPAL CLEANING UP
Women Who Are Alleged to Have
Been Violating the Law Appear
in Court and Tell Hard Stories
on Some City Officials

It may not be exactly fine weather
for house cleaning, but District At
torney Baker took the broom and
made clean sweep on Tuesday after
noon, when the crusade against
houses of i'll repute in sl1e city and
county, starting from s.ae arrest Of
one disorderly character, resulted in
seven inmates and keepers being
brought before the court. In every
case fine of SIS and the costs Of the
action was assessed and was promptly
paid.
The sensation attending the revela-
tons made at the arrest Of the women
came when Irene Seymour, the keeper
of what is said to be a pa1atia1 resort
on Pearl street, appeared before the
court ard declared that before she
came to the city she had been prom
ised a right to operate by one Of the
members of the police and fire CONF
mission.
1t was late in the afternoon when
the warrahts were issued for the ar
rest of the Seymour woman, and when
the officers went to the Pearl street
house the women were all found IN
the reception room of the house. The
Seymour woman, who was recognized
as the 1andlady, seemed to regard the
warrant as a great joke and insisted
that the officers were Kidding" her.
She was finally convinced, however,
that she had court of justice to deal
with, and she ordered the girls to
prepare to go to court. They APP
peared an hour later and gave their
names as Maude Smith, Mamie Davis
and Bella Smith, The Seymour
woman appeared for ali the members
of the party and entered plea of
guilty in each case. She also paid
the fines, and the girls sat about the
court room laughing and joking with
the hangers.on just as if theyswere
attending picnic.
Before the cases were called by
Justice McCarron, the Seymour
woman and the district attorney had
conference, Haat which the woman
stated that she had been told by one
Of the police commissioners that she
would be allowed to run her resort in
Kenosha. Under these circumstances
the district attorney decided to put a
lighter charge against the woman,
and she was arraigned, not as a
1zoo h1,H sx,~11 - H. SO
i'll repute. On the stand she repeated
her statement that she had been
promised protection.
It appeared from the evidence of
Gertie Wesley, who was the first of
the long list to be arrested, that the
women at the resort had received
some sort of a tip on last Saturday
that the house was to be raided, and
the Wesley woman took her departure
at that time to avoid arrest. How
ever, she stated in court that the
keeper of the house had instructed
the girls to pay no attention to the
reports of alleged raids, as she could
promise them that there would be no
raid.
In the arrest of the women there
seems to be decided clash between
the officials Of the city and county,
and the district attorney, with the
state law behind him, has all the adj
vantage Of the argument. Under the
law no official, be he city or county
made, has the right to promise i'm
munity from prosecution to the tainted
women, and it is probable that the
vigor of the district attorney will not
have been expended until every one
of the women is driven from the
limits Of the county.
The Seymour woman, when ar
raigned, stated that she had not paid
anything for the privilege Of opening
her place in Kenosha, but that she
had paid "a beer license meaning
the government license. Her state
ments were tacit admission that she
had been violating the law by selling
liquor without city license, and she
could be arrested and fined on this
charge, if the city attorney should see
fit totake up the prosecution.
Chief of Police Reinold stated in
court Tuesday that he had warned the
women to get out Of town on last Sat
nrday afternoon, but it is evident that
they paid no attention to the warning.
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