The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-03-29
SELMA. MAYORS VOICE RAISED
 IN THE DEFENSE OF JUSTICE

the future protection of the city that I
 am Investigating the matter"
 Mayor Atkins agreed that The Ad-
 vertiser correspondent was unfairly treated in having the whole blame and responsibility thrust on him. What Some Citizens Say. great many well-known and rep
 utable citizens of Selma are disap-
 pointed over the turn of affairs, al-
 though some say that they expected
 such a course. number of citizens
 have today visited The Advertiser Blu
 reau and told the correspondent that
 they do not indorse City Attorney Sha- when every charge and accusation that have ever been made against the po- lice were saddled on the correspondent. Many were emphatic in their state ments, and some pronounced it great CT outrage than the alleged threatening of the correspondent by the police. Tt is nothing in the world but vim dication of the police and an encour- agement to them to break the law which they are sworn to preserve" de- clared one
 Under the head of "A Farcical Pro- ceeding" The Daily Times tomorrow
 morning will print the following edi- torial:
 The so-called investigation of Po- licemen Moseley and Davis was one of the most farcical proceedings that was ever enacted before a City Council of Selma. The Times thinks that Pres ident of the Council Peacock acted right in what he did for there is no other rule to guide his feet than the opinion of the City Attorney. When City Attorney Schafer got up and read a section of the charter which stated that an officer of the | city could only be suspended for neg lect of duty, malfeasance in office or drunkenness, then the President of the Council did right in stating that there | was nothing against the men. But if the question had been analysed a lit- tie deeper it would have been found that policemen are not officers but | only agents and employees of the city, and do not come under the head of of- ficers in the meaning of that section of the charter.
 The Times does not mean to throw any reflections whatever on the City Attorney, but we think that his con struction of the section was erroneous
 and led the City Council into grave error.
 He did more to clear the police of- fcers of the charges against them than either of the able lawyers employed to defend them.
 Chief WaIters's Attitude. Chief Walters has also placed him. self in a very ridiculous attitude to- ward the public. In the first place. he suspends two officials and in his mes- sage to the Council virtually apolo- gizes therefor. He gets on the stand | and states that his police force is not
 rotten, and yet he advertises through the press for good men to fill their po- Si Ia iItr1 at tnn it,r to restore the two accused men to of- flee like trout would snap at a min now. and altogether 1t appears like the Chief Is doing all in his power to court l formidable opposition. two years from now.
 "The chief can get 1t if he wants it and few more brilliant breaks like he has made will give him all | he wants two years hence. Mayor Atkins, however, stands as a breakwater between the people and the chiefs blind adherence to his po- lice force. He has informed Chief l Walters that he will not sign the pay roll if the time of Messrs Nose ley and Davis during the period Of their suspension is put on, and the Mayor Is right. It is preposterous to say that police officers cannot be sus- pended and that. too. when they were | only elected for one month and have
 never been reelected after the expir- | ation of the thirty days. Not a man
 on the force is a legal policeman, and
 the whole performance at the City
 Hall on Monday night was farcical In the highest degree.
 "A new force is to be selected in
 May, and upon that selection depends | the future of usefulness of our pres ent chief of police. The Times fully agrees with Mir. Hamilton that he has been made the scapegoat, yet we be-
 lieve that every word he uttered ou | the stand was the truth