The Eureka sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1902-current, 1905-05-06
Citizens League Mass Meeting.

The Citizens League mass meeting
in Reno last Saturday night was largely
attended. The purpose of the meeting
was to throw some light ON three gamb-
ling ordinances that came before the
voters of Reno for rejection or adoption
at the city election which was held on
Tuesday. The first ordinance was in
favor Of upstairs gambling, fixing the
license at $50 a quarter for upstair
games, and 5000 a quarter for those
run on the ground floor. Ordinance
No. 2 was to put gambling on the
ground floor and No. 8 fixed gambling
licenses at $3.50 a month each.
Addresses were made by Sardis Sum-
merfield, @. E. Mack and Judge B. f.
Curler and with one accord they pro-
claimed that a crisis was imminent in
the history of Reno.
Who Shall Control Reno?
"Shall the gamblers control Reno, or
shall Reno control the gamblers ?"
asked Sardis Summerfield, in opening
his address. He said the State Fair
had fallen into disrepute and oblivion
because the gamblers secured control of
it, and money that should have gone for
premiums on agricultural and art dis
plays went to racing which had been
leveled to a betting proposition, and
that the State had refused to further
contribute to the support of the Fair
which should have been continued as a
great State institution. The State Uni
versity also is suffering, he declared, on
account of the tendency of the people
throughout the State to send their
children elsewhere for an education for
fear they will be led astray in Reno.
With caustic words the speaker ar
raigned the late Legislature saying that
half of its time was given to the con-
sideration of the gambling question on
which it had acted in every instance in
a manner favorable to the sporting ele.
ment. He advised the people to vote
for ordinances two aud three. and
against ordinance number one.
Legislatures Infamous Record.
Judge Mack said the issue was be-
tween the home and the schools on one
hand and the gambling industry on the
other. Every year it became harder for
the University to exist on account of
the fear of parents to lend their chill.
dren to Reno for a higher education.
And it was not without reason. he
argued. for on every hand there existed
temptations that threaten the lives of
young men Of school age.
He criticized the Legislature for its
surrender to the sporting element and
said that after it had repealed the Il
o'clock law, repealed the upstair law
and attempted to make gambling a
respectable business, it had crowned its
infamous record by taking from the
Statutes the nickle-in-the-slot machine
law in order that the children of Reno
might also learn to gamble.
Would Give Upstairs Games Monopoly
Judge Curler in his opening remarks
said he was sorry that E. L. Bingham
of the Reno Journal had declined tc
, accept his challenge for a joint debate
: on the merits OF the three ordinances
before the people. but that nevertheless
he proposed to attack the Bingham
ordinance-number one-and show that
it was introduced in bad faith and il
passed would be responsible for giving
to the leading gambling houses a mono.
poly on the gambling business by forc
ing out of existence every downstair
house in the city. 1t was not an at
tempt at reform but was a cunning eff.
fort to divide the vote of the anti
gambling element.
In regard to the moral phases of the
ordinance he said there were none. He
pronounced the section to give each
gambling house a uniformed officer,
paid by the houses and subject to their
orders. one of the most damnable pieces
of legislation that he had aver seen at
tempted 1t would be easy for minors