The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1905-10-18
HOW THE TIGER Is CAGEn

yer Bow county officials to suppress
gambling in Butte IL the subject o
amusing and caustic criticism by thu
Yellowstone Journal. Referring tt
the recent announcement ID at the Butte
tiger has again been Gagged, the Mile:
City paper remarks:
Passing for the time being a consid'
Grafton of Butte's lawns and trees and
bosky dells, the Journal desires a,
this time to call public attention tc
the clever plan adopted by the county
attorney of Silver Bow county for the
suppression of gambling in the big
camp. OF course we all understand
that gambling-public gambling-was
stopped In Butte several months ago,
when the first assistant county attor.
ney. obsessed by accusing declarations
of his oath of Office, or by some one
else, sent forth a ringing declaration,
the same being his ipse dixit, likewise
his obiter dictum, that thenceforth
public gambling in Butte must cease:
and In prompt and humble recogni-
ton OF the majesty of the law, the
games were closed and the chev alters
d'industrie sought distraction from
ennui by lolling around on the grass
or hammocking in the outrageous
shelter of the Butte forest reserve.
That is to say, they may have done
these things for awhile, but there are
other things beside the cat that will
come back to haunts hallowed by fra
grant memories, and from time to time
IN the recent past some reporter, who
was about ready to get fired would
drop a hint in his local grind for the
day hat somewhere in Butte it was
possible for a gentleman, properly in-
troduced, to get action for his money
Then arrived in Butte the county at
torney himself, returned from an ex-
tended sick leave. Whether his vision
is sharper than his assistants or his
means OF finding out things better, it
is a historic fact that the main
guy shortly became possessed of in.
formation that made it quite plain to
him that gambling was being INDUCED
In publicly at sundry and divers
places in Butte, all within the purview
Of the law. What then? Did he mar.
shall the forces under his control and
raid these places incontinently, haling
the recreant chevaliers before the i'm
personation Of offended law? Not he!
You see, the idea-the primary idea
lis to suppress gambling. Not to
incarcerate or plumber the votaries oil
the sport. Hence our appellation OF
the method used as ~''clever." Having
become possessed of this importan,
information, the county attorney die
tates to his stenographer q long letter,
addressing the screed to the high sher.
iii of Silver Bow county. In this letter
the county attorney tells the sheriff all
the facts in the case and III the
sheriff that he-the county attorney
has positive proof Of the verify OF the
statements he therein makes. Having
recounted at length and in detail the
many trausgressions Of the anti.gam'
bling law being then aud there done
in Butte, the county attorney blandly
closes the communication with the
declaration that ''ft is up to you," the
sheriff, and signs himself "Yours
truly"
Thereupon, on receipt Of this mis-
sive, the sheriff calls in his stenogra.
pher and they collaborate in the pro.
duction of o brief but dignified note
to the county attorney in which that
official is assured that he, the sheriff ,
will hcw to the line with u perfect in
difference rs to where the chips may
fall. Then copies of this correspon.
dence are dispatched to each and all
OF the daily papers with request-no
doubt-for publication under a 'scare
head" and the next day the gamblers
read that the sheriff is organizing u
raid upon them and t%hereupon they
again betake themselves to the grassy
stretches and the forests in the vicini.
ty of Butte, and when the sheriff goes
his rounds and finds everything absO-
lutey as it should be he reports to the
county attorney that there is %''nothing
doing" in the gambling line and the
newspapers thereupon declare with
one accord that the superior acumen
OF the county attorney, supplemented
by the extraordinary vigilance of the
sheritf's Office, has again resulted in
the suppression of gambling in Butte.
Querulous persons might ask why
the sheritf's Office had to be told of
the situation by the county attorney,
or why the county attorney, when
possessed of the facts, did not order
a raid at once instead of giving adj
vance notice Of 1t in the newspapers,
HIT neOnla who ash, suoh uueStiops do