The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-11-16
KING GOES DOWN.
Lon Townsend Falls Under Mr..
Garver's Displeasure.
Three Thousand Dollars Worth
of Liquor Con1scated.
FOUND OFF HIS GUARD.
Leader of JOintists Not Prepared
for Officers.
Vents His Displeasure on the
Bystanders.
FOUND OFF HIS GUARD.
Place the Largest W hOIesale Liq-
uOr House in Topeka.

eral, made his first big haul this morn
ing when he raided the joint drug store
and wholesale liquor house run by Lon
Townsend at III East Fifth street.
About $1,000 worth of liquor was Sc
cured.
The affair seems to have come as a
surprise to the proprietor for he was not
prepared to receive the visit of the Off
GERS and as result they secured a mis-
ceIlaneous collection of whisky, beer,
Wine, and all of the other liquors which
90 to furnish a first-cIass bar
The joint raided this morning was
I"a4ly the up town store house for the
wholesalers and nearly a car load OF
wet goods were secured by the raiding
party which was headed by Assistant
Attorney General Carver in person anu
SEeI5tf Lucas.
While the raid was evidently not ex-
pected several precautions had been ia
ken 10 get away with the goods if the
ofhcers should happen to sWOop down
unannCunced. Underneath the room
which has prescription case in it and
row or two of drug bottles is a cei-
lar. Here IS where the officers expect
ed to ind the most of the goods but
they had taken the precautions to have
papers so that the adjoining cellar could
be searched. It was here that the most
of the goods were found. A small door
way had been cut between the first and
the second cellar. It was located in one
corner and is scarcely observable to one
unless happened upon by chance. 1t
was not chance that located it this
time, however, for Assistant Attorney
General Carver had received word of
its existence and after cropping about
in the dark found it just where he had
been told to look for it. It seems that
the leaking which has been so prevail
ent must be contagious and that this
time the leak was in favor of the law
Lon Townsend has been one of the
fr.v r-s.T .T-.N H.
hibitory law in the state for years,
and reJoices in the title of King of the
} Jo1ntIsts and 50 far he Has managed
to hold the title over all corners.
Townsend does not belong to the class
OF jointists who serve time in the
county jail. that is beneath his dignity.
Bartenders are too cheap for him to
serve time behind the bars. He is the
aUtocrat of the jointists; he is the blue
blood of the protest. on; it is he whom
the jointists see when they want to
branch out in business for themselves
If they agree to pay him his price for
the particular brands of goods which
he handles, all is well and good, If
not it is hard luck for the jointists
who does not receive his favor. He is
the accredited representative of one of
the breWeries which manufactures a
brand of beer which is immensely
popular in this city, either from the
fact that the beer suits the patrons or
for the fact that it is handle this beer
or suffer the consequence; and it is
very likely that the latter reason is
the one that causes the beer to be
looked upon with such favor by the
beer dispensers in this city.
While the stock of wet goods was
being hauled out Of the basement and
loaded on wagons that were waiting
in the alley, Townsend walked about
among the assembled crowd and
grunted out his disapproVal of the
work that was in progress. To one of
officers p and being informed that the
party addressed was not he said:
''Well, you viii have to get out of
here. ! don't want any one IN here
excepting officers of the law This
must have been a misstatement of
facts for it was evident that the Of
ficers of the law were the very. people
he did not want to see. While the
raid was going on the ice man who
has supplied him with ice with which
to keep his beer cool came in and was
dismissed with a grum remark that
reflected on his intelligence 1T was
pitiful sight to witness the humilia-
ton of an ice man, but then it was
Lon Townsend the King who had ad-
dressed him.
This alleged drug store which is COM
monty referred to as Ions place has
a cigar case in the front of the room
and on either side of the room is a
row of show cases nearly empty, While
a showing is made by rows of empty
cartons and empty cigar boxes. OF
course at the back end Of the room is
the prescription case, but back of this
the rows of small bottles are far apart
and there is hardly more than quart
of them and many Of them almost
empty Imme ediately back of this case
is the ice box that al1-imp portant factor
i'm this class of drug stores. In this
Sheriff Lucas found several dozen bot
ties of beer kept cool for the benefit
of the thirsty patrons of the place
while all around the room were stored
numerous cases Of emptes-
1t might be added that this particu-
lar prescription case has a bar-like at
tachment back Of It SO that the thirsty
patron may have a place on which to
rest his glass as he stands and wonders
if his name is written on that mys-
terious list which is in the possession
of Prosecutor Carver Around the
sides of the room were cases of pints,
half pints and quarts, as the empty
bottles are usually termed which are
filled While the patron waits, if he
does not care to drink in the place.
This particular place has a good front
times it looks just like the average
Kansas joint, only a little more so, for
there is really not much of an effort
put forth to conceal its identity.
These drug stores" of this class do
not cater to prescription work, in fact
most of them do not have q drug
gist's permit and do not attempt to fill
prescriptions. If they are SO unfor-
tunate as to have a customer come in
with a prescription they look wise for
a moment and then apologize for be-
ing out Of one of the ingredients called
for. Or if they feel accommo odating
they sent the prescription out to a
nearby bona fde drug store and have
It filed.