Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1908-05-25
CALLS CHIEFS ATTENTION
TO SOME PERTINENT FACTS


Los ANGELES, May 2a,-[Editor
Herald: / read with some interest the
pathetic appeal of our friend the chief
of police, Edward Kern, in which he
pleads for more money, larger build
ipgs and larger force, to enable him to
conduct successfully the "city's fight
against the criminal element" He
characterizes his department as zone
that Is always seeking information as
to the most advanced methods and most
ready to adopt changes which make
for better work" This leads me to
suggest to the chief and his depart
ment, and to the citizens of Los An
geles, a "better way than that of in
oreasing the force, as Mr.. Kern advo-
Gates.
/ state a few facts, and "facts are
stubborn things" The chief knows this
truth as well as any one. From the
record of the Champaign, ILL.,, police
court we find:
One hundred and thirty-three arrests
caused by drink in the three months
ending March /, 1907, with saloons.
Seventeen arrests caused by drink in
three months ending March l, 1908.
without saloons.
Twenty-four women arrested in three
months of saloons.
One woman arrested in five months
Three arrests for drink in the month
of February, 1908.
Again, in Kansas, out of 106 counties
under state prohibition, only twenty
one have any paupers, thirty-five have
their jails absolutely empty, while In
Kansas City, with between $1,000 and
10000 inhabitants, the number of ar
rests has so diminished since the sa-
looms were banished that on many oc-
casions there has not been a single ar
rest during a period of more than
twenty-four hours at a time, and very
often the police courts have adjourned
because there were not criminals to be
tried. They have but little use for
detectives, for thieves and burglars
have followed the saloons out of the
city. In Mt Vernon, ILL.,, the city mar
shall in sworn statement says he does
not arrest one now where he arrested
ten before the saloons were banished,
and the police judge says the business
of his office has fallen off so per cent IN
three years of no saloon.
In Birmingham and Atlanta, Ca,
crime and arrests have fallen off more
than one-haif since the prohibition law
went into effect January last. Decatur
street, Atlanta. the most dangerous ana
criminal section of the city. where the
saloon has held high carnival for years,
has become so changed as hardly to be
recognized. On Saturday night even
not an arrest was made for drunken
ness, where formerly the police and
patrol wagons were kept busy. me
Jail is nearly empty. One prisoner ar
rested on suspicion recently began to
yell terribly in the Jail. He was in the
"bull pen" all by himself, got lonely
and was frightened by a large rat
which, usually kept at bay by the large
number of prisoners under saloon re-
gime, attempted to investigate the soil
tary prisoner, thus causing his howl for
help.
scarcely need to speak further of
the acknowledged fact that 95 per cent
of pauper cases are held to be the re-
suit of liquor drinking. Nor that over
80 per cent of the inmates of peniten-
tiaries are there because of strong
drink: that more than 65 per cent or the
BOYS in reformatories come from drunk
ards homes.
The chief, as we'll as every intelli-
gent citizen who has studied the mat
ter, knows this to be true. Ask him
where his force is most concentrated
and he will tell you: I'm the district
which contains saloons" He says:
1.-The new workhouse now nearing COM
pletion will relieve congestion In the
city Jail in a measure" Why not re-
lieve 1t entirely by cutting OF the
breeder of the criminals which longest
the jails and so overburden the poor
police force? If Los Angeles had no
saloons the yegg men, the thieves ana
the pickpockets the chief complains OF
would not come here, and the force
would be relieved of that trouble.
If the laboring man had no saloon IN
which to squander his earnings he
would be able to buy himself nome
save enough to tide over the 1obiess
periods and not be liable to arrest every
time he went out upon the streets III
his old clothes, penniless and looking
for work. That would relieve the jail,
although the policeman wouldn't get
quite so many dollars for arresting the
unemployed.
If the chief is really seeking for in
formation" as to how to relieve the sit
uation for which he asks more money
let me, IL I dare, suggest that he take
the platform during the next Anti-Sa-
loon league campaign, tell the things
he knows about the crime-breeding sa-
loon, and urge the people of Los An
geles to help him fight the criminal
element by abolishing that which pro
duces the largest per cent OF the crlihi-
nails. He wouldn't lose his job, for we
would have to have chief or police
even If we had but one policeman, ano
for such yeoman's service against crime
the people would surely reward MI,
Kern by permitting him the sinecure
of the Office under no-saloon.
oh. YES, 1 know he and others Woulo
object that the city would lose revenue
But If we didn't need to spend 1t on q
monstrous police force why should we
want it? Besides, 1t is a fact that IN
Atlanta, for instance, the city will re-
oeive in taxes this year s133,959 more
than the receipts of last year under
the saloon. this increase being more
than $27,027S4 larger than the total
amount the city received from saloon
licenses. So you see the revenues would
easily adjust themselves to the only ra-
tional program for any city, much more
for this beautiful and progressive city
of Los Angeles.
With the hope that this will help the
chief and all others interested to a
more enlightened solution of this prob
lem, and with the intention to use my
vote and my voice to bring about the
condition suggested, I am, very truly
yours, EDWIN II. BROW ~,
Associate Pastor. Temple Baptist