Los Angeles herald., 1908-10-14
MAYOR HARPER
SUES WOOLWINE
AND NEWSPAPER
SEEKS DAMAGES IN SUMS OF
$4,000 AND $4,000
CITY PROSECUTOR MAINTAINS
UNDETERRED ATTITUDE
Declares Nothing Can Occur to Make
Him Swerve from the Course
on Which He Has
Entered

as result of the charges made by
Prosecuting Attorney Thomas Lee
Woolwine, Mayor A. G. Harper yester-
day filed the first of series or
suits against Mr.. Woolwine and
local newspaper, charging libel. The
suits were filed in the superior court
| late yesterday afternoon by Isidore II.
Dockweiler attorney for Mayor Harper,
and state two causes of action against
| the Evening Express company and Ed
win T. Earl, with demand OF $5O,OOO
damages for each, also asking $4,000
damages from City Prosecutor Wool
wine.
These suits may be followed by 9TH
ers against the same defendants, in
which each of the, four police commits
| sioners will ask $4,000 damages from
| the Express and 5000 from WoolWine.
| The damages in all the libel suits VIII
| aggregate 1875, 900.
Neither Frank j. Carlisle, manager of
the Express, nor Harley w. Brundige,
the PAPERS managing editor, would
forecast the action of the Express last
night
1--WE do not know anything officially,
and there is nothing to say at this
time" both said.
Mr. Woolwine was more aggressive.
He said, when asked about his attitude;
"All [ have to say is that they may
|
exhaust their cunning and ingenuity
in their efforts to intimidate me, but my
attitude shall remain unchanged.
Hints at Developments
Mr. Woolwine's friends intimate that
the suits were filed for the sole purpose
of frightening him off the track, but
! they declare that the opposite result
will be achieved, and that when the
proper time comes for the publication
of his plans there will be developments
that will justify his stand.
Mr.. Woolwine has used private Of
! flee while continuing his work on graft
matters He would not say when his
plans are likely to be perfected, but he
| declared last night that his original
! determination to push the matter was
unchanged. 1t is expected that some
thing definite will be srpung in the
court house within a few days, and the
possible calling of officials before the
grand jury will be watched for there
this week.
| Mr.. Dockweiler is assisted in the
Harper cases by Henry T. Gage and w.
l. Foley. The attorneys have procured
files of all the local papers and have
been working for ten days on the cases.
I'VE have found, we believe, ground
for criminal libel" said Mr.. Gage, but
proceedings of this nature have not yet
been taken up with our clients. Mr..
Fredericks has good cause for libel pro-
ceedings, but l do not know what his
course will be-
Based on Editorials
The suits against the Express are
! based on two editorials. The first ap-
peared October 2, under the heading,
1.-The One Undisputed Fact" and reads
as follows the full text being made
part of the complaint:
tA n iIIr~ CHI
and the grand jury doubtless will
consider, these facts:
That the law of this state eX-
pressly prohibits dsorderly houses.
That the present administration
of this city has deliberately and
persistently violated that law, and
has, through the mayor, not only
publicly confessed the violation, but
boasted of it.
That the mayor of Los Angeles
has ordered and required the police
force to disobey the law of the
state.
He admits that he broke the law,
but is frothing in sudden frenzy be-
cause charges of graft have been
made. We have no means of know
ing whether those charges are true
or not The experience of all other
large cities teaches that when vice
is licensed to break the law, vice
! pays IOr 1t. LOS AHSeltS Iildy Slll-
ter in history as the first exception
to the universal rule. We hope it
| may
And if it should. that would in no
wise affect this fact: The law of
this state has been broken-it was
] broken by the mayor sworn to en-
force the law and by the police at
the instance and compulsion of the
! mayor All the side issues and col
lateral controversies in no wise p
change or alter that fact, all of
which the grand jury will undoubt-
edly consider
Returns to the Attack
The second editorial of which the
mayor complains and which is also
made part of his complaint, appeared
October 8, entitled Los Angeles Waits" ="
and reads as follows:
With dignity and patience this
community awaits the action of the
grand jury on the charges that have
been made that the mayor of Los
Angeles protected vice. All Los
Angeles knows that the charge is
true. The mere fact that the mayor
has admitted it's truth proves moth
ing. Taken by itself the admission
probably is insufficient Having de-
liberately once broken his word,
given in writing, the mayor long
since forfeited the right to be be-
lieVed. In consequence, even when
he confesses his own guilt, corrobo-
ration should be required. In this
| instance it should be easily sup
piled, for the fact that the mayor
has protected vice and that he has
prevented the police force from exc
cutting the law of the state is
matter of common knowledge. If
there is any merit in his plea of
| extenuation that he committed
| these offenses because of inclina-
tion and never received pay for
committing them, let it be accorded
| to him.
The whole record of this adminis-
tration exhibits profound con-
tempt for decency and an insolent
disregard for the requirements of
the law coupled with open and
profigate official pandering to vice.
The mayor has flung down a chal-
lenge to the public amazed and
shamed by the conditions that have
governed, declaring his purpose to
make them prove 1t. We hope that
he will persevere in that purpose.
We cannot believe that much COM
pulsion will be required to force the
proof forth.
Los Angeles, contemplating the