Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1908-01-02
BYERs AT DAVENPORT.
Attorney General Addresses Crowd on
Law Enforcement.

Law Enforcement.
addressed an audience of 1000 per-
sons, mostly men, in St. Johns
Methodist church on Sunday after
noon, and gave them some plain talk.
He said that it was shame that a
city that had built S350,0O0 high
school, as has Davenport, should be
teaching its boys and girls the open
disregard for law that is shown by
the Sunday and the all night saloon.
The statement was loudly applauded.
He took issue with Mayor Becker's
recent statement that every Iowa city
would have just the kind of govern
ment that the people demand and
that city officials will always measure
up to the average of citizenship and
no more.
THAT is not true" said the attor-
ney general "Under the method that
we have had in this state for the last
quarter of century of selecting our
city officers, men have often man
aged to get into Office who were In
more fit to run city than farm"
The attorney general painted a fine
| picture of the Jealous sheriff and
policemen following into alleys the
| wretched victims of drink to pounce
upon them as they raised a window
and tapped a till or stole coat, and
sarcastically told how the county at
| torney would promptly carry the case
| hnf ho Nd r.
| ing for any one to "file information"
| declared, were using no effort to see
that the laws protecting public moral
| ity and decency and the American
home were enforced.
He prescribed five years in the
penitentiary as a proper punishment
for every saloonkeeper who sells
liquor to a man who is in the habit
of becoming intoxicated. "He has
| debauched men, taken the bread out
of the mouths of wives and children,
| and increased the sorrow and want
in the home,' he said ut is the
| duty of every good citizen to see that
he doesn't do it again"
/ Mr.. Byers sad he was glad to see
that the saloon keepers of Davenport
were conforming to the law. This
was the only town in Iowa, he said
where saloons had been open on holi
! days, as well as election days and
Sundays. After the address he was
asked as to the necessity of all sa
loon keepers filing bonds, and said the
bond section of the law must be com
piled with. A citizen arose in the
audience and stated he had asked g
policeman to accompany him, ant
had gone into two gambling rooms
over saloons and found thirty OF
, forty men in each and a policeman
watching the game in one of them
what would you do, Mr.. Byers,
he was asked, with county attor
ney and police force who allow these
conditions to exist and make no move
to prevent them?"
"If l lived here and were either
of this town." answered the attorne.
general, Il should certainly take stepl
to have such officials removed from
Office"
Murder at "Keei' Party.
oskaloosa.-Tom Frazier, 80 year
of age, shot and fatally wounde,
James Mitchell, both colored, at tn
, Cricket coal mining camp, southwes
of Oskaloosa, Christmas afternoon
They were at "keg party. A quar-
rel followed disagreement in al
argument and Frazier pulled a gu
: and fired, the ball taking effect il
Mitchell's head. The wounded MAJ
!. will die Frazier did not attempt t
7 escape and made no resistance to al
D rest. He is now in Jail at Oskaloosa
Anita Man Accidentally Shot.