Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-09-15
RENEKS FIGHT
ON GAMBLING
Sheriff Through Deputies Mott
fies Proprietors of Places
to Remove Stuff.
HAVE BEEN GROWING BOLD
Tells of Instances of Fleeing, Both
i'm Rock Island and Operating
r.r
From Here.

Sheriff Kittilsen yesterday afternoon
gave orders to his deputies to no
iify all gambling houses in the city
that they must cease operations al
once and remove all of their equip
ment, and TO warn the proprietors tina;
unless the stuff was removed at once
il would be. cOnfiscated and taken TO
the court house
OF the dozen or more places in the
city where gaming has been carried
on. the sheriff reports the following as
having been notified to get out: 1l9
Eighteenth street, 1915 Second ave
nue.. 1916 Second avenue. the old Blue
Goose on First avenue. and the place
on the alley on the east side of Tween
lieth street between Second and Third
avenues.
The sheriff today in an interview
wilh.a representative of The Argus,
stated that there may be other places
in III, city, and he informed The Ar
gus that he will be glad to have any
information furnished him as Ia such
houses.
Recent Incidents.
The orders OF the sheriff come on
the heels of a sleek piece of rolling.
whereby stranger in the city was
trimmed for $4,000 in a gambling house
here. and the sheriff told of another re-
cent incident involving Il $4,000 swim
die operated through one of the five
places ordered to get out. The sheriff
told the story as follows: Recently
bunch here-T do not know just who
it was-trimmed an old man in Il
northwest city for 100000 by means
of lot of fake mining stock. The
stock. supposed To be worth $4,000,
was sold TO this old man on the repre-
sentation that n Rock Island man.
whose address was given as that of
one of the gambling places here. would
Immediately buy the stock for S24.-
G75. The man bought the stock for
500 .006 and sent ii on TO Rock Island
with Il draft for S24675. which OF
course was not honOred. He had been
instructed by wire to send on the stock
and draft. The stock proved TO be a
pure fake and not worth the paper it
was printed on No such mining COM
pany could he located. and none ever
existed
Countrywide Fleeing system.
They have not been satisfied with
running a simple poker game, but have
instituted a countrywide system of
fleeing" added the sheriff.
In speaking of the matter, the sher.
if told The Argus that in notifying
the gamblers. one of them had declar-
ed that he supposed everything was
fixed One of these places. evident
ly under the impression that it was
fixed" recently installed lot of ex-
pensive new furnishings. including
cork linoleum carpeting. and mahog-
any and leather furniture In addi-
ton, every known gambling device was
installed, and every kind of game was
provided.
One system said 10 have been oper-
ated was the sending out of capper
and when an unsuspecting victim was
landed. a telegram was sent to Chi
cago or Des Moines, and a professional
shark would ne on the scene before
midnight TO fleece the man out of his
money.
II is known also that five travelling
men were recently swindled out of
about all the money they had with
them, and that three of the five lost
their jobs on account of it. The sher-
if says some firms have issued orders
10 travelling men not 10 stop in Rock
Island because of such incidents.
should BE Permanent.
Readers of The Argus will recall
that attention has been directed re.
peatedly to existing conditions in the
face of the sheriff's former raid and
his declaration that no such places
would be tolerated The general SEN
timent of citizens will of course sup
port the sheriff's action, and il is
hoped that he will make this a perma-
nenf crusade, and root out the evil
Wine Rooms, Too.
The sheriff, in his conversation with
The Argus today. spoke of the wine
room evils in Rock Island, where
Young girls are lured TO their ruin.
and said that his intention had been
called 10 specific instances where girls
were harbored. If the sheriff will de
vote his attention to this worst of all