The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1909-11-02

8 have been tried in the last three
: Years in Chicago, the girls who
: have been procured by inducements
to go upon the stage outnumber all
others. In pursuing this method the
4 slave trader falsely represents CHM
self as the agent of some theatrical
: management.
have here & confession which was
J made by one of the procurers, who
J was convicted in Chicago shall read
Just part of it tonight After he had
told ais past history and the names oil
some of the procurers with whom he
worked, said to him:
| VIII you tell me of the girls that
you have procured yourself?v
Well, he said Not long ago PLY
Mcnamara and myself got several
girls and shipped them out of the city.
( Billy came around to see me one
i day and said that there was woman
staying at the hotel, whom he met
when he was in the south who was
up here to get some girls to take back
with her. He aid le would divide up
with me If would help him get some.
Between us we got fourteen girls in
i about week, and delivered them to
This woman at the depot here in the
city. i did not go to the depot, but
Billy Mcnamara was there to take
care of that end ST it. We told the
girls that this woman was the lead
ing lady in musical show which
was to travel through the south and
that she was to take them down to
the place where they were to start
out from and that they were to be
chorus girls in the show. That is
the way we got the girls, because they
were stage struck.
Mcnamara said that the woman
was from Beaumont, Tex, and was
going to take them down there. Her
name was Myrtle Bellview and she
runs house down there
We'll, tell how you got the girls, 1
asked.
The ones that got met in dance
| halls and by hanging around nickle
theaters. AT the dance halls would
size up a girl and get dance with
ler and then see whether or not she
was stage struck, and if she was not,
! would tell her about the chance that
was open to go out WITH this road
| company through the south There are
always a lot o. girls hanging around
the nickle theaters who are stage
struck and it is dead easy to get them.
They didn't know who was for gave
them fake name, so never heard
from any of them after they went
south. They may be down there yet
| for all | know
That is the story told by one of the
panderers himself.
Once within the clutches of the pro-
curers the girls are subjected to every
conceivable means, from brute force
to low cunning in the effort to land
them into the immoral houses. The
| procurers stop at nothing. If per
suasion does not work, deception and
false pretanses and even force and
1 knockout drops are used.
You will no doubt be interested ia
know the share that Iowa has con-
tributed to the white slave traffic.
First let me congratulate the city OF
4 Des Moines for the rapid strides that
have been made here for lettering the
! social condition by closing up the i'm
moral houses. This city is being
watched throughout the United States
to see whether or not it is going to
8 live up to the high standard that has
now been set. If 1t does it will be
one of the greatest forces for good
| in the country.
. / .lave investigated the white slave
4 situation all over the United States
and find it to be nation wide. The
middle west is by no means the
worst. My particular work, however
has been and is in the city of Chicago
and in that city during the past six
months Iowa has played an importan,
part in the white slave cases. A great
many Of tae girls have been from the
state of Iowa.
Among other cases where the girls
came from Iowa was the one in which
two girls, Sarah Baker and Lizzie
Bruncheon came from Sumner, Iowa
Then there was Helen Diar, from
(. your state, WHO was procured by an
other girl One night a missionary
talked to her. and a few days after
wards she received this letter:
Dear Friend: / have been sitting
here today thinking OF what you were
saying to me the other night, ant
when get to thinking Of what ! uset
: to be and what I am today, then / car
: hardly keep the tears back. Oh. How
2 | wish / was back where / was two
years ago. wish could get out ans
do good like you. haven't an.
y friends in this city SO wfer,
4 could go? If You can lelp mi
will turn from this life and be ;
good girl again
e tai l,,y