The Cairo bulletin., 1909-12-28

mayor for the purpose OF conferring
with the executive committee of the
Citizens League regarding certain
proposed reforms in the city. There
we're present His Honor Mayor Par
sons and Aldermen Mcdaniel, Mag
ner, Kelly, German. Nellis, Ferguson,
Koehler. Davis, Scullin and Meehan
The Citizens League executive
committee were there, John S. Ais.
thorpe (chairman), w. B, Huette, NJ
~. Howley, P. T. Langan, c. C. Terrell
IT. ]. Kerth, C. S. Carey and num-
Der of citizens including professional
men, business men and goodly dele
cation OF saloon men. Among the
audience were Hon. Miles Frederick
Gilbert, George Carnes. DR.. Dunn
Jean NJ. Allen, c. Fred. Gallagher,
Chas. Feuchter, George j. Becker
.Chas. Cunningham, Rev. Buchanan
Capt H. c. Partee, Mike Egan, Fred
Stehr. Sam West, JOS Curry, o. P,
Hurd, Frank Sebille. #
His Honor stated the purpose ci
the meeting. saying that he had a
conference with the executive com.
|mittee OF the League and received
from them certain requests which had
been formulated and endorsed by the
League. The conference had been in
every way agreeable and he had
promised to cooperate with the
League as far as possible under the
laws and ordinances. He read the
demands made by the committee as
follows.
l. That the vagrancy laws be en-.
orced. eso
g.. That the law against carrying
concealed weapons be enforced
3. That public gambling be sup,
pressed.
A. That assignation houses be sup
pressed. ss
S.. That dance halls. commonly
known as "honk-a.tonks" be. sup.
pressed. n@
s. That wine rooms be suppressed.
I. That women and minors not be
permitted In or about saloons.
s, That we. object to the indis-
'eriminate scattering of houses of i'll
fame in our city.
g. That saloons be closed from
IL o'clock midnight until 5 o'clock
a. m.
The mayor stated that all the re-
quests made could be complied with
by the police department excepting
that relating to women and children
in saloons and that relating to closing
saloons from IL midnight to 5 a. m.
The law did not cover these require
'ments. Lewd women could be pro-
hibited from being in saloons, but not
those who we're of this character;
the sale of liquor to children was
permitted by law when they had Or
ders from parents or guardians, anl
in many cases where saloon men sold
liquor to children, the latter presented
such orders. There was not state law
and no ordinance requiring saloons TO
close as requested and this would
have to 80 to the city council for ac.
tion. The mayor called ON Mr.. Ais
thorpe. as chairman, to present the
committees views.
MFR. Aisthorpe said he appeared as
the spokesman for the League and its
executive committee, not for himself
or as an individual citizen. The re-
quests presented to the council as
read by the mayor represented the
views OF the committee OF fifty named
by the Cairo Board OF Trade and
Cairo Commercial Club. This com.
mittee was body of representative
citizens, mostly business men, and
they were practical men, not fanatics.
They appealed to the city authorities
to give Cairo better moral conditions
than had existed during the last FIVE
or six years. There was a class of
people in the world who knew no
limit except that fixed by force of
law firmly administered, they would
start as far ahead of the law as the
authorities would permit and would
not stop where we would like to have
them; they would take all they could
lget. They had gotten the ascendency
lin this, community. partly perhaps
through the Indifference of citizens !;
lit was not necessary to go into what
had been, or how we had gotten
where we now were: 1t was enough
to know that the evils Of the recent
past had brought us to our senses
and we wanted the conditions i'm.
proved. The speaker admitted that
the officers had a difficult task be,
fore them. but with the low public
sentiment behind them they could ac-
complish much
Mr. Aisthorpe went over the several
propositions presented to the council.
Carriers OF concealed weapons ought
to be given the limit Of the law when
caught; public gambling had been
checked up lately and it had been
high time to stop it; assignation
houses were all over the city; wine
rooms were operated in connection
with saloons; these did more than
any other similar establishments;
Il