Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1909-05-24
RAID JAPANESE
CLUB IN WHICH
IJICHI WAS DINED
POLICE VISIT Is ALLEGED
ORIENTAL BLIND PIGS
ONE is SWELL LOS ANGELES NIP.
pom ORGANIZATION
Officers Divided Into Squads Arrest
81, Including is Geisha Girls.
Liquors Valued at $4,000
Confiscated
alleged Japanese blinc

NIFTEEN alleged Japanese blind
pigs, one being the fashionable
: n Los Angeles Nippon club, were
raided by the police last night under
direction of Chief of Police Edward F.
Dishman and forty eight prisoners for
violation of the liquor ordinance to-
gether with liquors valued at $4,000,
seized, and nine other prisoners, booked
on suspicion, were taken to the station
The blanket raid was well planned
and ably executed by the police, not
one word of it having been allowed to
escape from the station until the vari-
Gus squads of officers selected for the
duty were ready to leave headquarters
Six officers in the charge of a su-
perior were detailed to each place to
be raided and Prosecutor Guy Eddie
Deputy Prosecutor Joseph F. Seymour
jr., Captain Charles e. Dixon and Lieu
tenant r. S. Haupt directed the raid
under the command of Chief Dishman,
who remained at the station. The raid
ing squads were directly in the charge
of police sergeants or old experienced
officers who received their instructions
in the assembly room previous to leav-
ing the station.
Promptly at 6:45 o'clock the officers
left the headquarters on First street
and made their way to the various
places they were directed to raid The
houses which they were to enter and
take therefrom all managers, proprie
tors, employees as well as liquors, were
as follows:
Places Raided
Nos. 131 North san Pedro street, the
Los Angeles Nippon club; 125 North
Central avenue, zU8 North san Pedro
street, 433 Jackson street, 2U5 North
San Pedro street. 226 North San Pedro
street, 314 East First street, 2111s North
San Pedro street, Gil North Alameda
street, $40 North Alameda street, 1U5
North San Pedro street, 122 South San
Pedro street, $40 East First street and
331 East First street.
All of these places, with the eXcep-
tion of the Nippon club, are rated as
restaurants, but in a number of them
geisha girls are employed to serve sake
and beer and wine to customers and
to perform with stringed instruments
and dance for the deectation of the
patrons of the places.
All of the places have licenses from
the city as restaurants and a majority
of them have retail liquor licenses is
sued by the federal government, but
none of them, it is claimed, has city
liquor licenses, and it was for the viola
ton Of the liquor license ordinance
they were raided.
The rail was devoid of sensational
features and with the exception of the
protests Of the Japanese, at the Nippon
club against what they styled an out
rage md the efforts of d, giant crowd
of curious japanese to break into the
place at los North San Pedro street
after the officers had entered, there
were no incidents of moment.
At the Nippon club, where but a few
weeks ago Admiral Ijichi of the impe
rial japanese navy, had been feted by
his countrymen, preparations were be-
ing made for a banquet to have been
given last night to Y. Nature, Jap
anese writer and poet of standing in
his native country, who is making a
tour of this country. The tables in the
big dining room already were spread
and the decorations were in place.
Costly wines and liquors and dainty
foods were ready for serving when the
police rudely broke in and read a war
rant for the confiscation of all the
good things found therein, as we'll as
the arrest of the people in charge and
those who were to serve at the tables.
At No. 105 North San Pedro street.
after the officers had entered and
placed the manager and his attend
ants under arrest, a. crowd of nearly
200 idlers who had gathered on the out
side, attempted to break into the place
to see what was going on, the police
were compelled to use their clubs to
prevent the mob from entering.
The raids at the other places, all of
which were made simultaneously, were
, tame and void of feature. The Off
GERS simply entered, read the warrant
of arrest and then took possession of
alleged contraband goods found and
called for the wagon to haul the pris-
oners and the stuff away
In a number of the places pretty lit
tie Japanese women We're found dressed
in the daintiest ~of silks and brocades
who were ready to serve you sake in
the rarest of china or dance you
measure from the garden of cherry
blossoms or sing you a catchy ditty in
the most charming Nipponese way
And they We're pretty women, too
every one of them. and it is highly
probable if one of them had made pro-
test at going to the station and smiled
her prettiest at the raiding officers not
one of the big American policemen
would have found heart to tear them
away from the pretty little bowers in
which they were.
The persons arrested were all later
released at the station house on the
deposit of cash bail for their appear
ance in police court this morning. A
total of $2850 was taken in by the desk
ant In ,fes NF