The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-11-04
WiIlMOntgOmery Trying to Close
Crawford County Joints.
GrappIes Fearlessly With His
Dang rOus Task.
STORY OF ONE RAID
Girl Bartender Found in a
Lonely Shanty.
Four Cars of Liquor Seized in
Railroad Property.

Pittsburg. Nov. 4-Crawford county
| is different from any other county in
Kansas but Cherokee. and the average
hansan can have no idea of condi-
lions here or understand them when
told. He must be present in the flesh
and see them for himself. Crawford
county is wet" in spots, and has
among its $4,000 population 1900 coal
| miners, most of them foreigners, who
regard the consumption of beer and
whiskey as the one special privilege
| they enjoyed. even under the Euro
pean kings.
The State Journal correspondent
spent a couple of days this week in
the county to try to get line on the
| political outlook. The correspondent
has only hazy idea of the political
complexion of the county. but remem-
| bers clearly his unique experience in
| locating four cars of beer and raiding
a joint in company with Will Mont
gomery, special assistant attorney gen.
eral, who is representing the state here
in the task Of upholding the majesty
| of the prohibitory law in the county.
| Montgomery's work was a revelation.
The handicapS he laborS under are in
| credible. The experiences he has every
week would fill a shelf in a book case
with interesting novels. One day he
IA an Austrian settlement
where the women keep the bar and
the men are sulIen and stoid. yet
speaking the truth when they do talk.
| The next day he comes in contact with
the SicilianS who talk loud and fast
and long and never speak the truth,
He must cope on the third day with
the cunning of the Italian and later
| in the week meet the Irishman and
the Dutchman and the native born
| American.
Raiding a Joint.
! While four ears of beer. all on one
side track in the little town of From
| tenac, seems like an awful lot of beer
| for locality in prohibition state,
yet it must be remembered that most
! of the people in that town are foolish
about their beer. They buy it by the
case or the keg and use the key after
wards as a stand for potted plants and
the empty case for a chicken COOP.
And talk about Joints. The raid on
| the place in North Frontenac was a
chapter Nm history. The lawyer and
the newspaper man were driving by in
| a buggy. The little wooden building
| by the road looked as innocent to the
reporter as a Quaker meeting house,
but the attorney generals assistant has
an eye trained to uncover DISCUSSES and
an ear attuned to hear the softest muir
murs of the iointist's traffic.
There's something doing in there"
he said quietly, land with an injUn elton
on the place. too. We will raid it
right now. If you are not afraid"
| The newspaper man was afraid. He
had visions of husky miners throwing
/ two men out of there on their heads,
or carving them up with large, sharp
knives, for the place was lonely and
| "'spooky'' and the neighDorhood bad,
but he pretended to like it, and said
all right.
! Montgomery appeared to be blind
| to the danger and seriousness of the
situation. Probably he does not value
! his life at all. But then a newspaper
mans life is worth more than that of
| a lawyer. He is so much more of
help, an uplift, to the community. Any
way, Montgomery stopped the horse
and jumped out of the buggy and
started briskly for the side door of
the house.
The reporter followed, but more slow
1y 1t takes thought and considera-
! ton as well as rashness to win
battle. Montgomery pushed in through
the door and made dive for the big
ice box in the corner.
Girl as Barkeeper.
A young woman with the patient
face of the European peasant stood be-
hind a bar in a large bare room serv-
ing beer in bottles to two Italians.
In the ice box were seven half bar
rels of beer. one of the barrels was
connected with the faucet with the air
pressure on.
Montgomery took an inventory of the
beer, seized the books and papers be-
hind the bar, arrested the woman,
| biuffe0 the men and huStleQ the OUT
fit into the open air and locked the
door in the space of five minutes. 1t
was all as quick and easy as the hf-
teenth round of the Jeffries-J ohnson
fight.
| The woman never batted an eye dur
ing the proceedings or made murmur
of either reproach or surprise or anger
The men swore and threatened The
beer was of a superior quality. Other
patrons of the place came to buy and
| II SnIx InRNrT41n
terms regarding their disappointment.
Raid on Railroad Yard.
Montgomery drove next to the rail-
road yards and there found four cars
of beer on the sidetracks. He took the
car numbers and then held little in
ouisition in the depot where he ascer-
tanned the names of the consignors and
consignee of the cars of beer.
After that he followed four different
wagons loaded with beer and was
cursed by four drivers, who drove in
circles without regard to destination
This young fellow Montgomery Is do
ing great work in this county in the
interest of law enforcement. He is US
ing his head and his nerve. He has
been here about two months and has
taken the lead in raids that have net
ted 60 arrests. He has 10 parties now
awaiting trial for law violations and
has a mass of evidence on hand against
others.
He faces difficulties here that cannot
be comprehended by the people of the
other counties of the state. He has
been threatened many times, but he
goes right ahead cheerfully with his
work.
Four cars of beer on one track and
the highway cluttered up with wagon
loads of beer look bad, but then these
people will sell beer with their places
plastered with injunctions as heavy as
the clapboards on an ordinary house.
Towns Pretty Dry.
The towns are pretty dry. Pittsburg
and Girard are Saborahs. In all the
camps are dozens of deserted buildings
that were formerly saloons. The joint
list is no more and the bootlegger is on
the move. The carload shipments were