The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1910-11-19
A PUBLIC CRIME.

The Minneapolis Journal hands ou'
this hot one: Nearly two weeks be.
fore the election The Journal made
this editorial statement:
The Haynes administration is IN
alliance with the brewery domination
and If this domination is not broken
1t will make trouble for Minneapolis
before long.
A few evenings later, Rev. James e.
| Freeman made this declaration at the
| Publicity club dinner in response to
the question, what Makes a City
| Create"
Build no more temples, nor no more
buildings for commerce until you have
begun these first things in your city
| life"
And it was at that point that DIR.
Freeman struck the note for the Bows
club and gave utterance to a perora-
ton on character in city building that
gripped the hundreds who heard him.
The Journal had hoped for a re-
Spouse to these sentiments in the cleo
ton, but none came. There was more
interest in the gas franchise that had
passed than in the moral destruction
of youth. The prediction that unless
organized debauchery is checked at
will make trouble for the city," is all
ready fulfilled in the revelations of the
last week. A young girl is debauched,
she is made drunk by liquor served in
three places. This is her story. on
Saturday evening a policeman finds
three young girls helplessly drunk in
an open lot, attended by three young
boys, one of whom is captured-the
result of the organized debauchery
which prevails in this city, and which
The Journal believes far exceeds In
its deliberate wickedness anything i'm
the city's history. Shall MINNEAPOLIS
become great? Not until the people
rise in their wrath and smite this
thing hip and thigh. Not until bust
ness men who have the interest of the
city at heart commercially, realize that
they have a duty to discharge in this
grave matter.
There are probably over 200 blind
pig resorts open in this city every
night, under bold protection of the
police, and with the knowledge of Su-
perintendent Corriston, and In that
Knowledge we must include Mavor
Haynes. If he is without knowleJxe
be is incompetent to serve as navor.
If he has knowledge, he is criminal IN
his neglect.
Three times has The Journal called
Mayor Haynes attention to ",Tbe Maa
House"-the Brunswick cafe-witbin q
Few months. He would look into If
With what result? All the fan this
den of open vice has corraIed yo,1np
boys and young girls and into the
small hours of the morning have the
orgies gone on.
Who gets the graft? We make M
charges, but graft there is, and The
largest graft in the history of the cit,y
Two hundred Of these resorts a, not
run by accident, or because "the citv
is getting large" They operate he.
cause of organization.
This cancer is reachino o,,+ int a.
homes. When the dance halls turn out
and the observer sees hundreds of
young girls of Is to 20 pouring int3
the rotten Chinese joints, the Bruins
wick cafe, and other shady places. one
trembles for the city. When matern-
ity institutions receive among their
patients members Of our high school
classes, 1t Is high time for a city thai
Is talking about being great, to strike
some body blows.
II the people do not choose to
arouse, the victims of this damnable
debauchery viii do the work for them
by giving the country by their down
fall the story of Minneapolis crimel
How can Mayor Haynes plead limo
cence? How can Superintendent Cor
riston plead innocence in view Of his
temporizing attitude? The very fact
that within twenty-four hours, all re-
sorts are successfully tipped" against
surprise, Is a condemnatory fact Of
itself.