The St. Lucie County tribune. (Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Fla.) 1905-1920, 1911-10-20
THE GOVERNOR
CONDEMNED
Idvised Discretion in the En-
forCement of Certain Laws
VIOLATION OF HIS OATH
o,;,eo Asks If Chief Executive Has Also
txtended immunity to His Friends,
The Blind Tiger Operators
Jensen. Florida, Oct. l6, 1911

Jensen, rloTlud, Ocl. 10, wi.
Editor TRIBUNE:
Sncs the appearance of my commun-
,s,;on in your issue of Sept. 29th, rel.
rive TO the fish laws, which have a
ssbit of agitating the East Coast more
hon freezes, drOughts, marriages or
Sssths. have been accused of being
,ss meanest man from Jacksonville to
Vow West, but those unkind cuts are
n0t 0,ing to deter me from having my
uv about things of public nature
hat effect in my opinion, the welfare
If the community, county and state in
which ! live. ,
I think in my former letter that |
thoroughly established the fact that it
vas not nv law that the fish dealers
we're and are fighting so strenuously,
Int one which they got up and request.
a me to pass, although you will hear
4 denounced even now as some of my
"antaponistic work against the fish
hsiness." have some respect for a
man or set of men who will come out
and fight in the open, but ] have an
inter- disgust for those who will stand
around in the dark and stab me in the
back BY their attempts to make me re-
,uonsibIe for the acts they themselves
originated and that | at their request
uut into operation. | know of nothing
more cowardly or unmanly.
Anyone who is keeping in touch with
,urent literature knows that fight
sqainst the lawless conditions is dis
eouraging and dangerous, but that is no
| reason why we should sit idly by and
! permit laWless doctrines to be preach
ia from our street corners and pro-
claimed defant!y from our "blind tiger"
bints. Some of US have children, boys,
loung men, who have the same right
becupy the street corners in a prop
G manner and at proper time as
those who preach and endorse lawless-
pess, and | believe that we are rem:ss
10 our duties if we allow it to continue.
We pass laws to protect from dam
Ue the physical bodies of ourselves
and children. Under these laws. no
man has right to bodily assault our
children, but under a habit that is a
disgrace to civilization, a crime far
more damaging is being continually
committed wherein the minds of our
children are being poisoned by lawless
deciaimers in the public places in our
midst, and from the "blind tiger
joints, which have become bold through
hearing the same doctrine promulgated
BY others whom they attempt to copy.
md the time seems to have come when
oil men are expected to shut their eyes
10 those glazing, debasing, lawless
methods which are being engrafted in
Nthe minds of our children, to the end
mat they shall grow up with perver-
led conception of their duty to society,
their duty as citizens, and worst of all,
Mare expected to applaud the '"prom-
nent citizens" and "blind tiger dis.
Nnsers who resent any criticism OF
nese lawless doctrines, my God,
whittier are we drifting?
Some time since, | was informed that
GOVERNOR Glchrist had assumed toglye
Sheriff ]. P. Brown, of Brevard coun-
y permission to violate his oath of OF.
ns. This was such an unheard OF
Foceedure that | Immediately wrote
@the governor. My first letter found
am absent, but the thing worried me
continually that l wrote him again,
!@ felt that such a charge against
@e Governor of Florida was a most
@islble thing to let 60 uncorrected,
s9 confidently expected a prompt
s 80 emphatic denial from him when ne
~ reply. Imagine my surprise ana
n0stliication when l received his letter
mo that he had written to Sheriff
IT., ~ brown under date of August 20,
rll, from which letter quote as fol-
we "Of course have no authority.
Sarect you not to enforce any law, or
estate. | presume, however, that
the particular case of these nets,
amlght exercise some discretion as
tne enforcement of the same.
SOx' what is that but a guarantee
rn the Governor that the law may
violated with impunity He does
Say to Sheriff Brown, "Do not en-
rce the law" but what he does say
uunts to exactly the same thlng;
~. right has governor to wink
sheriff and say, "be easy, ! will
care of you il you are called to nc,
isS Az Tor violating your oath OF office.
kHnk when the Governor wrote that
~ to Sheriff Brown, he violated his
8 o. Office, and l, in this public way
s!eat against it.
sseompanying the copy of the letter
the Governor wrote to SherlH
xn was also a letter to me, III
pc implies that the enforcement
a iaws OF the state are to him out
ondary consideration, and to JUS
y q @lmself for a 'tacit representation
kEpersn Brown that certain laws
oe violated with impunity, ne
~ u m'OUdtnn6Show In ua which are