The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-12-11
SURELY IT'S DRY

Every barkeeper in Topeka trembled
as he heard the approaching storm
and many of the small retailers left
the city and state to escape the wrath
of the law ASK the officers of the
State Temperance union and they will
tell you that it was the greatest clean
up Topeka ever saw The bars had
disappeared, the open defiance of the
law was stamped out and # there was
liquor for sale in Topeka, it was hard
to find. Yet in the IL months but 81
arrests on the part of the state were
necessary II perform a miracle.
Only Seven Liquor Cases
The following year only seven state
cases were brought in Shawnee cOun-
ty in keeping down the liquor traffic
It was new record and the temper
ance element was proud. But their
pride was soon to fall. If the records
tell the whole story, the jointists came
back in the winter of 1907 Not so
strong as in the old days, to be sure,
but they came back That year 291
cases were brought from the county
attorneys ofnce in suppression of the
liquor traffic.
falling off in the whisky business.
Only eight cases were brought that
year to enforce the prohibitory law.
In 1909, The number Of prosecutions
had increased to %; and the next year
1t went to 40 state cases, which was
the second highest record in 10 years.
That was the record up to the day
when John Schenck turned over the Of
t1ce OF public prosecutor to Ernest 81
mon. In four years County Attorney
Schenck had brought los liquor cases
and his record showed that he prosecu-
ted without stint or favor.
When Mr.. Simon stepped into Office in
January this year. Shawnee county was
considered drier than at any time in
its history. The state administration,
which had spent thousands of dollars in
the enforcement of this law, had di-
rected their efforts to Cherokee CraW-
ford, Wyandotte and Sedgwick counties,
pronouncing Shawnee high and dry.
Yet County Attorney Simon in IL
months of service has taken exception
to the opinion of the state admlnlStra-
ton BY his record he claims to have
found double the number of joints in
Topeka that ever existed in the palmy
days of bar room fixtures. To be sure
the actual convictions of jOintists dur
ing his administration may be counted
on the fingers Of one hand, but the Grim
inal appearance docket shows the cases
which have been brought and many of
them are still pending. At the end of
these II months, conditions do not seem
to have changed from the day that ST.
mon took his oath of office.
~Only last week, Rev. Mr.. Norris told
the State Temperance union that he had
recently bought liquor in 40 different
places in Topeka He insisted that the
lid leaked and the town was groggy-
Yet with 40 places running in Topeka
as Mr. Norris SayS-and a 100 per cent
increase in liquor prosecutions over any
former year it would afford an inter
esting problem in mathematics to know
how many cases would have been neces-
sary to shut off the traffic in the days
when Topeka was avowedly wet.
The Law Is Kind.
Then, TOO, the law is kind in allow
ing the public prosecutor fees in en-
forcing the prchibitory law. Only
few months ago the State Journal
showed how Mr.. Simon had legally
increased his income $500 in IS dis |
tlnct cases. The law gives Mr. Simon
the money and Mr.. Simon did not |
evade a legal right. on the basis of
the IS cases cited, Mr.. Simon should |
collect something like $4,1OO on the
1O4 efforts to enforce the prohibitory |
law IN addition to drawing his modest |
salary of $4,000 year.
That is not all. Mr.. Simon brought I
a number of contempt proceedings
against people who he said violated |
too. Only two of these cases has been
and on one case the court
said Mr.. Simon might have $50 add
tio1 al fees from the defendant. On a
fee, having previously been allowed |
SIS against the defendant.
There is another fee in which Mr..
Simon figured. The law says he may
collect from the county 20 per cent OF
all forfeited bonds Recently an al
legged jointist left town without set
thing with the court. Simon levied on
the bondsmen, who were surety for
$500 to insure the mans liberty. Re-
Gently the county board compromised (
with the bondsnn en- for $500. Mr..
Simon has filed with the board his
claim for $50 in the case-20 per cent
Of the bond.
In many of the liquor cases brought by
Mr.. Simon, in which he personally
charged sales the cases were dropped [
after the defendants had pleaded guilty.
On the injunction the county attorney Is
allowed a fee, the amount to be named by
the court Property in which the liquor
is claimed to have been sold and against !
which the writ is issued, stands as surety
for the county attorneys claim and is a
legal lien on the property Thus an in
junction is usually quite certain to pay
the county attorneys fees-even though |
the law violator himself may not possess
a dollar or be able to pay one penny of
court costs.
One memorable instance of the injunc-
ton fee system as practiced in Shawnee
was mentioned recently in the
State Journal when it recalled the action
against the Throop hotel Here Mr.
Simon filed charges of 80 distinct sales
If Mr.. Simon possessed the information
which he swore to at the time he issued
the complaint convictions could have
been easily had in the district court and
shawnee county would have collected
from the hotel management $500 in fines
Did she do it? Hardly. Mr.. Simon ap-
peared in court and dinissed all of the
80 counts but secured an Injunction
against the ThroOp hotel and from the
management he collected $500 as attor-
ney's fees. The costs in the case were
paid by the hotel proprietors
How much did Shawnee county receive
from the Throop case? Ask Mr.. Simon.
They Believe in Ryan.