The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1911-01-17

without bed or chair or cooking
utensil, becomes, of course, abso-
lutely uninhabitable. Moreover still,
unless the owner proves his inno-
cense, both he and the madame are
subjected to heavy damages. More
over yet again, he is forbidden to
rent his house, and all income from
it ceases, for a whole year. This
makes the business Improbable and
almost impossible, for vice mast
have place in which to hide. Not
even at the fiye-or-ten- times-as- much
rates for rent that are sometimes
paid, will property owners run the
risk-the almost certainty-of dis
covery.
This law is attracting very wide
attention. 1t is certainly the most
drastic and effective effort that has
ever been made to check the social
evil and protect our girls. To DIR.
John B. Hammond of Des Moines~
who everlastingly and intelligently
agitated the subject, is given great
credit for the passage of the law.
We gather the following from a re-
cent article by DIR. Hammond:
We may hear-this is not fancy
picture but the reality is enacted in
hundreds of places in our country
almost any night of the year-the
pleadings and means of a childish
voice on the upper floor. On the
stairs we may meet the Madame
with roll of crisp bills, the receipts
from the sale of a new white slave,
for there are rich patrons in this
business who pay out large sums of
money to procure innocent little
girls-lured from their country
homes very likely by promises Of
work good times in the city,"
More than one village or little town
has missed its Bessie or Belle-mys-
teriously disappearing Here she is
not willingly or knowingly going
wrong but deceived, betrayed. Ones
hand unconsciously seeks the hip
pocket and there is an itching on the
trigger finger as one hears the
chlld's screams or sobs, but-a blue
coated policeman at ones side re-
minds us that the house is protected
by city authorities! By Law!
With the awful demands on the
girls nervous system, she easily be-
comes a victim of the liquor and
drug habit, and her downward wav
is rapid. In five short years on the
average, she has paid the price with
her life, either through disease or by
her own hand; but long before this.
the respectable (??) houses have
thrown her aside, and she falls into
the lowest places of the underworld.
A new victim is demanded and it is
to meet these demands and fill up
the rapidly depleted ranks, that the
army of procurers has arisen and the
white slave traffic has been estab-
lished. Attorney Sims is authority
for the statement that in New York
City alone, there are thousands"
of men who make their livelihood
through this traffic. No mans
child is free from danger. The
game of "lover at first sight," the
promise of a stage position for "tal-
ent recognized at once" pleasant
employment-these are the usual
methods of decoying the little mex
perienced, self-conceited, village
girls into these death traps, but ply
steal force is sometimes used, if ne
cessary and possible.
These are startling statements but
absolutely true. A little announce
ment in the morning papers Of the
rescue of twelve-year-old girl in
Chicago, who was being held at the
police station. brought inquiries
from 500 parents whose daughters
had recently disappeared. Where
were the other 499 girls? 1t is ad-
mitted that many SHADY hotels"
are detairing girls under fourteen
years for immoral purposes. War?
Was there ever a more worthy cause
! for war?
1t has been found almost impos-
sible to stop this business by the US
ual detective and jury systems.
What decent man, what man whose