The weekly chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Craig County, Okla.) 1905-1913, 1912-03-22

thieves. He is a desperate, a violator
of law and an anarchist. Still we find
lawyers who will defend such cattle
for few paltry dollars and by every
known artifice and technicality try to
acquit the men and eyade the law. The
fewer such SWITCHES we have the better
for the city and our country. They
put themselves on a level with the men
they defend.
We also have another class of men
who don't appear to see the point of
law when the criminal is a bootlegger
or whisky peddler brought before as
juryman. Ordinarily a lawbreaker
charged with any other offense would
be speedily convicted and punished for
his crime. | am glad to say our jury
men are seeing things in a much bet
ter light than formerly and an acquit-
tai is seldom given a guilty man. A
very encouraging sign of the times is
to see our public officers strictly COM
plying with the law and. enforcing it
to the letter. A little more energy on
this line will certainly make Vinita a
good place to live and to school and
educate a family of children without
the contamination of evil associations
of this lawless element.
But few drunken men are now to be
seen on our streets. One exception to
this rule was to be seen yesterday
wnen a public officer, elected by the
voice of the people of Vinita, was es-
corted to his home in a drunken and
boisterous condition by two or three
men. There is one thing certain that
such men should be made an example
of, and fined the same as some poor
tramp or other common drunkard.
have often wondered why it is a
city council or the taxpayers of a city
will petition and license a public billi-
ard hail. counting the cost of extra
police and other expenses not taking
into consideration the fact that it is a
common loafing place for our boys
| (and men for that matter), who would
look much better at home. Cities
usually consider such places the rende-
youis of bad -booze-tight-
ers, bootleggers and law-breakers.
Citizens of Vinita, did you ever con
slider the damaging influence of such
places on the children of the town in
comparison with the very small rev.
enue you receive for such privileges.
believe if you compare the figures
economically you will find the balance
on the wrong side of the ledger which
shortage will have to be charged to
the account of loss instead of profit
There is no money in the pool hall for
any one but the man that owns it. It's
very nature contaminates every thing
lit touches
1t looks good to the average stranger
who visits city in this twentieth CEN
Itury to see the saloon and billiard hall
signs conspicuous by their absence. He
| will make up his mind that this is the
lplace he has long looked for as home
and proper place to educate and
school his family.
There are young men and young wo-
men twenty-five years old in Kansas
who never seen or entered a licensed
saloon. Conditions in Kansas can be
| duplicated in Oklahoma. Our watch
word should be- Give us more schools
and less billiard halls; more churches
and less whisky joints; more morality
and less criminality; more love and
| less hatred and revenge; more good
citizens and less law violations. There
are citizens in our town who will very
bitterly crIticise the position of the
writer of tbs article. But just let
them soberly review the facts set
forth in the case and compare good
morals and deeency with the ruinous
policy of the different evils set forth
in this article A strict comparison
would be good for the cause by an
honest man with honest views. We
very much expect the opposition to
kick and show their teeth We would
be very badly disappointed if they
would quietly submit to the laws of
the land and the voice of the people
If they are contentious and obstinate
in violation of law the only remedy is
to infiict the severest penalties of both
fines and Imprisonment BY this meth
cd we usually rid the community of
those leeches on society and good
morals.
My next article will be: what
Vinita Needs
Respectfully,
J. II. FRIEND.