The Washington times., 1912-06-07
EAST WASHINGTON
CITIZENS DISCUSS
JONES-WORKS BILL
Animated Debate Follows
Recommendation of Ex-.
ecutive Committee.

Fraught with debate sarcastic and
sensational at times, the meeting Of the
East Washington Citizens Association
held last night at 314 Pennsylvania ave-
nue. southeast for the purpose of voting
on the recommendations Of the execu-
tive committee jndorsing the Jones'
Works excise bill, ended by vote Of
AS predicted in The Times of yester-
day Afternoon: that meeting was
stormy. From the call to order by
President Potter to s.,ci. the close OF .hai the
fight, and at times 1t seemed as
though the debaters would come to
M. I. Weller spoke against indorsing
the Jones-Works bill. At the ouset Of
the meeting he asked the president II
Inc speeches were to be of friendly
nature Or were they to be full Of tightt;
gentlemen speaking should be govern
ed by gentlemanly instincts, but that
II he wanted to make 1t hot there would
be plenty Of pepper to go all around:
reviewing the bill by sections. Some
few parts of it he agreed with, but the
majority of them he criticised, and
charged that it ,o was written for the
that If it was passed 1T would be a
blow to the freedom Of the poor man,
and a monopoly of the liquor business
NIT to the passage Of the bill" shouted
Mr.. Weller. 1T would treat us as chill,
dren and not as men. The excise bill
would permit the men gifted with power
by 1t to graft" said Mr. Weller. And
that part about closing up the saloons
on Inauguration day Is foolish. l re-
member that during the second inaugu-
ration of Cleveland 1t was so cold that
from the White House and drunk in cups
by the half-frozen people on the stands
in front of the mansion" said the
frequently Mr.. Weller was interrupted
by different persons. and on most every
occasion he answered with a sharp,
quick term that in turn caused hot
reply from the persons addressed;
Works bill were Milton Lille, Albert H.
Schulties, and DR.. Charles Emmons.
Those speaking for the Endorsement of
the bill were President Potter ~ James anne
w. Smith, and James M. Wood.
Mr.. Parsons in the course Of his re-
marks said that the bill was not in
tended as a prohibition measure, but to
existing conditions. Not word should
be stricken from that bill. Any man
with a desire for the proper relations
prohSts hsGSdsty the sh0aa there s %
question but that under the existing
laws licenses have been purchased"
believed under the Jones' Works bill that
graft would be eliminated.
President Potter made a strong talk
in favor of the bill. He stated that the
object of the bill was to get rid OF
low-down dives at the corner of alleys
where razors fly, and lessen the number
Of saloons in the residential sections OF
the city, and place them more removed
from the churches and schools
When. It came to a vote whether or
not the association would adopt the
recommendations of the executive COM
Ing had been packed by members favor.
ing the liquor business and called for a
roIl-can vote.
Today Mr.. Potter stated that he be-
lieved Mr. Weller had marshaled his
supporters late yesterday afternoon and
had them at the meeting last night ir
order to vote down the proposition.