Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-02-02
House Committee Reports on
GeorgetoWn-virginia Foot
Ball Reve!.
NO EVIDENCE TO SHOW
STUDENTS WERE DRUNK
Proprietor of Ebbitt House Censured
for Not Having Closed
Hotel Bar.

mat the excise law Was violated the
night following the OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
loot bail game aud that the PROPRIETOR OF
the Ebbitt House should have, closed his
bar when he ;tscertained that thu, large
number Of persons there were. becoming
intoxicated and boisterous'' are points i'll
t'e report Of the special committee. If
tse House of Representatives which in
Ns';Isated the charge that the law was
broken on that particular occasion
Ile report. which is a compilation as
Wen as compromise of the opinions of
Representatives Caraway. Thompson,
l. Ensle, Prouty aud Walters. makes no
recommendation. Members of the com
mittee differed widely in their individual
opinions, At least one Of them soing, so
far as to draft report calling for i'm
mediate action -. the excise board
The compiling Of n. report was fraught
With difficulties Members uer.. sought
BY friends and f1es of the Euhitt House
temperance reepie tndeaNcred 10 have
the committee sit ss peIiee juries on in
dlvldual cases 81 drunkenness, ana one
OF the undere4rrents which seasht to
draw the committee into further contro-
versy carried with It THE charge that the
whole f.hbitt House investigation Was
the result OF = conspiracy on the part of
other hotels
The report states i'll part
Ebbitt House Headquarters.
The students Of the University OF y.r-
gaia came to Washington to attend a
foot ball gam. with the GEORGETOWN
University. and secured rooms and made
their headquarters at the Ebbitt House,
vaJions were made some days in ad-
vance. The proprietor and manager of
t4s Ebbitt House, anticipating that the
p s,dquarterS beng 1t his house would
draw large patronage for that evening.
g@ok special precautions to care for the
eIoXd by calling out the full force of
t'srtenderS- and engaging extra men
10 act as bouucerS. II seems that the
dGty OF the bouncers was 10 throw out
OF the oarroou all those who had become
100 bolsterouS or too intoxicated. On the
evening in question a Very large crowd
gathered at the E.hbitt House. many OF
whom became somewhat intoxicated and
boisterouS, and the streets and sidewalks
n front of said house became coagested,
and eight or ten police officers from
other precincts OF the city Were called on
to clear the sidewalks and maintain or
der.
The evidence fails to show, however,
10 our satisfaction that any OF the pa
irons SO intoxicated were students of
either the University of Virginia or
Georgetown University.
The evidence further diScloses that
the articles appearing in the newspapers,
which constitute the basis of this in
quiry. were very much exaggerated, and
reflect unjuStly and unfairly upon the
student body of these Institutions.
Praise for Police Force.
In the conduct of the police force upon
this occasion we find but little to criticise.
We find that the captain of the precinct.
anticipating the large crowd that would
gather on that occasion, took special pre-
cautions to preserve order and prevent
the violation of the excise law. In car
rying out his purpose he assigned two
plain clothes men to be present in the
barroon and about the house on the
evening in question. and they were charg-
ed with the duty to see that the law was
not violated.
I'VE think the proprietor of the Ebbitt
House should be criticised for his failure
10 close the bar when he ascertained that
the large number of patrons congregated
there were becoming intoxicated and bois-
ferrous, and that the crowd had become.
SO congested that it could not be properly
handled, and for not having taken the
pitSdOtlOl 10 prevent the confusion and
congestion that occurred within the halls
and dining rooms of the house
With reference TO tine violation of tie
excise law, the proof shows that liquor
was sold 10 one minor and possibly
others: that liquor was served To one
and possibly others who We're then al
ready intoxicated. and that women We're
drinking liquor in the cafe and had il
before them on the tables. and that there
was no food on the table at the time
they were observed. though the evidence
does not disclose whether food had been
ordered.