The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1914-07-18

: of specific cases in which names and
date are given. as they appear in tho
MED document bearing the title. Mem
oranirn FOR The Governor. state OF
Virginia"
|; ia not at all proba BILE that Mayor
/ Ain.lte VII! enter the channel. how
ever for he stated To a Times Dis
patcn reporter la,cr in tho afternoon.
that the report OF his contemplated
action WAS obviously based upon an
inference drawn when he had mon
toned 10 be correspondent who inter.
viewed him that in n previous clash
between the Police Department and
The navy ho had complained to Wash"
inEto". and the officer in that case had
been compelled to make an apology.
The Mayor stated that he was not
disposed to take up the matter with
Washington at all. II was likely, he
said, that he would have the police
keep their hands off the tackles and
tars who put into this port. regardless
of whether they were dcscrters o. not
If tho navy is going To be Disagree
able about the vigilance exercised by
the police. II ia likely that he will In
strut the police to let the navy 20
hang and hunt its deserving enlisted
men at its own expense.
MAYOR Fires HIS
FIRST SOLID SHOT
Tnc Mayors nrst solid shot in tho
engagement WIS urea over me decks
of the NAVY yesterday afternoon in the
form Of this communication:
July II. 1914.
Honorable Henry c. Stuart. Governor
OF NirEinia
My Dear GOVERNOR have read in
this morning $ Times Dispatch a state
mcnt purporting to come from Lieuton-
ant II. T.. Parsons. United states Navy,
concerning the activities Of the Rich
mond Police Department upon arrests
and delivery OF descrters from the
of this statement 80 totally at variance
with the record III such cases. ! wish
to acquaint YOU with our exact record
in such matters. For instance, Lieu
Two OF our sailors arc in Jail this
week pending Investigation of their
picion Was released yesterday. Cases
OF tins character in Richmond finally
became so numerous that decided to
appeal to the Governor"
The men TO whom this statement ap-
plies were not arrested as desertcrS
but being dressed in blue overalls such
as are worn here almost exclusively BY
! la orers, and being either unwilling or
unable to account for themselves. they
wcr" arrested as Migrants, our depart
men, having conducted "a campaign
against Migrants in this city for the
past several weeks. which has resulted
In number of arrests, After their
arrest one OF them Contidcd that they
were sailors on leave. bur were unable
to SHOW any authority for their alb
sence from their ship. Just why they
| were III their disguise was also not cX-
/ planned. This accounts for their ar
rest but YOU Will observe that they
were neither arrested nor held as de
/ ScrtcrS.
! Now as for the statement Cases Of
| this character finally became so hume
! rous that ! decided to appeal To the
| Governor. the exact record OF the
I Richmond Police Department ia as fol-
lows; 1914. eleven arrests. ten re-
cc!v"d by tho navy as dcs.,tcrs 1913
D q 10 iN...I
by the navy as descrtcrs. 1872. twenty
two arrests. nineteen received by the
navy as dcScrt"rS
You viii thus observe that out of
I tfty-fOur men arrested by our depart
mcnt. forty seven Of them actually
were deseriers. and we're received By
the navy officers as such and the re
wards paid therefor. In other words
out Of iiftE -four arrests only seven
seven OF them were men unable TO JUS
tify their absence from their ship
Although this officer states that
/ actual deScrtiou from our ships to-day,
of which the department has cogui-
zance.' our records show. AS above
stated, that ten actual deserters have
/ been arrested in the city OF Richmond
/ and returned to and received by the
navy as such during the current year,
one mistake having been made in the
I eleven arrests. Few weeks pass, or
have passed for years. that either my
Office or police headquarters does not
receive communication from The Of
icer in charge OF some navy boat ask =
ing for the return OF "a descricr. sub
( nit that the foregoing demonstrates
two things-hrst, that our department
acts only At the specific request OF au-
thorizcd naval officers. second. that our
exact records as shown above. do
not justify the structures of Lieuten-
ant Parsons.
Up to the list Of January Of this
year the reward Tor desertcrs was SO
/ When YOU consider that out OF this
sum the policeman has to carry his
dcscrt"r. generally to Norfolk. main
I tain himself and the man on the way.
bring himself back 10 Richmond and
! divide half OF the reward with the
Police Benevolent Association. ii is
! obvious that the Inference OF graft
] contained in Lieutenant rarsons's
PREVIOUS to this time there has
never been but one complaint made
against this department h. navy
officer on this account, and the facts
! Of that case showed that the Rich
mond department had absolutely
! nothing whatever TO do with the ar
! rest, detention OF return or the sailors
il all having happened in Henrico
/ County, the arrests being made by pr!
vate detectives OF the Chesapeake and
! Ohio Railway Company.
Very respectfully YOURS.