New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-01-21
MRS. VANDERBILT
TO WAR ON DRUGS
Orders Rigid Investigation
to Learn How HerOin and
Cocaine Are Sold.
TO BE NATIONAL
IN IT'S SCOPE
Safety with Which They Are
Handled Due to Court Differ
enceS, 1t Is Said.

Stirred by reports Of the promis-
cuous sale and use OF cocaine and
1croin. due to either the failure of tha
police TO enforce the laws or Of the
courts TO interpret them, Mrs. William
*. Vanderbilt ST., has directed Ernest
Is. Coulter TO make a searching investi-
CATION into the situation and begin a
hard-hitting campaign against the evil,
not only in this state but in all others.
"When the facts were called TO Mrs.
Vanderblts attention said Mr..
Coulter yesterday. she was horrified
She said she was convinced that the
evil had become so alarming, despite
the laws. that IT had become public
menace.
although We have not gone far
enough yet to be able to say just what
constructive measures are needed in
this state, several facts stand out. one
is that, although the Brooklyn mag
istrates interpret the laws to include
heroin. which is a derivation Of NOR
phine. the Manhattan courts do not do
So All that is necessary for a de-
fendant TO say is that he had heroin
and he is discharged at once. l think
This can be corrected by writing the
word 'heroin specifically into the
statute. Magistrate Krotel recently
told me the courts were practically
Io1,,locc II, this matter
Again. there is the question Of pre-
paring the evidence. When an arrest
is made a sample Of the drug is sent
for analysis 10 the chemical experts of
the DEPARTMENT of Health. James P.
Atkinson, chemist Of the department.
tells me that his men are swamped
with work and can't find time to do all
the work.
During 1913 they had over 10000
specimens of all kinds to examine, of
which over 900, suspected as cocaine,
heroin, morphine or other poisonous
drugs. came from the police courts. IL
the courts knew they could get quicker
action as TO these analyses there would
he twice as many cases disposed Of as
why not give the Board of Health
more power and greater facilities for
this? Convictions cannot be obtained
until they get the returns on these
samples. | am to have a conference
tomorrow with Chief Magistrate Nc
Adoo on the police court phase Of the
question.
Under present conditions. although
there is a strong law against cocaine,
one man told me the other day he could
get il thirty different ways without
difficulty, as it is peddled openly In the
streets. DR. Jackson r. Campbell Of
the Department of Corrections. de-
scribes the situation as alarming. there
being recently nine cases OF boys sent
10 the Harlem prison. arrested in a
poolrOom.
Three Of these boys were so addicted
10 heroin and cocaine they were almost
crazy after spending a night in Jail. In
one Bronx court there are from three
TO four BOYS a day brought in, ar
raigned either as drug users Or han
dlcrs of drugs"
Although this situation might be inn
proved by the better enforcement OF
the laws and the including Of heroin
in the statute, Coulter thought solution
Law i'm national laws. either under the
interstate commerce laws or by the
bonding Of cocaine and other drugs, as
whiskey is now bonded, placing the
control of the supply absolutely in the
hands Of the government.
Coulter said the work he was doing
for Mrs. Vanderbilt would go thorough
Continued on third page, fourth column.