New Britain herald., 1915-08-06
ALLEGE GAMBLERS
 ARE AT LONG BEACH
Sheriff Investigates Rumors But
 Fails to Find Evidence

of high play and heavy losses in
 gambling house at this resort stirred
 District Attorney Lewis J. Smith to make an investigation. He had heard that coterie of New York gamblers, 1 whose names are familiar to every l newspaper reader, was doing a brisk | business in cottage within d stones throw of the Nassau Hotel. Gossip 1 had it that young man of large means and a fondness for roulette l lost $30,0O0 in one nights play re- gently, and that losses of $l0,UOU and $5,OOo were frequent occurrences.
 After writing a letter to Chief of Police Charles w. Hewlett of Long Beach village, calling his attention lo the stories, Mr. smith requested Sher- fir Stephen F. Petit of Nassau county to make a personal investigators. Sheriff Petit came to Long Beach with Deputy Charles Williams anI visited every cottage to which sus- picion had pointed.
 Il had heard the talk going around that foolish young men were being | bilked," said the Sheriff and, know that people were talking about the plan of three of the most notorious I gamblers in New York to establish at Long Beach d place similar to the one run for years by Richard Can field at Saratoga. l visited Long Beach to see if there was any truth in the talk l found that there is no 1 organized gambling going on at the resort.
 Sheriff Finds No Evidence. < t. With MT. Williams, my deputy, I visited four cottages just outside the l corporate limits of the village that had been pointed out to me as pos sibles ga nlbling gh houses. 9zI 9lI[z I[zf found that l two of them are under construction. 1 unfurnished of course, and unoccC- pied. A third is owned by New l York banker who certainly would not permit public gambling on the prem ises, and the fourth has not been oC- cupied for several weeks. care taker is in charge. I made a care full search of all the cottages, look ing for gambling tools or signs that i gambling has been going on. l found l not the slightest evidence.
 Personally. l have no doubt tha there is gambling at Long Beach, but if so it is a private matter-gamblins 1 indulged in at private houses and with | no outsiders permitted to take part. | That sort of thing cannot be stopped. l But I am absolutely certain that there ] is no public gambling house being op-
 erated. If the three gamblers whose
 names were mentioned are doing bus
 mess they are doing it very quietly
 and not in specially fitted cottage <"
 Village Authorities Suspicious.
 While the sheriff's inquiry appeared
 to be thorough, it did not bear out t.le
 opinions of Long Beach residents who continued to insist that so far as
 gambling goes Long Beach is being
 made new Saratoga. As a matt4r
 or fact, the village governing board,
 John Gerhardt, president of the will
 lage; A. Ii. Parsons, justice of the
 peace, and David Felix, village coun-
 sel, have reason to believe that
 cottage near the end of the boardwalk
 IS used Tor gambling. The cottage is
 outside of the one square mile viii
 lage district. and so is not within :he
 Jurisdiction of the village authorities.
 They have heard that about two years
 ago very shrewd young New York
 gambler, who is reputed to have
 made $3O0,O00 within the past seven
 years, advanced money to a former
 cafe owner well known on Broadway
 to open gambling house.
 The young gamblers business
 quired him to stay in Mannattan but
 the older man, having lost large
 fortune largely because of peculiar
 circumstances which ruined his bus
 mess, was able to stay in Long Bea cl
 and run the place. The patronage
 as been "exclusive'-that is to say,
 none but men with great deal of
 money, who could afford to lose heav-
 ily without making com plaint o'
 oth erwise creating unfavorable talk,
 were welcomed. In view of all this
 talk the village board appealed 70 1 District Attorney Smith and he wrote | to Chief of Police Hewlett.
 Chieef Hewlett met Sheriff Petit
 when the sheriff arrived in Long
 Beach. The chief told the sheriff that 1 there was no public gambling with in the village and that there was l nothing more than rumor as regards , gambling outside the village limits. 1 That is the report he will make Q District Attorney Smith,
 $1S,OOO Loss in a Night.
 1 One of the best known men in Long { Beach, who manages a very impor- ! tant enterprise, said he hasn't doubt 1 that the story of big gambling out l side the village limits is true. He had l heard stories of various big winnings and losses. The point he made is this. Long Beach, like every big and am- bilious resort, will thrive upon cer- |