The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1917-10-30
PAT TERSON
REPLIES
Gary Official Answers Ed
torial in Snyder's Paper
Says Post Was Silent
When It Had City Print
ing.

THE TIMES is in receipt Of the fol-
lowing communication:
Editor GARY EVENING TIMES:
After reading the editorial in Mon
day nights Gary Evening Post concern
ing my speech at Military hall on vice
in Gary I have concluded that Henry
Burgess snyder postmaster. and editor
of the Gary Evening Post. is very much
upset over my references TO that topic
Ii seems that after thinking over il two
days the Post editor proceeded to at
tempt to defame me as disreputable,
both as an individual ana as a public
official
Henry Burgess Snyder. exponent Of
reform. does not like to hear the truth
about vice in Gary as it existed during
the city administration when the Post
was silent about that topic--when the
Post had the city printing and Mr.
snyder's brother held a lucrative city
position.
THE Post was silent al that time a.
to the vice and crime question. although
the situation in Gary was the most no
torious that either the city or county
ever knew. OF course now nobody
knows just what tho Posts ''rake-off
amounted TO. AT any rate we will take
il for granted. the city job or city print
ing was sufficient TO make Gary free
from vice and crime SO far as Henry
I Burgess Snyder and the columns Of his
newspaper We're concerned
and ais an cvidcutiary fact as 70 who
really is the yellow daub' that the Post
speaks OF j told Mayor Knots during
the first year / was prosecutor 10 close
up the red light district Of Gary.
Mayor Knots thereupon instructed his
chief of police 10 give the denizens Of
that district one hour to leave town.
When Henry Burgess Snyder saw the
procession of underworld figures, paint
ed women anc men Of notorious repute.
headed for tho Lake shore depot on that
eventful day his heart must have griev-
ed for he came out in an article in the
Post charging me, the prosecutor, with
bad faith and that I had taken action to
close UP the red light district because
/ was not getting enough fve-spots out
of them!
"Supposing that the accusation were
true. if Henry Burgess Snyder was 50
interested in reform and good govern
ment then as he poses to be now he
surely would have commended me. re-
CARELESS Of my sincerity or insincerity,
in taking steps to Dust vice in Gary.
But the attitude of the Post at that
time indicates that Henry Burgess
Snyder did not want the red light dis
trict closed then. and leave it to the
public now that were there a segregated
district in Gary and the Post were get
ting the city printing just what its at
titude would be today. 1t seems that
the Post has reform spells when it has
a lean cash register
Editor Snyder was also hurt because
l said it is just as bad to gamble in his
editorial office or in the Gary Com
nercial club as il is to gamble in a sa-
loon on the south side. When Mayor
Johnson's police made an early Sunday
morning raid on Editor Snyder's office
some months $50 the editor tried to ex-
euse the seizure of the gambling pot on
his table and tho arrest of members of
his STAFF as The interruption of a
friendly game. I say to you. Henry
Burgess Snyder, that when you play
the role of reformer now, considering
what your shameful editorial record of
silence was during the previous admin
istration. that you are a plain hypocrite. |
L may be as you say. a yellow daub in /
the official life Of this community, Edi- /
tor Snyder, but 1 dare say that IS peo- /
pie in Gary and Lake county know me