The weekly times-record. (Valley City, N.D.) 1912-1922, 1917-05-10

vice raid in the state Attorney Gener-
al William LANCER tonight in conjunc-
tion with Superintendent Watkins Of
the Enforcement league and States
Attorney Herigstad Of Ward county
arrested over. 70 persons on liquor,
gambling and vice charges. The raid
was most sweeping, carefully planned,
and skilifully executed North Dakota
has seen. Attorney General LANCER
slipped into the city some days ago,
his presence being unknown until 20
minutes to II, when he walked into
the local telephone Office with the
sheriff, lstopped all communications
by telephone throughout the city and
left the Office in charge of deputy
sheriff.
Sharply at 1O:45 so special deputy
sheriffs quietly placed throughout the
city, struck the law breakers and
smote them hip and thigh. Within a
quarter of an hour Clarence Parker,
proprietor of the Leland hotel, was
under arrest; the red light district
was being raided by swarm of depu-
ties; blind pigs and gambling joints of
the city were being broken into, and
the colored section was alive with
deputies. Apparently the law break
ers were taken completely by surprise
and the stoppage of telephone connec-
tions prevented warning being sent
through the city.
Large Supplies of liquor were seized,
gambling apparatus and other para
phernalia of the underworld were in
the clutches of the law and automo-
biles were speeding those arrested to
the county Jail. The raiding contin-
ued for hours, some Of these for
whom warrants were issued attempt
ing to fee and some going into hid
Ing only to be dragged forth by the
aggressive force of deputies.
It Is staded on good authority that
quest Of States Attorney Herigstad,
sent Assistant Attorney General Bren-
nan to the city sometime ago with
force of detectives from national de-
tective agency and that the Safe En-
forcement league has assisted in the
work Of securing evidence, with the
result that the city has been literally
honeycombed from end to end and a
world Of evidence secured. In fact it
is believed that the most thorough and
systematic work ever known in raid
of this kind has been done, the attor-
ney general having in his possession
evidence involving prominent resi-
dents of the city who are involved in
the gambling activities and red light
district. s->-,% -
A battery of detectives were thrown
into the hotels some time ago, secur-
ing evidence of liquor and vice viola
tions and another force was at work
in the negro dives which occupy sew
eral blocks west of the postoffice
building.
Minot is paralyzed at the work done
by Superintendent Watkins and AS
sistant Superintendent Finwall of the
Enforcement league. It appears now
that they have been in the city in dis
guise for days and have secured evi
dence On most of the liquor and vice
violators, going boldly among them
and listening to weird tales Of threats
against themselves, made on all sides
by the underworld who seem to have
feared raid by Watkins and Finwall,
but who did not dream that the affair
was already in progress.
The deputy sheriffs who carried on
the raid number among them scores Of
the city's most prominent men, G.. A.
johnson, Grant Youmans, Dorr Car
roll, Assistant States Attorney Nestos,
Rev. Erickson, Rev. Deake, John Carl
son, Attorney Kelso, former Senator
John Lee, John Sven and Anthony
Walton.
When LANCER rushed into the Le-
land hotel to arrest Parker, seizing
gambling apparatus and cigarettes,
he found Representative Staale Hend-
rickson seated in the lobby and
promptly had him deputized and put
at work escorting prisoners to Jail.
1t appears that the utmost secrecy
was observed in preparing for the
raid and that only handful of local
men knew of the attorney generals
plans. During the day so men were
quietly approached and asked to meet
at States Attorney Herigstad's Office
at $50 p. M, it being intimated to
hem that a meeting of unusual i'm
portance would be held sharply at that
time. When those invited had assem-
bled they were addressed by Attorney
General LANCER who stated that he
had come to Minot at the request of
the states attorney to help clean the
city, that he had Assistant Attorney
General Brennan in Minot in charge
of a force of operatives and working
in conjunction with the State En-.
forcement league and the states at.
torney for some considerable time
and had succeeded in completely un.
covering rotten conditions in the city.
He told the men who had just been
sworn in as deputies by Sheriff Ned
erloe that he expected them to do their
duty and that if the raid were tipped
off it would go hard with the man re-
sponsible for tipping it. The new force
of deputies announced their willing
ness to undertake the raid and watch
es we're all set to the second and
parties assigned under captains prev
iously chosen to raid the various sec
tions of the city. The so deputies
stole out quietly from the states at
torney's Office and scattered through
the city waiting for the clock to strike
10:45 p. m, when the underworld re-
ceived the most staggering blow evel
given organized vice in North Dakota
BY midnight the county Jail was
filled with those arrested, the entire
corridor Of the Jail being packed, anc
the array varying from wealthy busi
ness men Of the city to Japs anc
negroes from the worst dives in the
l. m