Kentucky Irish American. (Louisville, Ky.) 1898-1968, 1919-05-03
REFORM
Administrator Busy Censoring News
and Gagging the Daily
Press.
The Entire staff of Local Press
Expose Covering Up
Methods.
Mems Federation Has Golden
Opportunity to Solve
Mysteries.
THE SAFETY BOARD RATIFIED


that near Mayor Smith and our
Shelbyville Chief of Police have GER
tainly forgotten their promises OF
taking the public into their conf
dence, and no one can forget how
Petty Dragged to the daily press
that this administration would
give out all the news to the papers,
and would not try to suppress the
facts like the Democrats had done, Z"
and the near Mayor at the same
time said that an open door pol
icy would be maintained by his adj
ministration and the public would
always be able to get the facts" For
proof of these official statements
see the Courier-Journal of January
90. 1918, just one month after the
reform" administration has taken
hold. That promise of Smith and
Petty has been easier to break than
the proverbial pie crust, as the pub
lie of Louisville is not being told of
the numerous crimes committed in
our midst, the only stories getting
in the newspapers being dug up by
the reporters themselves, and to add
insult to injury, the reform" ad-
ministration employs a press censor
TO see that the public is only in
formed of what the Chiefs office
cares to give out, and this press
ceDsOr's salary is paid for by the
taxpayers who, Smith and Petty
said, had "a perfect right TO know
what is going on"
If any citizen asks the newspaper
men of five daily papers their. opin-
ion of the local misft administra-
ton, at least nine out of ten re-
porters, of the Herald, Courier,
Times, Post or Anzeiger, will give
his opinion in no uncertain terms.
and the chances are that the YER
dict will not be one to thrill the
Searcy-Chilton administration into
ecstacies of joy. Well, to make
long story short, since the Censor
ship" act was passed in police cir
cles the feeling between reporters
and the powers that be hasn't been
amy too friendly. Now this includes
at least some of the reporters of the
Republican organs. All reporters
for the first time in the history of
the city are barred from the office
of the Desk Sergeant, Police Cap
tain's room, office of the Chief of
Police, the officers room and the
office of the station-keeper. The re-
porters are allowed to call at the
doors of these offices, accept what
news is handed out, which naturally
is what the newspaper men term
rpress agent stuff"
In the basement of the City Hall
a few days ago there suddenly ap-
peared on the big blank walls of
the reporters room fifty questions
addressed to the administration.
The questions, numbered in rota-
tions, were marked mysteries"
Many OF these mystery questions. as
the story goes, were written on the
walls by Herald reporters, while all
or most of the newspaper men who
go to the City Hall contributed their
quota. For while the reporters
did a land-office business showing
the mysterious inscriptions to citi-
zens. After a few days, but about
as quick as they usually do, the po-
lice got wise Then certain men,
bers of the Board of Safety, the
Mayors Secretary, and, according
to the best information, the near
Mayor himself, paid a call to read
the Nebuchadnezzer-like scrawls.
Then somebody washed the walls.
Some of the questions were:
Who is John Doe and where does
he get his dough?
Where is Ed Dennison Escaped
pIisoner)?
Where is Sailor Jack Escaped
prisoner)?
Where is p. Curry Escaped pris-
oner)?
How many times did the negro
Gilligan escape?
How many prisoners escaped from
police court February IL?
Who owns Hurley Pope's saloon
headquarters of the colored pOliti-
clans and gamblers)?
Why are the police sore ON
Blackhawk?
Who killed Phil Younger?
younger was found with his
throat cut after being robbed by
negroes at Tenth and Walnut. No
arrest.)
Who killed Carl Groesman?
(GrOeman was murdered and robbed
at Fifteenth and Gallagher streets.)
Who killed the soldier at Han
coSlS and Market? a sergeant was
killed by a negro at that corner this
winter. The police arrested the
wrong man, who was later dismiss
ed.)
Who killed J. II. Thompson?
(Thompson was found with a frac-
tured skull at Twenty-eighth and
Madison few weeks ago. His
death unexplained.
Who killed the two negroes In the
gambling houses?
Why were no arrests made?
why is the Fire Department?
Who put out the fire at the Cot
ton Seed plant?
What does Mayor Smith think
about?
Was anyone rolled at Central !
Station