The Duluth rip-saw. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1917-19??, 1920-03-20


declares that mayor Baxter's motives
cannot be questioned. So long as he
proceeded according to law, lawyer
Crawford, Judge Perrin or the Supreme
Court have no business poking their
noses into mayor Baxter's business.
The Weakly Leader, although no
longer the personal organ of "Jere-
miah, the Weeping Prophet" is just
as consistently wrong as ever on all
political questions. That weakly sheet
would rather be wrong than right, even
if being right served much better
purpose, and it is so disappointed over
the decision that the editor, or who.
ever furnishes the dope, is dipping his
pen in vitriolic fluid.
This time, the Supreme Court gets it
in the neck for not giving decision
satisfactory to the Weakly Leader. Be-
fore this, all the criticism and vitu-
peration have been heaped on "Fred''
and everyone at all friendly to the
mayor; but now, when the highest ju-
dicial tribunal in the state says that
the mayor was right, the Weakly Lead
er's abuse is not heaped on the coun.
sellers who led the Bingoland bunch
astray, by giving bad advice, but on
the Supreme Court.
The poor old Supreme Court must
feel awfully cut up as result of being
taken to task by the weakling publ
cation, but the head sawyer of the
Great Family Journal has private in
formation from Madison to the effect
that the court probably will survive
the attack.
The Weakly Leader also is terribly
disappointed because the taxpayers Of
the city will not have to pay the po-
licemen a few thousand dollars for
services which never were rendered,
and this at time when a political
election is impending. How can the
Weakly Leader expect the people to
follow its advice when it expresses re-
greet that the city treasury is not rifled,
contrary to right and justice? Well,
the people have not followed the weak
ly leadership for many years past, and
indications are that they don't intend
to do 50 now
| Aside from the policemen involved
and lawyer Crawford, no person in the
Bingoland bunch feels the defeat as
keenly as old Bob Shields. He now
realizes that it was a serious error to
take the police matter to court and
that he used to get much farther by
the old methods of controlling cleo
tions, debating appointments and max
! ing his win supreme by a judicious dis
tribution Of the proceeds from collec-
| tions among the men and women in
the bad lands Of Bingoland.
| This method could not be applied in
| this instance, as the saloon was gone,
and the blind.piggers and sirens Of the
redlight dumps were SO hard pressed
by the activities Of the police, espe-
cially after their protectors had been
removed from the force, that only with
| difficulty could they protect them
selves; and, sometimes, they could do
that. The result was that Bob had to
listen to depressing tales from go-be.
tweens, in. and out Of uniform, who
were seen making their rounds through
the lowlands and. on their return trips
pay visits to the United States Bank
building.
Citizens of Superior have no desire
to poster Bob Shields. They feel that
he is an old man, rapidly breaking in
health and well broken in prestige, if
not in purse. They do resent any pos
ling as political Pope on his part and,
so long as he does that, decent, re-
spectacle citizens are going to oppose
him and his gang.
Persons not familiar with Bingoland
politics wonder why the bunch domi-
mated by Pope Shields was so anxious
to have the police and fire commission
pass on the matter Of decreasing the
police force and the men to be dis
missed. They point out that in the
hearings against the chief of police,
the commission sustained mayor Bax-
ter, hence the Bingoland bunch would
not have gained anything by going be-
fore the commission.
1t is true that the police and fire
commission supported the mayor in his
move to make possible the selection
of an efficient head for the police
force by sustaining the charges against
chief McKinnon. But at the time the
|
and fire commission had an entirely
different complexion. At that time
there were three members who held
over from the time when Bob Shields
was in his glory, hence they were ex-
pected to stand by the bunch, right or
wrong.
| These three were Jim Duffy, Bill
Walsh and Doc Mason. The mayor had
only two appointees, Pear Benson and
Prof. Merrill. And so the bunch felt
that if charges were preferred against
the policemen they would only have to
ask for trial. put Crawford in charge
Of the defense and the rest would be
easy, regardless Of the evidence that
might be presented.
/ Since that time, Duffy's term has