The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1922-08-15
ST. LOUIS LEADS IN
NUMBER OF MURDERS
426 HOMICIDES WERE COM
MITTED IN THAT CITY DUR
ING THE YEAR 1921.
LOS ANGELES NOT GOOD
On Seven Year Record 1t Leads Amer
lean Cities as Crime Center. St
Paul Makes Best Showing, With
New York Second.


St. Louis led the country in muir
ders and homicides last year and had
more than 10 capital crimes Tor every
one in New York, according to sta
tistics gathered by Judge William n.
Gemmil. OF Chicago, and furnished to
the committee on law enforcement OF
the American Bar Association, says
the New York Times.
The statistics collected by Judge
Gemmil are the most reliable III eX-
istence. according to Chairman VII
liam b. Swaney, OF the committee,
who said that the lack OF good crime
statistics was one OF the serious draw
backs to the study OF crime conditions
in this country.
While the record OF St Louis last
wear was the worst, Los Angeles
stands pre-eminent as center OF
crime on a seven-year survey.
The criminals stay away from Della
ware because of the whipping post,
Judge Gemmil finds. More than 1000
criminals were dashed in England last
year, a practice which he heartily
commends.
St. Louis had 426 murders in 1921,
or So for each 100000 inhabitants,
Judge Gemmil reports. New York has
one OF the lowest scores among the
"New York" said Judge Gemmil,
(which people think is very wicked
city, is high up on the honor roll, so
far as murder is concerned, St. Paul
alone having fewer arrests for muir
ders, while Chicago ranks third, Gin
cinnati fourth, Buffalo fifth and New
Orleans sixth.
New York Good by Comparison.
BY comparison Los Angeles has
three times as many murders in pro
portion to the population as New
York and two and hall times as
many OF Chicago. Washington has
three times as many as New York and
twice as many as Chicago. Detroit,
which likes to be called model city,
has over twice as many as New York
and nearly double the number i'll Chi
cago, while St. Louis reports $50 ar
rests for murder and SO for manslaugh-
ter in 1921
What is true as to murder is partly
true as to other major crimes. II the
balance of the year 1922 equals jan
uarv and February OF this year Los
Angeles will lead all other cities in
the number OF burglaries and house
breakings. She is not even closely tol-
lowed by any other large city. Chicago
comes next on the roll OF dishonor,
followed closely by Washington, Bal
timore, Buffalo, ST. Louis, San Fran
cisco, Boston, St Paul Cleveland,
New York, New Orleans, Denver, Gin
cinnati and Louisville in the order
named
In arrests for intoxication Boston
far outstrips all cities. But Chicago
with either a sense OF pride or humil-
iation, refuses to list her cases.
in contrast with these figures |
have collected the latest statistics from
Canada and England and Wales con
corning the same crimes. About oOO,-
600 people are arrested in England
and Wales annually. The population
there is about II times that OF Chica-
60 and seven times that OF New York
For every arrest for murder in Eng
land and Wales in 1920 Chicago had
eight and a hall, New York six and
three-quarters and St. Louis too many
to count.
Finds Law Enforcement Vital.
The American Bar Association is
doing a fine service in trying to dis
cover the causes OF crime. | predict,
however, that it will conclude that one
great cause is the lack OF law enforce
ment. Laws are the product OF civilized
society. They are made to protect the
innocent and punish the guilty. When
they fail in doing either one OF these
two things, they fail society and So
ciety degenerates into savagery. W her
ever YOU find lax enforcement OF law
666 quickly relieves Colds, Con-