Evening star., 1925-05-11
Gordon Charges RevoItingIy
LeWd Literature Is Sold
to Children.
POLICE CONDUCT QUIET
INQUIRY FOR 2 WEEKS
Dealers First Warned Have For
feited Right to Leniency,
Prosecutor Says.

Warrants for the arrest of two
newsdealers. charging them with vio-
lating the District code which pro-
hibits the sale of obscene or indecent
literature, which was displayed in
public places under the guise of art"
have been asked by Assistant District
Attorney Ralph Given and will be
issued late this afternoon.
At the same time Mr. Given served
notice on every newsdealer in Wash
ington that the United States prose-
cutor's office was through with warn
ing them against offering for sale or
even displaying questionable maga-
zines, pictures and books, that every
police precinct in the city would be
ordered to begin a sweeping search
for indecent literature and pictures
and that each dealer would be held
strictly accountable to the law
Gordon Started Probe.
This action resulted today from Il
quiet and carefully planned investi-
cation Mr.. Given has been conducting
under the authority of District Attor-
ney Peyton c.. Gordon. which has re-
vealed astounding conditions through
out the city, whereby newsdealers
are charged with offering the most re-
voting sort of literature and pictures
to high school students, both boys and
girls, and to young men and women in
every part of the city.
Several weeks ago Mr.. Given asked
the captain of every police precinct to
order their men to visit newsstands
and bookstores on their beats, ascer-
tain the kind of literature that was
being sold or displayed by them and
give samples of questionable publica-
tions to the District Attorneys office.
The result was an accumulation of
nearly so ma gaines which were re-
garded as ribald and flagrantly indie
cent.
Dealers Given Warning.
Mr.. Given first warned the dealers
that they were violating the District
! code which ferbids any one Selling,
offering for sale or even having in
their possession" any Indecent, OBJ
| scene or lewd" books, pamphlets or
pictures. The result was that scores
promptly withdrew the Objectionable
articles from sale and many destroy
ed them. further Investigation, how
ever, showed that some had again
begun to display the forbidden litera-
ture.
Two news dealers who had been per-
sonally warned by the district attor-
ney's Office were found to be among
this number. and Mr.. Given, without
further notice, asked this morning
that the warrants be issued for them.
The warrants, he declared, would be
served late today, and the accused
would be brought to speedy trial, so
that he would have a basis for in
augurating a sweeping campaign to
rid Washington of the obscene liter
of1 Writ inI, of
stands and bookstores are cluttered.
No further warnings will be issued.
Mr. Given said. II am tired of being
lenient,' he added THE law holds
every dealer responsible for the char
ater of literature he offers for sale,
and so shall /. The curse of this
disgraceful situation is that many of
these indecent papers are being pur-
chased by the boys and girls in our
high schools. 1t is up to the news
dealers to read the magazines they in
tend to sell. and those who are found
violating the law will be prosecuted
mercilessly."
Pictures Labeled Art.
Not only has Mr.. Given found much
of the reading matter in magazines to
be beyond the pale of decency, but
there are half a dozen or more So
called art" publications which openly
display lascivious pictures of nude
women under the guise of "art."
Many of them are nothing more than
revolving photographs: some few are
reproductions of famous paintings.
but so coupled with cheapness and
suggestive literature that even the
become ribald.
They are art in the Corcoran Gal
lery of Art, yes" said Mr.. Given.
But when included in these maga-
zines and displayed in store windows
to attract the trade of youths, girls
and boys alike, for 10 and 25 cents a
copy, they cease to be art" Mr..
Given showed several samples of the
kind of "art" to which he referred,
and declared he would base his
prosecution on them first and II he
succeeds in obtaining convictions he
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