Evening star., 1934-05-15
REGISTERS STRONG
PROTEST AGAINST
GAMBLING BILL
EmpIoye of "Honest Rack
eteer" Appears Before
House Group.
COLORED MAN ASSERTS
HE WOULD LOSE JOB
Declares Employer Pays $40 a
Month to Policeman
on Beat.

Richard Green, a fashionably
dressed colored man, who admitted
he worked for one of Washington's S
few honest number racketeers," ap-
peared voluntarily before the Judi
ciary Subcommittee of the House Dis
trict Committee today and registered
vehement protest against a bill to
tighten the Districts gambling laws.
He said the measure, which is
aimed particularly at the numbers
game, would force him out of a job.
Green gave the subcommittee an
''inslde story" of the numbers racket
In Washington and declared that,
contrary to popular belief, the hon.
est operators, of whom there are few,
boss" had lost $4,000 in the last two
months, although he had been able
prior to that time to amass a small
fortune Of about $4,000.
Takes in S4OO Daily.
Green said his boss" took in about
$400 a day. but out of this he had
an overhead which consisted of the
payment of $40 a month to the
policemen on the beat for protection,
the salary OF an office force, two girls
and a runner. in addition to rent and
incidentals. The runner, he declared,
gets 80 cents on every dollar he COL
lects.
Lieut.. George M. Little, head of the
Police Department gambling squad,
who testified earlier, was aroused by
Green's charges and tried vainly to
get him to name the policeman to
whom the protection money was paid.
The witness, however, refused to give
him any information, but said he was
certain a payment was made monthly
for police protection.
Garnett Asks Law.
Green declared that his boss was
an honest numbers operator He de-
clared however. that many others IN
a similar business were dishonest and
'chiSeled in on the winnings of those
who play the numbers game whenever
they we're hit hard" Pleas for ap-
proval of the bill were made by Leslie
C. Garnett, United States attorney for
the District, and Wilbur La Roe, jr.,
chairman of the Civic Affairs Com
mittee of the Washington Federation
of Churches
Either license gambling or give us
weapons to break it up" Garnett told
the subcommittee.
The bill passed the Senate in March
and has since been languishing in the
House judiciary subcommittee.
Condemn Numbers Game.
Both Garnett and La Roe pictured
to the subcommittee the widespread
extent of gambling in the District,
and especially condemned the num-
bers game, which they declared is
being played by school children, Gov
ernment employees and workers in
other classes who are least able to
stand the loss.
If we can get this law through" :"
Garnett said, I'VE have some hope Of
breaking UP this numbers game. the
most vicious form of gambling in the
District, which is INDUCED in by peo-
pie least able to afford it."
La Roe also described the numbers
game as "vicious" and declared he
had been told of cases of persons on
the emergency relief roles and other
poor and needy persons as well
as school children were playing this
game. He said he had been in
formed that runners for the numbers
operators had shown up at Western
High School during recess periods
to take money from pupils which
parents had given them for the pur-
chase of supplies. He said he knew
a colored washwoman so poor she is
forced to walk to and from work
who invests about 80 cents day in
the numbers game.
Difficulties Explained.
Lieut.. Little explained the difficult
ties under existing law of attempt
ing to break up the gambling evil
and stressed the Importance of a pro-
vision in the bill making possession
of gaming devices pri1na facie evi-
dence of guilt.
He cited the case of two police Off
GERS who trailed a coupe occupied
Wy IWO lllCII VIII upOl UtlIlS OlSCON-
cred they were being followed threw
out of the car a bag containing
money and numbers slips. The men
were captured, he said, but the police
were unable to prefer charges against
them.
Lieut.. Little also described some OF
the gambling houses recently raideo
by police and exhibited to the sub
committee a number of photographs
taken in these places showing the
barred doors and other obstacles that
raiding parties must overcome. He
referred particularly to a so-called
news company recently raided which
was found to be providing race track
information to 96 bookmakers in
Washington.
Representative Palmisano, Demo-
crat, of Maryland, chairman of the
subcommittee, announced at the con-
clusion of the hearing that he in
tended to make further study of the
bill before filing report with the full