The Searchlight. (Savannah, Ga.) 1906-19??, May 05, 1906, Image 4

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The Searchlight Published Every Saturday —by the— searchlighY PUBLISHING CO. To insure attention, all communica tions muSt be accompanied by the real name of the writer, not necessa rily for publication, but as a guaran tee of good faith. All communications should be plain ly addressed: Yhe Searchlight, Savan nah, (3a. will not be responsible for the views expressed by correspondents. The Searchlight will be delivered at one dollar for the campaign. HATES OF ADVERTISING MADE KNOWN ON APPLICATION. ■ ~t ■ - i .. G. B. WHATLEY, Editor and Publisher. A PARTISAN PRESS, Colonel G. Arthur Gordon in his speech herein reported at length hand ed to the reporters of both the Morn ing News and the Savannah Press, the report of the grand jury of Chat ham county, dated May 21, 1901, which appears at length in his speech, with the request that both newspapers pub lish it. i We append hereto the full report of Colonel Gordon’s speech as reported by the Morning News. Are we not justified ; n the claim that the press of Savannah does not give our side of the controversy? The speakers were Col. G. Arthur Gordon and Maj. Cann. Both gentle men made rousing speeches, making perhaps the most vigorous attacks up on the administration and the adminis tration's policies of any speakers dur ing the present campaign. Col. Gordon spoke first. He said it is a good rule for a business man to keep quiet. He had tried to adopt that rule and adhere to it since the first meeting of the People's League, but lie had been prevailed upon by the presi dent of the party to make a speech. He preferred to direct his energies along the line of the duty of the regis tration committee of which he is an active member. He said the spirit of this cause is the same that inspired the colonists to draw up the Declara tion of Independence; that the tyranny which now oppresses the ileopie is called bossism. Closing of Policy Shops. ■Colonel Gordon devoted much of his speech to an attack on Solicitor Gen eral W. W. Osborne, Gad D. Bryan, Jr., John J. Garrity and James Mc- Bride. He said the big gamblers prosper at the expense of the little ones, and said the big ones are treated gently when they are punished at all, •while the little one is made to pay heavily. He took the solicitor general to task for not originating prosecu tions against proprietors of gaming houses and policy shops, and declared the policy shops had been closed only because of the campaign of the oppo sition. He said they would open again if the administration crowd is not de feated. As an evidence of the power Col. Gordon attributed to Gad Bryan he quoted him as asserting recently: “If anybody undertakes to indict me or anybody connected with me I will kill him.” He said there is a public demand in Savannah for the enforcement of law. “A chaingang sentence would stop gamhling in twenty minutes, ” Col. Gordon asserted. He discussed the in dictment several months ago of Bryan and other gamblers and said but for the fact that there was one witness who was not before the grand jury there would have been no convictions as the other witnesses whose identity were known were spirited away. Col. Gordon, himself, accidently discover ed the one witness, who was on his vacation in Savannah, being a resi dent of Philadelphia. Col. Gordon was a member of the grand jury at the time. Strength of Opposition. He expressed confidence that the People’s League will be successful. “We are so strong we can’t be defeat ed by any desertions, or by any man or combination of men who may op pose us,” he said. He said his party has a large following who are sup posed to be allied with the Citizens’ Club. He replied to Hon. A. A. Law rence’s criticisms of him. The Machine and the Public Service, It has been said that the effect of machine government is to subordinate the public -welfare to private interest. The people of this community have had ample opportunity to test the Queries for Administration Forces, or the Citizens’ Bank. What has become of the investiga tion of the East Broad Street pave ment? What was a policeman’s uniform doing in a bar room on West Broad street with a gambling machine run ning and participating in the game on Friday last? With a city detective participating in a game of cards in a saloon on West Broad street and a policeman in uniform drinking at a counter on Sunday, the 22nd, can the lid be con sidered to be on; or has it blown off again? Does the city exchange belong to the people or the officials holding of fices therein? If not, why were the newsboys selling The Searchlight on 'Saturday driven from the building? Are they afraid of the truth. Did any hai’bormaster prior to Mc- Bride have an assistant? If not, why should he have one? How much time do the tax assess ors give for the money they receive? Is it not true that J. H. H. Osborne does the work? Were the tax assessors elected be cause of their ability and knowledge of the value of property, or because of their political pull? Have the Macon papers a reporter in Savannah to report our local news? Why should not the subscribers to the Evening Press and Morning News be able to get local news rather than have to subscribe to the Macon pa pers ? Are men who take money for their political null a class of people who should hold public offices and handle the taxpayers’ money? If a city the size of Macon, Ga„ considers it to the public interest to have a separate solicitor general for the city and county courts, why would it not he good for Savannah? truth of this statement, for they have lived for ihe past seven years under the complete domination of a gross political machine whose highest and sole purpose has been to obtain the spoils of office. Every element of ma chine rule obtains in Savannah today; a boss of the machine, a host of idle office holders, a contemptuous disre gard of lawful authority on the part of those 'n office and the protection of certain favored criminal classes by the party in power. It has manifested its pernicious in fluence most powerfully in the dete rioration in efficiency of the public ser vice. This is most especially true in the case of the police force. It has appointed as the head of that body a man whose sole qualification for the position is that he has been and is an active politician, a man whose capac ity to command is doubted and has never been tested, a man whose most arduous duty appears to be an avoid ance of the uniform of his corps and for the most part consists in drawing his salary. The moral and efficiency of the police force under his admin istration has steadily declined so much so that one of the Citizens’ Club’s own speakers has demanded his impeach ment for a notorious dereliction of duty. How can it be otherwise when the Superintendent himself has testi fied that he ordered the patrolmen not to leave their arms in the lockers at the barracks for the reason that they were frequently stolen. How can ic be otherwise when members of the force are furloughed to engage in ac tive political work or do so without leave of absence. How can it be oth erwise when appointment to this blanch of the public service is made as a rewa v d for political service ren dered the machine and not on account of the fitness of the individual to pioperly discharge his duties as a conservator of the peace? And finally how can it be otherwise when we con-' siaer that upon every occasion when the political tenure of the machine has been jeopardized, the police force has been unscrupulously used at elec tions to assault the voters of the op position and to intimidate the private citizen in the exercise of his right of suffrage. In other departments of the city’s service, we find an equally deplorable state of affairs. Everywhere the in terest of (he public is subordinated to the needs of the machine, which pays its debts to its political heelers in public offices which are bestowed If the office of solicitor general pays $15,000 per annum is this not an un necessary tax upon the people? Couid the office not be filled for $5,000 arid thus save SIO,OOO to the taxpayers? It looks like Stewart. This is in keeping with the Citizens’ Club; use a good man and then throw him down. If the Citizens’ Club throws Carson down is it not retribution for allow ing the use of his name? Will the Citizens’ Club inform the taxpayers how many additional places they have promised to heelers? It would not be fair to use all the in come in this way. If Enoch Hartley has a cinch on a sergeant’s place, what are they go ing to do with Woods and Sims? They appear to have done valuable political work. Lookout for plenty of work just before the primary. They must have more votes even if the taxpayers do pay for them. W,liy talk about a family tree? it looks like a whole orchard. If the administration forces insist that the lid is on, why is it that the gambling rooms are still in full blast, people being fleeced and their cases reaching the hands of attorneys? An swer this question. (Harris street, extending from Whit aker to Barnard, and the east side of Barnard, from Harris to Liberty, have been paved with shell. Were these two blocks paved because the heavy traffic demanded it, or because Garfunkel lives on the northeast cor ner of Harris and Barnard? Was any body assessed for this paving? We want to put the prosecuting authorities on notice that Doc Ro senthal conducts a gambling room at 410* West Broad street. This is the headquarters of the First District Citizens.’ Club, of which John J. Gar rity is president. _ - ■ without regard to the character or fitness of the appointee. It has final ly come to the point, that pernicious factional activity Irrespective of merit is the sole criterion for appointment to the public service. Turn on the Search light and let the People See lor Themselves. Two high officials of the city, the harbor master and the head of the scavenger department,are self-confess ed felons. They were caught red handed in the act of fraudulent nat uralization of aliens, and have plead guilty. And yet in a community, which is supposed to be civilized, they srill retain their offices of prof it and trust. It is a shameless and degrading exhibition and the admin istration that permits it ought not to be tolerated by a self-respecting public. The weak and insufficient plea advanced by Alderman Oliver has fooled nobody. It has never been difficult for the administration to re move an office holder when they de sired; they have sometimes gone the length of abolishing the office and cre ating another under a different name with the same duties. One of two things is true —the mayor and alder men have not got the moral courage to perform their plain duty, or else they are recklessly indifferent to pub lic sentiment and decency. Are the voters of Chatham county going to stand for this? If a crime clearly involving moral turpitude such as this is permitted to stain the escutcheon of public honor, then indeed it is high time to remove the trust from the hands in which it now reposes. The mayor and aldermen must be under some strange hypnotic spell. When will they awake? These are the cold hard facts in the matter. Tlie grand jury of the United States court made the following present ment: “May it please your Honor; “It has been the duty of this grand jury to examine a great number of witnesses in the matter of naturaliza tion in Chatham county, and it has been shocked at the condition of af fairs presented, striking as it does at the very root of American citizen ship. “We would respectfully call the at tention of the courts and their officers in whose province it is to pass on these matters, to the necessity for a closer scrutiny in admitting aliens, and a more careful examination of the vouchers or witnesses therefor, and thus avoid the breaking down of one of the bulwarks of this country. CHARLES ELLIS, Foreman of Grand Jury. Savannah, Ga., March 14, 1906.” John J. Garrity was indicted March 14, 1906, for aiding and abetting the fraudulent naturalization of Peter Ka kenas, Anastosius Tassopulos, Christ Mastroganopulos, George Alexander. Chris Handrinos, James Conida, and also for making a false oath and affi davit in each case. There were six indictments in all, one in each case. On April 3, 1906, Garrity plead guilty to the charge of aiding and abetting the fraudulent naturalization of each of the parties named, and the Dis trict Attorney nolle prossed the charge of making a false oath and affidavit in each ease. If Garrity aided and abet ted the fraudulent naturalization and confessed, the other charge that he made a false oatth and affidavit were necessarily true because in each case the oath and affidavit on which the naturalization was procured is signed in his hand. James Mcßride was indicted March 14, 1906, for making a false oath and affidavit and for aiding and abetting the fraudulent naturalization of John Rajola and Pero Alamaras; plead guilty oil April 3rd, 1906, to the charge of aiding and abetting the fraudulent naturalization of these parties. As in the indictments against Garrity, the charge that he made a false oath and affidavit in each case is necessarily true because the affi davit which was the foundation of the naturalization was signed in Mc- Bride’s hand. Mcßride was also indicted and plead guilty to aiding and abetting the fraudulent naturalization of Peter Jamicos, George Astarita, Antonio Ma nos, John G. Gorgopulos, Chris Mont sopoulo. This makes seven indict ments to which Mcßride plead guilty. The following worthies #ave been indicted, but not yet tried: N. K. Pap padeas, Paul H. Broome, L. K. Pap padeas, G. P. Capitan, George Chris topher, James A. Woods, B. O. Rog ors. Mcßride and Garrity were each sen tenced to pay a fine of one thousand dollars and costs, and serve a number of years in federal prison, but the latter part of the sentence was sus pended during good behavior. The facts are clear and undisputed. The duty of the administration is equally clear. But they will not act, they do not dare to act. John Garri ty and James Mcßride are a larger political power in this town than the twelve aldermen and the mayor. And they know it. Hence the question the voters must ask themselves is, shall we be dominated by this element? Without regard to whom their success ors will be, this question ought to be easily solved by the voters. One more thought; all of these facts appeared in the public journals of the city. But not one word of edi torial criticism or condemnation. Such an atrocious assault upon the elective franchise couid not have occurred in another city in the American Union without a stinging rebuke from the local press. But here we are political ly atrophied. MATTER NOW UP TO JEROME. New York April Grand Jury Failed to Act on Insurance bcandals. The New York grand jury for Apul upon the completion of its term Mon day, returned a presentment to Re corder Gross, in which it declared that it had failed to investigate political contributions by insurance officials be cause District Attorney Jerome had ad vised the jury not to do so. The jury stated that it had asked Mr. Jerome for evidence, and that he had opposed action because he desired first to se cure an opinion from the appellate di vision of the supreme court on the auestion of larceny. BEARS CREATE PANDEMONIUM. Sensational and Record Breaking Selling on New York Exchange. Not since the Northern Pacific pan ic of May 9, 1901, has there been such a spectacular decline in prices on the stock exchange as there was at New York Wednesday. Heavy selling, al most regardless of the prices offered, began with the opening of the mar ket and from that time until near the close the tone generally was weak. The day’s trading was extremely heavy, rising to the total of 2,445,000 shares. Nearly 700,000 shares of stock changed hands in the first hour CROP FIGURING IS GUESS WORK According to Opinions Expressed by Prominent Cotton Man* DENOUNCE PRESENT PLAN Summary of Proceedings of the Inter national Convention Held in Washington. t After denouncing the government crop reports and more particularly th® reports of the department of agri culture aud passing a resolution strongly advocating that the statisti cal year should run from August 1 to August 1 instead of from Septem ber to September 1, the International cotton conference adjourned at Wash ington Wednesday to reassemble next year should it be deemed advisable by the various organizations to do so. It was found that the delegates were not clothed with sufficient au thority to effect a permanent organiza tion. When The subject of governmental crop reports came up, President Mac- Coil spoke in commendation of the census bureau work, but felt thaf some radical changes in the methods of the agricultural department should be Numerous delegates strong ly condemned them. D. A. Tompkini of North Carolina characterized them as “a complicated system of guess ing,” while another southern grower denounced them as “a speculative football.’’ Various remedies were suggested, but as no delegates seemed able to agree on a satisfactory plan the whole subject was laid on the table. President Mac Coll expressed the hope that henceforth there will be a closer bond of union “between the north and south and between Amer ica and Europe In all that pertains to cotton growing and manufacturing.” Another topic of discussion was the marketing of the product, which em braced the questions of warehousing, stability of price and relations be tween growers and manufacturers. A. E. Calvin, president of the Farm ers’ Educational and Co-Operative Union, declared that it long had been the dream of the cotton grower to abolish all intermediate agents who levy toll unnecessarily on the prod uct on its journey from the field to the factory. The grower, he said, is the constant and persistent foe of alt forms and methods of cotton gamb ling. He declared that the south was so completely able to supply the world with cotton that, wdth a proper under standing with the manufacturers, there would he no necessity for con ducting experiments in Africa and elsewhere. Direct relations between the growlers and manufacturers was strongly urged. In the discussion which followed the proposition was laid down by the spinners and manufacturers that if the farmers and business interests of the south will build warehouses, store cotton, finance it and put the product ir charge of expert cotton men to handle it and practically be the me dium of doing the selling, they will do business on that basis. The report of the committee on bal ing, ginning and handling of Amer ican cotton was received and adopted unanimously. The report recommend ed the following: “1. That all bales be made of stan dard dimensions. “2. That light, weight new burlaps be used for bagging, or if conditions justify, that cotton canvas be used. “3. That 10 ties be used on all bales, with the Egyptian style of buckles preferred. “4. That all cotton should h» bought an! sold net weight. “5. That a committee be appoint ed whose duty it shall be to have cot ton baled as above and to submit the same for practical test to consum ers.” GOOD POWDER AND LEAD WASTED. Woman Shoots Husband Who fiendishly Assaulted Own Oauqhter. George Fogle of Brooklyn Heights, Md., returned to his- home Monday night after he had been drinking, and, entering a room where his wife and 12-year-old daughter were in bed, drew a revolver and announced that he would shoot upon being interfered with. Fogle then threvv his wife to the floor and assaulted his daughter. Mrs. Fogle secured the revolver and fired five shots at her husband, killing him instantly.