NAWSA Subject File California Civic League FACTS About The California Redlight Abatement Law. The Redlight Abatement law makes it possible for the citizen to proceed directly against disreputable places, and compel their abatement as nuisances. Method. 1. It declares houses of prostitution and assignation to be nuisances and holds responsible both the proprietor of the house and the owner of the building. 2. It enables any citizen to bring suit against such proprietor and owner for maintaining a public nuisance. 3. If the nuisance be proved, the building must be closed for all purposes for one year, unless the owner furnish a bond that the nuisance shall be abated. Advantages. Any citizen can protect his own neighborhood. It also directly attacks commercialized vice, which is a well organized business, with markets, agents, demand and supply, and enormous profits. With a diminishing market, every phase of prostitution--procuring of girls, luring of boys, street walking, etc.--will be lessened. Objections Answered. "Would it work?" It has proved elsewhere (in nine States and District of Columbia), the best weapon ever devised against the social evil. "Is not segregation necessary?" Chiefs of Police and all Vice Commissions agree in saying that segregation does not segregate, and declare that but a fraction of the number of prostitutes are in any so-called restricted district. "Can you make people good by law?" This is not an attempt to make people good, but to prevent men from making money out of others' wrongdoing. "Would not property owners be blackmailed?" Not a single case of blackmail has resulted from such Abatement laws in other States. Property owners are amply protected. "What would become of the prostitutes?" Whatever becomes of them their condition can be no worse than at present. Innocent little girls of today, doomed to be prostitutes tomorrow unless the trade be checked, are more entitled to consideration. "Would not crimes against women increase?" Not the experience of any State where the Abatement law is in force. State prison records of Iowa show decrease. Who Oppose the Law? Everybody who makes money our of prostitution -- those directly connected with it, those who rent property for it, and those who sell liquor to its patrons. In practical opposition are the moral people who are uninformed or misinformed. What You Can Do. Vote for the law November 3. Secure other favorable votes. Vote YES The Redlight Abatement law will be NO. 4 on the ballot, and Designated ABATEMENT OF NUISANCES. To vote for this bill stamp a cross in the square after the word YES. This leaflet can be had free of charge by addressing the Campaign Committee for the Redlight Abatement Bill, Room 755, Monadnock Bldg., San Francisco, Cal. Syllabus III. -- List of Books Prepared by Martha Ijans, A. B. California Civic League 220 Post Street, San Francisco Committee on Education Mrs. Mary Roberts Coolidge, Ph. D., Chairman Dwight Way End, Berkeley, California Telephone Berkeley 1460 General List of Books on Civics and Politics The following list is arranged in groups, the first being elementary and the others successively more difficult. The list does not by any means cover all the good books available, but each Civic Center should have as many of these, or of others in the same general field, as it can possibly afford. In many cases the local libraries will be able to supply the more important ones. Most of these books cost from one dollar to one dollar and a half, postpaid, and the publishers have been given in order that there may be no difficulty in obtaining them. Other lists on specific topics will be issued in connection with forthcoming outlines, as the Centers may require. A large amount of documentary and illustrative material, such as maps, census reports, reports of local and state officers, the state constitution, city charters, etc., may be obtained without cost from public officials and public officers. I. Garner, J. W. -- Government in the United States. American Book Company, 1911. Dunn, A. W. -- The Ship of State and Those at the Helm. Boston, Heath. Flickinger -- Civil Government as developed in the United States. Boston, 1901. II. Ashley, R. L., -- American Government. N. Y. Macmillan, 1910. Guitteau, W. B. -- Government and Politics in the United States. Boston & N. Y. Houghton, Mifflin, 1911. Dole, C. F. -- The Spirit of Democracy. N. Y. Crowell, 1906. Dunn, A. W. -- The Community and the Citizen. Boston, Heath. Jenks, Jeremiah. -- Principles of Politics. N. Y. Columbia University Press, 1909 III. Allen, W. H. -- Woman's Part in Government whether she votes or not. N. Y. Dodd, Mead and Co., 1911. Allen, W. H. -- Efficient Democracy. N. Y. 1910. Fairlie, J. A. -- The National Administration of the United States of America. N. Y. Macmillan. Hadley, A. T. -- The Standards of Public Morality. N. Y. Macmillan, 1908. Merriam, Charles. -- Primary Elections. Chicago University Press, 1911. Shaler, N. S. -- Citizenship: a Study of the Individual and the Government. N. Y. A. S. Barnes & Co. White, W. A. -- The Old Order Changeth. N. Y. MacMillan, 1910. IV. Bryce, James. -- American Commonwealth. N. Y Macmillan. Hindrances to Good Citizenship. Yale University Press. Clarke, F. A. -- Outlines of Civics, to be used as supplement to Bryce. N. Y. Macmillan. Fiske, John. -- American Government and Political Ideas. N. Y. 1898. Roosevelt, T. R. -- American Ideals. N. Y. Putnam's. 1903. Potter, (Bishop) H. C. -- The Citizen and His Relation to the Industrial Situation. N. Y. Scribner's. 1903. Jordan, D. S. -- Imperial Democracy. N. Y. Appleton. 1901. Ross, Edward A. -- Sin and Society (sins of commercialism). Boston, Houghton, Mifflin. V. Books relating to California: Davis, W. J. -- History of Political Conventions. (Out of print but found in most of the larger libraries). Hichborn, Franklin. -- Story of the California Legislature. Jas H. Barry, San Francisco. 2 Vols. 1909 and 1911. California Blue Book, published by the Secretary of State. New edition, 1912. Syllabus VII––Causes of the Social Evil. October, 1912. California Civic League 220 Post Street. San Francisco Committee on Education Mrs. Mary Roberts Coolidge, Ph. D., Chairman Dwight Way End, Berkeley, California Telephone Berkeley 1460 THE CAUSES AND CONDITIONS OF SOCIAL EVIL. The causes of vice are so various and so complex that only the more important can be mentioned here; as outlined below they are intended as a guide to reading and accurate information and thus to give the citizen a broadly intelligent view of the preventive and remedial measures which should be the object of such study. The references are to books listed on Syllabus VI and chiefly to Addams' "New Conscience and an Ancient Evil," Janney's "White Slave Traffic," the report of the Chicago Vice Commission and volume XV of the Federal report on "Women and Child Wage Earners," which describes the relation between occupation, criminality, and immorality. Industrial Causes: About 60 per cent of all girls in the United States between sixteen and twenty are engaged in gainful occupations; but of those who go wrong more than half are in domestic and personal service or come from homes. Immorality is therefore not so much the result of wage-earning as of deeper conditions particularly of poverty which "decides the girl's companionships, her amusements, her ability to gratify her natural and reasonable tastes, her very capacity for resistance to temptation. Its physical effects open the way to moral dangers. It means over crowding and bad sanitary conditions, and under-nutrition or mal-nutrition, and insufficient and unsuitable clothing." Long hours, wages too low to maintain a decent standard of living, lack of comforts and absence of innocent recreation, weaken moral resistance and create an abnormal state in the young; they crave something to divert them from the weariness of their lives. At the same time they live in sight of extravagant luxury and see other women earning high wages by immorality. Vice as a means of livelihood is often the result of dull seasons and unemployment. Immigrant girls are especially in danger because they must accept the lowest wages and because of ignorance and loneliness. Moral Causes Among Girls: Ignorance, especially of country girls who may become the victims of procurers; lack of training in modesty, self-protection and self control combined with the natural desire to marry; indolence and love of luxury in the self-indulgent type. Some girls are unmoral rather than immoral; others, if not quite feeble-minded, are mentally below par and therefore easily misled. Many, after having been once deceived through their affections, are too discouraged or helpless or inefficient to recover themselves, and become professionals of necessity. Moral Causes Among Boys: The double standard or morality. Boys are very early imbued with the idea that self-indulgence is necessary to health and manliness; and, since low wages and prolonged education prevent early marriages for men, that a certain number of women must be sacrificed. Constant sex suggestion reaches them through the vulgar stories of older men and through cheap theaters, pictures and obscene literature. Stimulation by liquor is a precipitating cause and an accompaniment of vice. "The Social Evil is more man's problem than woman's." Note: This syllabus will be followed by once on "Commercialized Vice" and the by two on prevention and remedy. COPYRIGHT BY M. R. COOLIDGE, 1912 51 Syllabus IX - Social Evil. December, 1912. California Civic League 220 Post Street, San Francisco Committee on Education PREVENTION AND REMEDY Regulation (municipal reglementation) which generally involves segregation, has been the chief remedy for the evils of prostitution in Continental Europe since the epidemics of venereal disease in the seventeenth century, but it has been tried in the United States in only a few cities. It avows an intention of preventing the degradation of youth and of rescuing women from vice, but it lays emphasis chiefly on the checking of disease. These modern sanitary aims as advocated by physicians conflict with the suppression of prostitution as a trade as attempted by the police, usually under extra-legal authority. The objection to regulation and segregation are principally: (1) it makes vice appear necessary and relatively safe; (2) since clandestine vice cannot be regulated the police are likely to tolerate and encourage houses of ill-fame in order to control the women; it involves municipal and often state recognition if not sanction of vice (compare lotteries); on moral grounds the idea "that the public authorities should undertake the inspection of houses of ill-fame with a view of rendering the practice of vice innocuous to those who engage in it," is offensive; it is evident from the experience of Paris, Berlin and other cities that regulation is not even an adequate remedy for the physical evils of prostitution because it never reaches more than a very small proportion of the women engaged (in Berlin only 5,000 out of 40,000-50,000 and in Paris even less) and does not reach the male purveyors of disease at all. In Continental countries where regulation has been in vogue for nearly a century, there is rapidly-growing opinion that it does not meet either the sanitary or moral requirements of modern society. Practicable Measures: There is substantial agreement in both Europe and America, that certain measures are practicable and desirable both on moral and sanitary grounds. Chief among these are: suppression of solicitation and of advertising by conspicuous signs; disassociation of vice from legitimate recreations; suppression of liquor-selling in houses of ill-fame, dance-halls, etc.; protection of minors from allurement, enslavement, drinking, gambling; institutional control of incorrigible minors; training of girls in self-support and self-protection; education of boys in self-control. Sanitary measures--practicable if the public demands them: (1) suppression of salacious advertising and of quacks who live on mal-treatment of venereal diseases; (2) hospitals and clinics for proper and inexpensive treatment of such diseases without unnecessary publicity and without being connected with penal institutions; (3) certificate of health prior to marriage; (4) reporting of all venereal diseases to health authorities. Commercialized vice must be attacked at its source--by publicity and punishment for all those who profit by it--by taxation upon rentals of all property used for such purposes; by injunction and abatement (nuisance) laws; by compulsory and conspicuous acknowledgement of ownership of houses of ill-fame in order to place responsibility. The effective elimination of the social evil to an ever-smaller number of relatively vicious persons can only be attained by an age-long and unremitting education as to its tragic significance, among all classes and both sexes. This campaign is now beginning in a world-wide movement for the protection and education of minors. No laws or extra-legal police regulations can be properly enforced so long as a majority of men believe in the practice of vice; nor, on the other hand, so long as any large number of citizens think it just to "regulate" women while allowing men to spread contagious diseases; for there is inevitably the comparison with the quarantine of other contagious diseases. Public acquiescence and public indifference are at the root of the problem. COPYRIGHT BY M. R. COOLIDGE, 1912 51 Syllabus X- California Legislature. December, 1912. California Civic League 220 Post Street. San Francisco Prepared for the Committee on Education by Franklin Hichborn THE CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE-Organization and Control. There is a general impression that the Legislature has been incompetent if not hopelessly corrupt; this may have been true of some sessions but not of the Legislatures of 1909 and 1911. Works Required: The Legislature is called upon to do something more than make laws. Must provide for maintenance of State during coming two years, which involved expenditure of twenty million dollars or more; must provide for organization and maintenance of State institutions for dependent, defective and delinquent classes, as well as for state schools; and is called upon to deal with important technical problems in banking. taxation insurance, transportation, etc. Compensation and Time: A private corporation with work of same volume and importance would employ experts at five to ten thousand a year and give them months if not years time; the State , up to 1909, paid its legislators $8 a day for sixty days and no more for extra time often required. The Public set its legislators an impossible task, left them to do it or not do it, taking no further interest. Private Interests: Where public neglected, private interests, seeking special privileges, took charge. Railroad corporations, race-track gamblers, saloon interests, etc.., became machine in control. Members who opposed machine could not get bills passed, were opposed for re-election; members who worked with machines were returned to Legislature, given patronage, and positions for selves and friends. Caucus Organization: Real line of division in Legislature between machine and anti-machine members, Republicans and Democrats on each side. Through Party Caucus, minority could organize both houses, distribute patronage and exclude anti-machine members. Patronage: Majority of each House named attaches, each member naming his proportion. Result was incompetent and faithless attaches, increasing and unnecessary expenditures. The daily patronage of the two houses for the last decade was: Year Assembly Senate 1901 $580 $610 1903 900 800 1905 1,135 857 1907 1,350 985 1909 500 500 In 1908 constitutional amendment limited patronage to $500 a day for each House; work has since been done even better than formerly. Committee Organization: Control of Legislative Committees means control of Legislature. At 1909 session majority of members anti-machine but machine's control of committees prevented enactment of anti-machine measures. Each branch of machine controlled those committees which on corporations and common carriers; racetrack gamblers controlled committees on public morals, etc. San Francisco Delegation: For 20 years San Francisco named practically one-fourth of both houses; not representative f State, not even of City. For example: the nine S.F. Senators voted against submitting to the people amendment giving free text-books but San Francisco cast 53, 635 votes for free text-books and only 27,459 against. S.F. Delegation have been main supporters of racetrack gambling but the vote of the City was 43,891 against racetrack gambling and only 38,560 for it. Thus entire State is interested in political conditions of San Francisco. The Way Out: Personnel of Legislature steadily getting better. Of twenty senators who made best anti-machine records in 1909 twelve will sit in session of 1913 and another elected to Congress. Of twenty with worst records from anti-machine standpoint, only one will sit in session of 1913. Public must keep track records of individual members. Divided session makes supervision easier than formerly. With awakened public interests, abuses and misrepresentation of former Legislatures will be unknown. COPYRIGHT, FRANKLIN HIGHBORN, 1912 51 Leaflet No. 1 ABATEMENT AND INJUNCTION LAW. CALIFORNIA CIVIC LEAGUE 220 POST STREET SAN FRANCISCO History of Measure: Introduced in the Senate as S. B. 320 by Honorable Edwin E. Grant, of the Nineteenth Senatorial District, San Francisco, January 16, 1913. Adopted March 28, by a vote of 29 to 11, as follows: For the bill--Senators Anderson, Avey, Benson, Birdsall, Breed, Brown, Butler, Caminetti, Campbell, Carr, Cogswell, Curtin, Flint, Gates, Gerdes, Grant, Hewitt, Jones, Kehoe, Larkins, Lyon, Mott, Owens, Rush, Sanford, Shanahan, Strobridge, Thompson and Tyrell. Against the bill--Senators Beban, Boynton, Bryant, Cartwright, Cassidy, Cohn, Finn, Hans, Julliard, Regan and Wright. Introduced in the Assembly as A. B. 353, by Honorable L. D. Bohnett of the Forty-Fourth Assembly District, San Jose, Jan. 16, 1913. Adopted March 20, by a vote of 62 to 17, as follows: For the bill--Assemblymen Alexander, Ambrose, Beck, Benedict, Bloodgood, Bohnett, Bowman, Bradford, Brown, Byrnes, Cary, Chandler, Clark, Wm. C. Clarke, James F. Cram, Dower, Ellis, Emons, Farwell, Ferguson, Finnegan, Fish, Fitzgerald, Gabbert, Gates, Gelder, Green Griffin, Guiberson, Guill, Hayes, Hinkle, Inman, Johnson, George H. Johnson, T. D. Johnstone, F. E. Judson, Kingsley, Kuck, Libby, Moorhouse, Morgenstern, Mouser, Nelson, Palmer, Peairs, Polsley, Roberts, Scott, Shartel, Shearer, Simpson, Slater, Smith, Strine, Stuckenbruck, Tulloch, Wall, Weisel, Weldon, Wyllie and Speaker Young. Against the bill--Assemblymen Bagby, Bush, Canepa, Collins, Ford, Killingsworth, McCarthy, McDonald, Murray, Nolan, Richardson, Ryan, Schmitt, Shannon, Sutherland, Walsh and White. Approved by Hiram W. Johnson, April 6; to the effect on August 10, 1913. The law may be suspended by the filing, before that date, of a Referendum Petition signed by 19,283 of the qualified voters of the State. The Referendum may be voted upon either at a special election called by the Governor, or at the next general election, on November 3,1913. Text of the Measure: Chapter 17 of the Statutes of 1913. AN ACT Declaring all Buildings and Places Nuisances Wherein or Upon Which Acts of Lewdness, Assignation or Prostitution are Held or Occur or Which Are Used for Such Purposes, and Providing for the Abatement and Prevention of Such Nuisances by Injunction and Otherwise. The people of the State of California do enact as follows: Section 1. The term "person" as used in this act shall be deemed and held to mean and include individuals, corporations, associations, partnerships, trustees, lessees, agents and assignees. The term "building" as used in this act shall be deemed and held to mean and include so much of any building or structure of any kind as is or may be entered through the same outside entrance. Sec. 2. Every building or place used for the purpose of lewdness, assignation or prostitution and every building or place wherein or upon which acts of lewdness, assignation or prostitution are held or occur, is a nuisance which shall be enjoined, abated and prevented as hereinafter provided, whether the same be a public or private nuisance. Sec. 3. Whenever there is reason to believe that such nuisance is kept, maintained or exists in any county or city and county, the district attorney of said county or city and county, in the name of the people of the State of California, (must,) or any citizen of the state resident within said county or city and county, in his own name may, maintain an action in equity to abate and prevent such nuisance and to perpetually enjoin the person or persons conducting or maintaining the same, and the owner, lessee or agent of the building, or place, in or upon which such nuisance exists, from directly or indirectly maintaining or permitting such nuisance. Sec. 4. The complaint in such action must be verified unless filed by the district attorney. Whenever the existence of such nuisance is shown in such action to the satisfaction of the court or judge thereof, either by verified complaint or affidavit, the court or judge shall allow a temporary writ of injunction to abate and prevent the continuance or recurrence of such nuisance. Sec. 5. The action when brought shall have precedence over all other actions, excepting criminal proceedings, election contests and hearings on injunctions, and in such action evidence of the general reputation of the place shall be admissible for the purpose of proving the existence of said nuisance. If the complaint is filed by a citizen, it shall not be dismissed by the plaintiff or for want of prosecution except upon a sworn statement made by the complainant and his attorney, setting forth the reasons why the action should be dismissed, and the dismissal ordered by the court. In case of failure to prosecute any such action with reasonable diligence, or at the request of the plaintiff, the court, in its discretion, may substitute any such citizen consenting thereto for such plaintiff. If the action is brought by a citizen and the court finds there was no reasonable ground or cause for said action, the costs shall be taxed against such citizen. Sec. 6. Any violation or disobedience of either any injunction or order expressly provided for by this act shall be punished as contempt of court by a fine of not less than two hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail for not less than one month nor more than six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment. Sec. 7. If the existence of the nuisance be established in an action as provided herein, an order of abatement shall be entered as a part of the judgment in the case, which order shall direct the removal from the building or place of all fixtures, musical instruments and movable property used in conducting, maintaining, aiding or abetting the nuisance, and shall direct the sale thereof in the manner provided for the sale of chattels under execution, and the effectual closing of the building or place against its use for any purpose, and so keeping it closed for a period of one year, unless sooner released, as hereinafter provided. While such order remains in effect as to closing, such building or place shall be and remain in the custody of the court. For removing and selling the movable property, the officer shall be entitled to charge and receive the same fees as he would for levying upon and selling like property on execution, and for closing the premises and keeping them closed, a reasonable sum shall be allowed by the court. Sec. 8. The proceeds of the sale of the property, as provided in the preceding section, shall be applied as follows: 1st. To the fees and costs of such removal and sale; 2nd. To the allowances and costs of so closing and keeping closed such building or place; 3rd. To the payment of plaintiff's costs in such action; 4th. The balance, if any, shall be paid to the owner of the property so sold. If the proceeds of such sale do not fully discharge all such costs, fees and allowances, the said building and place shall then also be sold under execution issued upon the order of the court or judge and the proceeds of such sale applied in like manner. Sec. 9. If the owner of the building or place has not been guilty of any contempt of court in the proceedings, and appears and pays all costs, fees and allowances which are a lien on the building or place and files a bond (in the full value of the property, to be ascertained by the court,) with sureties, to be approved by the (court or judge,) conditioned that he will immediately abate any such nuisance that may exist at such building or place and prevent the same from being established or kept thereat within a period of one year thereafter, the court, or judge thereof, may, if satisfied of his good faith, order the premises (,) closed under the order of abatement, to be delivered to said owner, and said order of abatement canceled so far as the same may relate to said property. The release of the property under the provisions of this section shall not release it from any judgment, lien, penalty or liability to which it may be subject by law. Sec. 10. Whenever the owner of a building or place upon which the act or acts constituting the contempt shall have been committed, or of any interest therein has been guilty of a contempt of court and fined therefor in any proceedings under this act, such fine shall be a lien upon such building and place to the extent of the interest of such person therein enforcible and collectible by execution issued by the order of the court. Sec. 11. All acts and parts of acts in conflict with the provision of this act are hereby repealed; provided, that nothing herein shall be construed as repealing any law of the suppression of lewdness (,) assignation or prostitution. Blackface type calls attention to these facts: Property not used for purposes of prostitution is not endangered. The complainant must be a responsible person, for he must make a sworn statement and be liable for the costs if he loses his case. The proceedings are summary. No property is sold except for the costs of suit. Issued by the committee on the Abatement and Injunction Law. ELINOR PRATT LEWANDOWSKI, Chairman. JULIA GEORGE, secretary. J. H. B. CO. STAR PRESS Leaflet No. 2 California Civic League 220 Post Street San Francisco ABATEMENT AND INJUNCTION LAW (Red Light Bill) Purpose: The object of this law is to check commercialized vice by placing the penalty on the owner of property used for prostitution. "the procurer has no chance to ply his trade unless there are houses of prostitution from which he can accept orders and to which he can dispose of 'goods'" (p. 85). "Whatever the lease may indicate to the contrary, property rented for immoral purposes produces extraordinarily large returns. Not infrequently a high rental is thus produced by houses and apartments that are dilapidated that they cannot be rented at all to decent human beings. Again there is a tacit understanding that the rental named in the lease is merely a blind. The agent receives an additional sum, which he may pocket or divide with the landlord" (p. 117) "Commercialized Prostitution in New York City, " by George J. Kneeland, published by The Century Company for the Bureau of Social Hygiene. Method: 1. It declares houses of prostitution and assignation to be nuisances and holds responsible both the proprietor of the house and the owner of the building. 2. It enables any citizen, whether personally damaged or not, to bring suit against such proprietor and owner for maintaining a public nuisance. 3. It levies a fine against the property itself and forbids it use at any future time for such purpose. Advantages: 1. The citizens may bring action independent of the District Attorney (see Section 3 of the law). 2. Complaints under this law shall be precedence (see Section 5). 3. The general reputation of the place shall be admissible evidence (see Section 5). 4. The penalty is levied on the property (see Section 7). 5. Compliance with law releases the property (see Section 9). Issued by the committee on the Abatement Law. ELINOR PRATT LEWANDOWSKI, Chairman. JULIA GEORGE, Secretary. 7 Cal. Red Light Bill THE POLICE AND THE SOCIAL EVIL Showing What a Police Department Can do When It Has Right Intention Backed With Ability. The following letter, written by Chief of Police B. F. Grant of Salt Lake, Utah, to Chief of Police W. W. Rhoades of Peoria, Ills., backed by determination and ability, can do in meeting vice conditions: “Replying to your communication of the 18th, regarding methods that are pursued by us in dealing with social evil: “I have not attempted to answer the questions as outlined by you for the reason that up to two years ago Salt Lake City had a segregated district and quite a number of sporting houses outside of this district. Rooming houses were full of prostitutes and the illegal sale of beer was carried on to a large extent. Women were soliciting on the streets and this condition became so alarming that the commission form of government was swept into office on a tidal wave of reform and when Mayor Park was asked for his platform as to the handling of the social evil, he answered that while he held the office of Mayor that he would stand on the platform that there are no necessary evils in the city. We have followed out this plan and the segregated district was closed by proceedings in the courts against the property owners and the parties in of the same until the places were closed and the property disposed of. We closed the sporting houses in this city by notifying the landladies of each house to come to police headquarters where I gave each one to understand that we would give them a certain number of days to dispose of their property, close up the house, either change their lives or leave the city. Most of them sold out and left the city. Others remained and were very defiant, working on the suggestion of pettyfogging lawyers that they did not have to sell out. We commenced arresting and fining both MEN and women who were found in these places and in a short time they were all closed. We then started on the rooming houses and street soliciting and today I believe I can truthfully say that we have minimized the evil in this city to a very fine point. We find the best method of dealing with rooming houses is to place a uniformed officer immediately in front of the house with a pass book and pencil in his hand and every man or woman who goes in or out, he will ask for the name and number of room and when they ask why he is doing this he simply replies that we are having a little trouble with the house. In a short time there is no one going in or out of the house and most of the occupants have moved out. The landlords then apply to the police to find out how long this uniformed officer is going to stand in front of the place. I always reply that as soon as they can run a legitimate rooming house without the illegal sale of beer or harboring of prostitutes. They invariably ask that an officer be sent to investigate the house and we will find that the prostitutes have all been driven out. When we are satisfied that this is the case we then notify them that the officer will be removed and will not return unless we find that the illegal sale of beer and harboring of prostitutes is allowed and if we find this to be the case the officer will be returned and this time to stay until they have either sold out or closed up. This is the most effective way of handling gambling houses, rooming houses or parlor houses that have been in the residential part of the city that we have ever had. “Street soliciting is practically a thing of the past. Our law states that women cannot enter saloons so saloons for women have been opened and given the name of cafe or chili parlor. We have had considerable trouble with these places but our placing uniformed men in front of them has been effective and since the first of the year we have closed up six of these kind of places and will either close more of them or compel them to run their business in a legitimate way. “The cleaning of a city is like house cleaning. It can only be done by persistent and determined effort on the part of the officers and this means drudgery in the police department that could be avoided by having segregated or red light districts or looking upon prostitution as a necessary evil and allowing it to exist. Since adopting this method prostitutes by the score and their consorts have left the city. All public gambling houses are closed, opium and hop dens closed, until today the drug habit is almost eliminated. By following this method, robberies, holdups and thefts of all kinds, and the reports of stolen goods, have decreased over 50 per cent. All kinds of crimes are gradually diminishing and word has been given out in the intermountain west by grafters and confidence men to be sure and pass Salt Lake up or they would be arrested before they have time to secure a room. “Now we do not claim that vice does not exist in our city but we certainly feel encouraged in the fact that we are minimizing all classes of crime and are certainly making headway in making a clean city. “We have property owners and all kinds of citizens who are opposed to this method and claim that we are going to destroy the city but the reports of merchants and business men in general will prove that as far as the financial condition in Salt Lake is concerned, it has never been better than during the last two years, which proves that these kind of people are not producers of wealth but simply financial bloodsuckers.” 7 Transcribed and reviewed by contributors participating in the By The People project at crowd.loc.gov.