Southern Illinois Journal

              Ilinri
THIRTY-SEVENTH YEAR.
FLORA, ILLINOIS. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11. 1907.
OUCH! THAT HURTS.
Mayor Pinches Sherman Hall lllagal Liquor Selling.
For
ON:^ HUNDRED AND FIFTY
Council Meets.
Dollirsio Fiaei for Two Oifcnici ProMcatioBS lo Follow.
More
ImmedintelT foUowlDK the closinst of tbe salooQS in tbis city last spring an epldeinic nf illegal liquor selllDK broke ont whieb threatened for a time to swamp the new admlniBtratlon. Blind tigers were opened brazenly and boot¬ leggers aoco»Ud every one who even looked thirsty and the condition, in inn nioipitl affairs, for a time looked as nn- proinising as dnring the odoriferons three years immediately preceeding. A few vigorous prosecntlons. however, on the part of the new administration soon changed the sitaation. A few heallhj' fines afid a jail sentence or two demonstrated the flrmness cf the Mayor, and the moral atmosphere of the communhy cleared np a« the toughs cleared oat. In the general jubilation •t the exodus of undesirable citiuens, ¦nd the exuberance of our joy. Our Spring P«>et, moved by the spirit of the Muse coioposed a poem entitled "One by one the Toughs aregcing." Thia peem was regarded by the author as a rare literary gem, thongh we are in¬ formed that when a copy of it was shown to one of the aforeasid undestra ble emigrants, he indulged in langaaxe more terse than eloquent. In fact he is said to bave need cuss words, neither the form or substance of which We wonld care to reprint in the Journal.
We were content, however, to occupy « very low opinion In the eslimation o t le aforesaid undesirable citizens i they wonld only stay sway. Bnt the ost citme baclc.
Very slyly and In devioua ways, at Bret,'but gr»*nally growiog louder and more persistent, the romor b.'g«ii in spread that bliad tigers were again in operation in the city. Mnshroom res¬ taurants (?) began to spring np In vnr Isua parts of the city. Under the guife of an innocent business it wa8.believed that aome of these places w^rn selling liquor. The opHrations became so Iwld aai the gossip 10 loud tSat it was even liiinuated that the Mayor, the City At¬ torney and tbe Marshals were in leagne with the law breakers. Smarting nnder th'se insinuations the Mavor entered in- |a a "horrid coospirarcj" o >^ntrap the alleged law breakers, with the result that Sherman Hall and Orant Venable W»e arrested last week charged with ¦elliog liqnor without Ihense. - On Thursday morning Hkll was tried before Jnitice Dayton, found guilty on one 00 nt aai fined fifty dollars. In the afternoao he waa tried en a second couDt, and tb.i tin* r,^ncluded to snb la'^t his fate to the tender nierclea of a jury. This time he was fonnd guilty sad fined one hundred dollars. Appeal waa taken to the Circuit Conrt. |Some five or six other eompiaints nsaiost the same party are held In ab«yance snd the mayor annonnces^bis firm in¬ tention to continue the presecntiona un¬ til the evil Is suppressed. In these laudable efforts he will have the support otall law abiding oltizens'. 'llie cases .againat Mr. Venable ha;« been oon- ttaued nntil next Monday.
The conncil meeting on Monday evening proved a rather exciting Bession«