Ml
The Omaha Sunday Bee
MAGAZINE
VOL. 81 NO. 13.
MAGAZINE
OMAHA, SUNDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 11, 1921.
1 M
TEN CENTS
nn
99
uvli
hUOVl
ft
r
FEATUKKS;
Is"
77ie Aeen police court magistrate, a mighty man is he,
And, as for being wise, he is as wise as he can be;
He's wiser than King Solomon, and he is faster, too,
For he has more to worry him than Sol could ever do.
Comedies and tragedies
unroll in Omaha's police
court a Peculiarities of
woman are revealed
Sonw "characters' know
ths judge well.
By JACK LEE.
Solomon's reputation as a wise
judge was established by a de
cision emanating (ruin his court in
a wi'll I now ii baby cao.
llisttry give all the credit ol
the settlement of that case to Sol-
wlien wan willing to relin
quish all claims to Iht rival rather
than sec her baby cut in twain,
kettlrd the case and was so over
joyed t getting her baby back
she didn't stop to reap credit.
Thus the wi.se judge was made
fatior-v
In a present-day court, especial
ly a police court, such as is con
ducted every day in Omaha and in
South Omaha. Solomon would
have to show more speed than he
did in the good old days. The
decision in the baby case has noth
ing on those made each day by
Judge Charles E. Foster and
Judge William Wappich.
A Tell-Tale Tail.
Take for instance the time when
two women, furious as only women
can be, claimed the same dog. The
two came before Judge Foster, one
of them lugging the dog. During
all the testimony the woman hold
ing the dog spoke the loudest and
declared most emphatically her,
tight to the dog.
After listening to the claims of
both women Judge Foster ordered .
the woman to let the dog down on
the floor. Ther order was observed:
.As soon as the dog landed, with a
bark of joy he rushed to the other
woman and began to express his
happiness in.,, tail '. ...wagging ' and .
barks. ' . ' .
' "The dog belongs to this wom
an," the judge said: The woman
..1.. I t 1- -1 -I . !. 1 X. 11..
fesscd that she had found the dog,
taken it . home with her and had
become so attached to it she didn't '
want to give it up. . Thus Solo
mon's decision was tied right
there.
' Horse Sense Necessary.
It doesn't take much law to
make a ' good police judge. This
statement is made on the authority
of two police judges, an ex-police
judge and - numerous attor
ney?. ; .' , , ; " J1'
. "To be, an efficient police judge,
a! man must throw all knowledge .
of the law to the four winds and
just. depend on the good old com
mon sense with which he has been
endowed,'.' says Judge Wappich.
"Practically all cases coming in
to my . court ;. settle themselves.
There, is no great demand for legal
ability. Of course . one must
know the law and stay, within
bounds but in the ordinary cases,
old-fashioned horse sense comes in
handier than all the law in
Bhckstone.". '
Police courts as they are con
ducted now are little different than
those of 40 years ago,' a pioneer
attorney of Omaha says. The
misdemeanors have changed. For'
instance, there are fewer street
tights and assaults and - very few
wile-beaters, or those who jumped
board bills. With the k. o. of
John Barleycorn, all those evils
attendant have gone on the de
cline. ' - "
No Speeders Then.
In the old davs there were no
speeders. Once in a while some
overheated ' cowhand just in on
the prairie might have run his
horse on the sidewalk or let out a
few yelps and been hauled up. But
now speeders and traffic ordinance
violators are the common culprits.
.".As Judge Wappich presides at
South Side police court, it. is only
fair that he should describe it.
" "The South Side police court is
in the old city hall. The court
room is ideal and just a short dis
tance from the jail. There are
comfortable benches in the 'room
for spectators, or those -who1 are
to be ' arraigned. Everything is
kept clean and neat.
"Most persons have an idea that
the South Side is bad because
. there are so many - foreigners.
There are fewer foreigners in po
lice court than there are Amer
icans, or citizens who have been
naturalized for some .years. The
..ill. .1 ." if aFlY I
IUICI(Jlltl3 U1CII UIIH.I
at home. The Americans and for
eigners who have been over here
several years rush into - police
rourtat the slightest provocation.
It seems to be an American failing
to want to get into court:
" Respect the Law.
"In the main, the South Side is
made up of men and women of
foreign birth or extraction. They
are law-abiding, easy to get along
with and respect the law.
"I get them in once in a while
for making liquor, or drinking too
much. Once in a while they fight,
but as a whole there are few very
serious cases.
"Most of my cases' involve traf
fic ordinance violators. .
"Good common sense has helped
me more than all the law I ever
Vuew.
5 9 Sill i MVwrwifmW:s'
"There's just as much lawbreak
ing as when I came here 30 years
ago, only the misdemeanors have
changed."
A Sharp Wit..'
Judge Wappich' lives up to his
rule of throwing the law out.' the
window and using common sense
in disposing of his cases. He has
a sharp wit which comes in handy
at all times.
Recently a' drunk came before
the judge. '
.. "Good morning judge," , was the .
salutation. . . t
-v.-"Good morning, you're charged -with
being drunk."
"Well your honor, I'm down and
out," and then the prisoner went
on to tell a long tale of woe. He
was still a bit under the influence
of "moonshine.". ' , ;
The judge listened . very care
fully and when the prisoner, fin
ished he said.
"You may be down, but you're
not out. You won't be out lor '30
days." t ' ; - :
Trial By Jury. . .
In the early days of the Omaha
police court law, was almost ;un-.
heard , of. Anybody could run for
the office-and it depended on the
number of votes he got whether
he was qualified to fill the posi-;-tion
or not. In those :days any
person haled into' court could de-
mand a trial by jury and get it. ,
His standing in politics also bad a
great bearing on his case.
Whenever a man demanded a'
, jury trial a jury was ' impaneled.
" This jury usually stayed in until
the cases for that day were dis
posed of.
Some years later the Shoemaker
bill stopped the trial by jury and
the cases were settled by the po
lice judge. When cases before the
court were of serious nature, they
were held to the district court, and
the practice continues.
Going or Coming. V
Que day when Judge Will
Learne was '. presiding a man
charged with being drunk was
brought before him.
"You're charged with being
drunk, disorderly and refusing to
fight."
"It's all a lie," the prisoner de
clared. a
"All right," said Judge Learne.
"I'll fine you for fighting."
They tell one on the present Po
lice Commissioner Henry W.
. Dunn when he was a police judge.
A drunk was brought before
' him.' '. " ".'- ' - ' ' ... ' -"
"Where did you get that snoot
ful?" the judge queried.
" "Well, yeh see," said the pris- ;
oner, "Oi didn't have much in me
shtumic If Oi'd had more in me
slitumic I wouldn't have so much
in me snoot."
There were no automobile po
lice patrols in. the old days. A
vehicle pulled by .horses served to
haul in those arrested. ; . Often
times a policeman had-to carry in ,
his prisoner bodily.' ' i '.' J .
One time a clever fellow, was ar- !
raigncd before Judge Gordon. !
After listening to the charges
. against him the fellow threw up
his hands, let out a yell, began to .
froth at the mouth and collapsed
in . what seemed to be a terrible .
"Take him out," cried h judge. -'
"I don't want him to die? fit imtefK
The prisoner was taken outside '
and in a few - moments . miracu
lously recovered. It was . learned
' later that the fellow" had faked
his fit.
"Fainting Bertha" was another,
one who got by with a lot of clever
stufl'before she was found out. ,
. ' Fainting Bertha.
Bertha used . to select some ,
prominent corner of the city on
which to throw a faint. Of course
men would rush to her rescue and
carry her to sonic nearby drug -store.
After receiving a few minis
trations Bertha would recover.
Later the men and even physicians
who attended her in her .illness
would report to police hat : they
had been robbed of their watches ,
and pickpockets. Bertha , was just
a clever "dip" working a rather
smooth racket until it was stopped
by police. - ' .
There are "attorneys" . . who
pfactice only in the police court.
Recently a fellow was arrested
and on his person was found an
attorney's card which had been
slipped him by the attorney as, he
was being led into the police, sta
tion. '"
The present court in the new
Central station is a great imprpve
i ment over the court at the old en
gine house. That place was a dis
grace to the city. It was dark,'
smelled of horses, had no win
dows and men aed women of all '
colors were jammed together in
one hugh squirming, smelly mass.
The "bull pen," built to hold 12
men easily, usually . held three
times that many. ' .
The new court is large and clean.
The "bull pen" is large enough to
hold 60 men. - .
Police Court Characters. :
j In the court room the men and
women are segregated and there Is ,
plenty of fresh air and light. The
judge and city prosecutor,.Frank
ii. Dineen, prosecute the cases.
There are police characters, rnen
and women, who have been in pa- ,
lice circles for years. -.-.When they
are arraigned they greet the judge !
with great familiarity, just as an
old friend would greel another.
As the old characters die off or
move away, new ones take their
places.
One time several men in jail re
fused to take a bath.; It was
known . they were "inhabited."
Judge Foster ordered someVpf the
officers to get some sheep. 4ip from
the "stock yards in South. Omaha.
When. the sheep dip arrived all '
the men who refused' to ;bathe or
get rid . of their population were
dipped in the sheep dip. ,
;. jiThis stopped .the "strike."
vJTh'ere are : 'cases .' calling for
tears in police '.court', and often
times words of kindly admonition
from the judges have turned boys
and girls from the downward path
to the straight and narrow.
Saved from Disgrace.
One young lad, now a prominent
, business man in an Iowa city, was
saved from disgrace by a few kind
words from Judge Foster. Judge
. Wappich has saved husbands and
wives .from separation by his
kindly advice.
Family disputes are common and
here a knowledge of family life is
necessary.
One of the strange incidents in
police court cases is that in which
a wife has her husband arrested
for beating her. It is a rare in
stance when the wife appears to
prosecute her charges. She nearly
1 always comes ; into court and
pleads for her erring ' husband,
even at the expense of appearing
before the judge with a black eye..
Just now Omaha is overrun
with ; "moochcrs," "panhandlers,"
"con" men and others of the same
ilk.. The reason as explained by
Judge Foster: . - . , ;
. "Omaha is one of the few large
cities where men or women in jail
do not work. All they do is to eat ,
and sleep and tell stories. It is a
regular . paradise, for men out of
work and in need of eats. .The
new jail, especially with its mod
ern jail equipment, attracts the old
timers and they go out of their
way to get 'jugged.'
To clear up this evil Judge Fos
ter advocates a rock pile where
men may make "little ones out of
big ones," the crushed rock to be
placed on boulevards and roads in
the city needing- repairs. It would
take $100 to buy tools for the men
and they could earn their keep.
- "Others not in favor ot this
scheme say there should be a work
house. To erect a decent work
house where' any trades could be
applied it - would take1 $500,000.
This . would be foolish waste of
taxpayers' money," the judge says.
The police court at Central sta
tion has not always been located
at Eleventh and Dodge.
The new city jail at Eleventh and Dodge streets where police court patrons, before
and afterwards, often are furnished meals and lodgings.
it' 1
v J
nnKn ' vu. m w wt-nm''tft'"lf'tmil'l'lf,''ll''F!Qm
'.. C . ' .' !, ivf.j-" -.if, v.y.' v. jW-'-VV -'..'.
I ' ,., 4 ' i'.v K I
' .f : i . -f . . . I t .,JI . .frig '
" ' - . . r . ...... r
V ' . : 7 8 S 10 II 12 13 TS,
U : 1 -I 8293031 . ' 1 .';
(3 Ik
t . mm i
mm rri
0
At
Marcell
the South Side police court. Left to right t Sergea nt James Sbcahan, Judge W. F. Wappich, Prosecutor John
and Ccurt Offic-r Jams P. Grcce. In the rear: - Officer Joe Potach, left, and Captain John Briggs.
mmWSSM&smmmmimm2mwmmmmmmmm
WW IHIIIIWIiWIMI I WIWHMI '
1
IJ88"
'Bring 'cm on." The Central police court force ready for action. Left to right: Prosecutor Frank Dineen. Judze
Charles . Foster, Officer C M. George and Court Sergeant Johnny Holden. , .v;
In 1880 the police court was lo
cated in the basement of the coun- r
ty and city building located where
the Paxton block now stands. Pat
O. Hawes, was the judge.
From there the court was moved
to the northwest corner' of Thir
teenth and Hatney streets over'a '
"saloon. It remained there only
three weeks. Judge Gtistave ' Ben- '
eke presided. . Later rooms- were1
fitted up in the place on Sixteenth
street now occupied by the Lin
coln cafeteria.1 From there it" was
moved to the Exposition building
on Fourteenth and Davenport. All
city offices were in the building.
Judge Louis Berka presided. . At
that time the city was paying
$1,000 a month rental for its of
fices. ' .
;t:he';:G;RA.g
i - . . . .
I WILL admit that the Kid broke
it to me gently. He slid into
the room, shut the door, and
blushed. Then he asked me if he
mightn't Tiave $250.
"Two hundred and fifty dollars!"
I' gasped. "Why, Kid. that's a heap
of money to have all at once."
. "I know it," he counters.
"What yon want with it?"
" "Spend." he came back evasively.
"On wfA?"
He blushed again and fidgeted
from one foot to the other.
"Nawthin special. Jus a dia
mond!" .
, I got slowly 1 out of my chair,
crossed the room, took the Kid b
both shoulders, and shook him.
"For yourself?"' I asked sternly.
"Nope." --
"Kid you've run foul f a skirt!"
The muscles of his shoulder rip
pled under my hands and he met my
eyes squarely.
, "I sure have," he affirmed. "Oh!
chee. Mr. Joe, just Vait'H you meet
ker. She's the grandest dame. An'
well, I guess I should 've told you
before, but it seemed kinder funny
me having to run to you before I'd
ever said a thing to her."
"That's all right, Kid. I'll manage
your fights not your love affairs.
What's her tnonnikcr?" .
"Rose LaBelle."
"Huh?" .r
"Rose LaBelle." V
. "You mean that?"
"Mean it? Sure I mean it. Watcha
think I'd kid you for? An' she's as
pretty as her name." .
Whether it was the woman's name,
with its trade-mark of the chorus, or
whether it was a hint of antagonism
in the Kid's manner a sort of strat
egic defenses I don't know. At any
rate. I frowned a bit. and then;
"When did yon meet her?"
His eyes dropped.
"Last Friday night."
"Hmph! Eight days', acquaintance.
and buying her a piece of ice al
ready, ch? Good progress, I call it
Kind of rushed her off her feet, huh?
Love at first sight?" -
"I- guess that's it," stammered the
Kid in answer. . . ;. -
"And of course your bein' light
weight champeen of the world, and
having a fat bankroll, didn't affect
her none? She loves you for your
self alone?" , -
. Innocently the Kid met my gaze
once more.
-"Yep."
"You sure?"
"Cert Why she says so!"
That's the Kid all over. Honest,
if some grifter told him politics was
straight he'd swallow it. -He's the
most trusting lad I had ever seen.
I - found that out before I started
managing him; in fact, it was the
how of our getting together. Y'
see. in them days I was doing news
pa rer work.
. I ain't never been much on thej
flowery word . stuff, but I know (a
thing or two about the prize ring,
and they, had me covering the big
fights for them. I'd hustle back to
the office after, a scrap and tell a
rewrite man how it all happened,
and then he'd . write it into shape
so's the puMic could read it intel
ligent like, and my name Would be
stuck over the top. ' t .
One ' night this here Kid . Riley
fought a scheduled 10-round battle
with Battling Roberts, the excham
pion, and finished him in the 10
rounds. It was . at the Southside
Athletic club, where all his other
fights had been, ' and me. being . in
with the officials there just happened,
to drift around when they, were pay
ing off. I saw them , slip the. Kid
fifty as his share. .
At that time. I didn't think the
Kid was a world-beater, but I imag
ined that he got at least two hundred!
arid fifty for a 10-round bout, and
I -called him .aside and asked him
about it. .
That boob explains that he'd made
his start at the Southside and that
tven after he got into the finals
:lass the, manager had explained to
him that he owed a debt of gratitude
to the club, and so he oughtn't to
ask more than fiftv. Besides, said
that bully, the Kid ftughtn't to fight
nowhere else, i Honest, it didn't
seem possible that -a guy could be
as 'ignorant as him.
"You need a manager," I says, "the
worst way. I'll act on a fifty-fifty
basis if you want ' But, Kid I'll
have to be your guardeen, too. You
let me arrange your fights and handle
your money and I'll make yon rich.
You're young (he was then just
turned 20) and you've got the stuff.
Maybe I can make you champeen
some day." - " - . i
So -I get a lawyer chap to drawl
up the articles, and the Kid and me1
affixes our scrawls and the deal .is j
closed. Right about then the Kid's
stock has been boosted about a mil
lion per cent by beating Battling
Roberts, and tne manager of the
Southside comes along and wants to
match him with One-Round Ma
loney. According to our written agree
ment, the Kid turns .the manager
over to me. " The mogul allows he
wants ythe Kid to go for 10 rounds,
against Ma!oney,and I says sure
I'll let him do it. -
That's fine," enthuses the man
ager, producing a -.contract. ' "Ten Bencke,
rounds, and he'll get fifty, win. lose
or draw." . ,
I pretended to be .surprised.
"I guess I tlidn'tget you right,"
I says. "You mean two hundred and
fifty!" .. . . :
The long and short of it was that
the Kid went on and won by a knock
out in the sixth round, and pulled his
two-fifty. He almost croaked when
' (Tara to Tsm Tmm, Mm Oh.)
Many Moving Days.
Attorney Ed F. Morearty,' then
city attorney, introduced a. resolu
tion in city council declaring that
the rent was. too high. The city
then moved its 'offices to 1405
Jones street and the police court
convened in the basement of the
old Goose hotel, v In 1898 the city
bought an old' school .house at
Eleventh and Dodge streets and
located its offices, jail and "court
room there. .- s , :
The police court remained there
until 1920, when it was removed to
the engine house at Twelfth and
Dodge streets until the new Cen
tral police station was finished.
Now the police court is back to
its old place in a new building
which Judge William Wappich
characterizes as "an architectural
monstrosity and which appears on
the inside as though it might have
been planned by some high school
lad." ;
The following men, have been
judges of the Omaha police court:
Patrick O. Hawes, 1880; Gustave
1882; A. M. Stenburg,
1885: Lou's Berka. 1907: Lee Hels-
ley, 1890; S. I. Gordon, 1896; Brvce
Crawford, 1906; Charles E. Foster,
1912; J. M. Fitzgerald. 1912. and
Judge William .Wappich, 1921.
When South Omaha was taken
in as a part of Greater Omaha the
South Side police court wa in
cluded in the transaction. Police
judges alternate between Omaha
and bouth Side court every nrontU,
i n
h
M
t
ab
1
bf
tt
r
nv
f
al
,'tc
Vil
yr
c.
a
1
not
I
onl
eel
1
1 C
An
e
ttf
r.l
iheJ
iplL
M4
era
net
tteJ
vhf
era
trc
,
sro
(
n
le
i..
!tt
ie -io
r
p
t
be
' vie
th
th
ol
ok.
n
aeif
i
he
th
rtrf
ouf
r
