Days Gone By In Staunton

Thursday, March 8 , 1923 -- RAID IMMORAL HOUSES AT BENLD -- Deputy Sheriffs Fries, Bloomfield, Rasor and Crimer raided two immoral houses at Benld on Wednesday and as a result there are now in the county jail five women inmates of the houses. State's attorney L. M. Harlan has filed information against them in the county court, charging them with being inmates of an immoral house. The names given by the women being held under the charge are Irene Dorin, Helen Ross, Beatrice Cox. Ethelwyn Hayes and Helen McCloskey.

State's Attorney Harlan is making an effort to clean up the moral standards of Benld and this is one of the first moves in the campaign he has outlined.—Daily Enquirer

BACK FROM ENGLAND -- John Predgen, one of Staunton's genial brush artists, returned to our city Sunday morning from a several months' visit to his old home, England. He reports that he found the King in good health and that everything in dear old England looks fine. However, John says that prices are high and that although England is not dry, it takes a mighty nice piece of change to buy a little taste of the stuff that cheers. TobaccoA of all kinds also is very high and he says that cigars that are fit to smoke cost about 32c each. He enjoyed his trip, but is very glad to get back to America and particularly Staunton.

I. T. S. HELPS MOTORISTS THROUGH GILLESPIE -- Motormen on the I.T.S. the past several days have given many a motorist a "boost" to aid him in getting through the bad stretch of road in South Gillespie. The road runs along the Interurban and frequently automobiles get stuck in such a manner as to make it impossible for the electric cars to pass. A rope is then quickly produced and the automobile is given a boost out of the mud hole. Unless there is some snappy action taken on the road in South Staunton, motorists will soon be wishing that there were an Interurban along there too to help them out.

ROB SOFT DRINK PARLOR -- Some time during the night from Friday to Saturday the soft drink parlor of V.F. Schmacher on East Main street was entered. A quantity of candy and tobacco was stolen and the thieves also secured a small sum of cash from a register. The police are working on the case but up to the present have no clue.

HURT AT NO. 14 -- Frank Lippold, yesterday afternoon while working on the shaker on the washer at No. 14 mine, fell a distance of about 15 feet when a board on which he was standing gave way. Mr. Lippold sustained a badly dislocated shoulder, but otherwise escaped injury. He will probably be laid up for a week or two as a result of the accident.

Thursday, March 15 , 1923 -- IS HELD ON STATE WARRANT -- Chas. Hildreth, whose home is said to be at Bunker Hill, Friday afternoon was taken to Carlinville from Staunton on a state warrant charging him with "assault and battery with a deadly weapon to do bodily harm."

Hildreth, in company with Alonzo Baldwin, Friday just before noon went to the home of Mrs. Anna Savallick on East Mill street, where it is said the men demanded something to drink. On being informed that there was nothing of that kind to be had it is said that the men sat down at the table and proceeded to eat a meal which Mrs. Savallick had prepared.

When the woman made an attempt to get the men out of the house Hildreth is charged with having struck her over the head with a coffee pot. Mrs. Savallick sustained quite a severe laceration about the head, several stitches being required in dressing the wound.

Hildreth and Baldwin were arrested by Chief of Police Safko. Baldwin was dismissed, as there was no charge against him and Hildreth was fined $25 and costs on a city charge of assault and battery. On recommendation of the State's Attorney, Hildreth was held on a state charge and as he was unable to give the $2000 bond required, Friday evening was taken to the county Jail at Carlinville.

OPENED NEW STORE -- Miss Elsie Pansier, formerly one of the teachers at the local public schools, has opened a shoe store and millinery in the room formerly occupied by Levy & Jacobson in the Flechsig building. Miss Pansier needs no special introduction to the people of Staunton, having spent practically her entire life here. She is a graduate of the Staunton High School and is well liked among the younger set. She is at present teaching a rural school, and until the end of her term in April, her mother, Mrs. C. Fledsig, will conduct the business. She extends a cordial invitation to her friends to come and visit her store.

ONLY ABOUT 60 VOTES ARE CAST AND NO INTEREST IS MANIFESTED -- That the primary election law is a colossal piece of choice tomfoolery was once more demonstrated in the primary election held in Staunton on Tuesday of this week. Only sixty votes were cast and the voters who on this day availed themselves of their franchise privileges have the satisfaction of knowing that they cast the highest priced votes on record in our city, the votes costing the municipality approximately $5 each.

START LIVINGSTON-WORDEN HARD ROAD -- That the promised links of hard road vhich are to connect Livingston and Worden with the state highway are soon to become a reality is now more certain than ever, the contractor in charge of the job having started actual operations on Friday of the past week.

Messrs. List and Gifford of Kansas City are in charge of this work and for the past several weeks have been accumulating large quantities of material at Worden. It is said that they have thirteen car loads of cement as well as considerable quantities of crushed rock on hand at that place.

Grading operations were started just east of the city limits at Worden and in consequence this road is now closed to traffic. The work will be pushed as rapidly as the weather permits.

At Livingston the company has erected a warehouse in which to store material and as soon as they can get an outfit into operation will start grading from that end of the job. Plans as we understand them, are to work simultaneously from both ends and with favorable weather conditions the work should be completed by the middle of summer. This road will prove to be the greatest improvement these two neighbor cities have ever enjoyed and the residents are eagerly looking forward to the time when the road can be thrown open to traffic.