Tuesday, 15th July 1913 Police Close 2 Rooming Houses

The Atlanta Georgian

Tuesday, July 15, 1913

Chief Beavers Opens Real Fight on Doubtful Places—Several Under Watch.

Active steps against doubtful rooming and boarding houses were taken by Chief of Police Beavers Tuesday morning. He declared that he intends to close every "shady" rooming house in the city against which he can obtain evidence.

He intimated that he has the addresses of a number of boarding houses where, it is alleged, young girls and men visit and where the roomers are in reality inmates of the place, and his campaign is to be directed especially against these.

They will be thoroughly investigated, and if evidence is found to sustain the action, will be closed and the Council asked to revoke the licenses of the persons who operate the places.

Orders closing two boarding houses were issued from headquarters this morning. Mrs. Lulu Bell, whose hotel at Fair and Peters streets was raided last week, resulting in the arrest of half a dozen persons and the telling of a white slave story by Effie Drummond, was ordered to vacate the place and close it up.

The Bell place, Chief Beavers firmly believes, is one of those under the control of the "higher-ups" in the vice ring, against whom he is now obtaining evidence, and he regards the arrest of the Bell woman and the closing of the place as one of the significant steps of the campaign he is waging against vice.

The negro joint at 76 Chestnut street, which was raided by the police Sunday morning, was also ordered closed by Chief Beavers Tuesday. Sev-eral [sic] white men were arrested when this raid was made, and evidence has been obtained that the place was one of the most vicious in the city.

* * *