THOU SHALT NOT
SKATE ON SUNDAY.
JUDGE WALLACE HANDS DOWN
ELEVENTH COMMANDMENT.
He Wants the Rinks Closed -- Sends
Deputies Out to Get Names of
Offenders -- The Philoso-
phy of Kimbrell.
"Thou shalt not upon a Sunday move thy feet with a gliding motion when thou hast roller skates attached to thy shoes!"
This commandment has been handed down by Judge W. H. Wallace to his twelve tried and true grand jurors, passed on to the deputy marshals and was read with a thud yesterday afternoon by County Prosecutor I. B. Kimbrell, who was signing indictments against theater folk, in the form of an indictment against S. Waterman, charged with managing "a place of amusement for pay, otherwise known as the Coliseum roller skating rink at Thirty-ninth and Main streets, Kansas City, Mo."
After reading the missive three times, the prosecutor, who some weeks ago swore off smoking, was so excited that he absent-mindedly lighted a cigar presented to him a week or two since by a voter who had called for free legal advice. When Mr. Kimbrell had coughed the rancid smoke out of his lungs he recovered composure, threw the cigar away and remarked:
"Well, it's not a matter of great importance at this time of year, anyhow, as very soon the boys will be going barefoot and can't wear roller skates. Besides, next Sunday they can go to the baseball game."
The prosecutor picked up his pen and started to sign his name to the indictment. He hesitated. He said:
"I believe I'll talk this over with the grand jury first."
"I wouldn't write anything about it," suggested Charles Riehl, deputy prosecutor, to reporters. "We don't know for sure yet whether the jury will return the indictment against the rink."
Joseph Stewart, veteran bailiff of the criminal court, and Henry Miller, custodian of the criminal court building, were the trusted men, who Sunday went forth and searched the city for roller skating rinks. They were told to report to the prosecutor's office the keepers, ticket sellers and employes of all rinks found. After tramping all day they could locate only one rink, the one at Thirty-ninth and Main streets.
"Waterman was exceedingly kind to us," Miller says. "He offered to have a boy strap skates on our feet and let us use the skates all afternoon free. I was tempted. There were about 200 people in the rink, boys and girls, young men and women and all were laughing and happy. I wanted to jump in and skate, but Joe advised me not to and I didn't.
"We saw many kids skating on the sidewalks and streets over town Sunday, but we hadn't any orders to take their names. They weren't indoors and, so far as we knew, didn't buy or rent their skates on Sunday."
The Sunday skating question will come before the grand jury this afternoon. The usual 140 theater indictments will also be returned by the jury today.
