Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-05-22

The Last of the Metropolitan PO-
lice Law I'm COIumbus-The Court
Decides il UnconslitutiOuaI\a and
Therefore Void, and Grants am
Injunction against ID.
Judge JOHN L. GREEN, in an opinion
that drew from the members of the legal
profession the highest commendation,
granted, on Tuesday, the injunction asked
for to restrain the so-called Metropolitan
Police Commissioners, appointed by Gov.
Cox from taking possession of the proper
ty of the city and running the police force
with careless disregard Of the rights and
interests of the citizens. s8Ss &
& An application for qlso ,oa1ranto to cause
these Commissioners to show by what au-
| thority they claimed to exercise these
rights, was reserved by the Circuit Court
to be decided by the Supreme Court at its
next session in December. The application
to Judge GREEN was to restrain these
Commissioners until the application for a
quo aoa,ranto was decided and the constitu-
tionality of the law passed upon, from exc
cutting any of its provisions, and although
|
but temporary, it will, in-truth, be in the
nature of,a Perpetual injunction $ The Su-
preme Judges, partisans as they are, will
not, we think, so far jeopardise their
standing with the bar, as to decide that its
provisions are in consonance with the
Constitution of Ohio. and hence the case if
it is reached before the law is repealed, will
IF Tudno Gpru.N5 dnas In, inlo
tion of the letter and spirit of the Consti-
tuition, and therefore null, void and of no
binding effeet.9 = 81 rs 0TF
THIS bantling was one of the political
schemes of the majority of the last Legis-
lature to punish Columbus for its heavy
Democratic majority. Our citizens, ten to
one, demonstrated against it, and fifty to
one were opposed to its passage. Mr.. Nix
ON, of Hamilton, in reply to the objection
that it was forcing local law on an unwil-
ling people, acknowledged that it was po-
litical measure, and called upon~his party
friends to sustain it. When asked why he
was unwilling for the proposed law to be
extended over Hamilton county, his reply
was that Cincinnati was Repub-
lican city, and hence Cincinnati needed no
such law. Columbus, on the other hand,
was Democratic city, and it was necessa-
ry to take the selection of the police force
from the hands of the City Council, and to
place it in the hands of Commissioners,
for, said Mr.. NIXON, it is rule that has no
exception, that all cities governed by the
Republican party, are governed wisely
and well, while those controlled by the
Democratic party, are badly governed, and
power shonld be taken from them.
1t IS this Republican bantling which
came into the world scarce half made up
a bundle of incongruities and OF malignity,
thus justified on the lowest and basest of
grounds, and passed at the behest of the
leaders of a trained majority, that the Ju-
dietary has thus given its quietus. Utterly
subversive of the Constitution and of the
rights of the people to choose their own Of
ficers, those who attempted to force it upon
our people will receive their just reward
in theeontempt of all who value free Gov
iernment, or who still believe that White
men in Columbus have rights that even
Negroes and Negro worshipers are bound
to respect.