The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1877-03-20
Rather Rough ON the Supervisors.

Tue VoIlOS places IoT tulS eo"u' III APAi'
were made the same as at the Novem-
Der election, viz: in each ward, and at
the cemetery school house. This was 10
accordance with a petition signed by about
one hundred and forty voters in the city,
who, very properly, want to save time to
the people by enabling them to vote near
their homes and without any delay. The
petitioners also asked that the place for
doing town business be changed from the
cemetery school house to the court house,
aud the board of supervisors decided that
they had nothing to do with that matter,-
and for this action the Union stigmatizes
the members of the board as "wiseacres.
This is pretty rough on the board, and is
not justified by the facts. Webster gives
the following definition of "wiseacre:"
One who makes undue pretension to wisdom; a
would-be wise person; hence, in contempt, sim
pleton; Ounce.
If the Union will examine the Revised
Statutes it will learn that town meetings
shall be held at such place in their respec
tive towns as the electors thereof shall
from time to time appoint" 1t is thus
quite plain that the people alone have the
right and power to decide where their
meetings shall be held, i. e. the meeting at
which the town clerk must be present and
at which the miscellaneous town business
must be transacted. And it is, therefore,
plain that the Union applied very unjust
epithet to the whole board.
In December, 1875, Supervisor Case
got a resolution through the board fixing
the cemetery school house as the place to
transact town business, The place had
previously been at the court house, and no
power could legally remove it, except by a
vote of the people, in accordance with law.
The moving it out there was an illegal
and unauthorized act, and the town clerk
would now have right to ignore previous
action and call it at the court house if he
has mind to do SO. But perhaps that
would not be best-it might look like the
exercise of arbitrary power, though We
have no doubt that such action would bt
legal.
At the March term. in 1876, a petition
was presented from 70 voters, outside Of
the city to sustain Cases action, and by
81 voters, also outside the city. asking tc
have the town business transacted at the
old place-the court house; but the boarC
did nothing in the matter, and so our las
April meeting was held out there.
| At the present March term about l4(
persons in the city petitioned to have thu
town business returned to the court house
and the board decided that it had no RICH
to interfere in the matter, which, no doubt
was correct. But if the last board hac
power to move the place the present ont
has power to move it back. We suppose
the fact is that neither had any power ovel
the matter aud that the removal was IL
legal.
As to the place, we think the cemeter,
school house, or some place outside tn
city, is much the best place for everything
connected with town affairs. 1t is the PEG
pie who live outside the city who are in
terested in highway commissioners, over
seers of highways, aud other town matters
OF course the people in the city as we'll a
out are interested in the Improvement c
roads and bridges, But to be obliged t
? carry all the ballot boxes out there to coun
the votes is not very pleasant. But eve
that wont do any serious injury. If tn
people of the city are so very anxious t
have change they have only to go OF
there and sit up with them ali night an
vote to hold the next meeting at the coul
house Everybody iu town and city has
o right to vote there on questions before th
/ town meeting when transacting town bus
:. ness, but they can vote for officers onl
r in their own districts The supervisor an
town clerk should furnish ballot box F.;
+ each ward, and the people who are preser
. at the hour of opening the polls will choo;
d moderator and clerk-all the Officer
! needed, and they must, after the polls clos
4 deliver the boxes to the board in session
# the cemetery school house,
It We understand that petition is In CT
e culatiOn asking the clerk to include in Il
the election call notice to vote on tt
:, question of place to do the town bushes
It Of course there is 20 law against this-b
d it is not the mode provided by the sta
y ute. That mode is by rising vote, or
dividing the house, or In some such ma
ner deciding a motion on the subject ma
It in town meeting But. as the place
y town meetings was never legally fixed
~ any place except at the court house, al
e as it has never been legally moved fro
s. there, it is quite likely that the next toy
s. clerk in his election notice, would be &C
erned by the voice of the people Of t
d town as expressed through the ballot be
r
lie SPLENDID BUSINESS CHANCE--Micha
10 Koch offers, for rent or sale, the car
it cious store and dwelling house now occ
10 pied by him in his -four and feed bushes
le on Third avenue. He is also open to tire
i, for the sale of the fine store and residen
ID next west, on the corner of Ninth sire
)" now occupied as meat market by no
70 4 Adams Each of the places is fit
Mt with gas and water and has al {
W cellent cellar and other suitable COVE
e. fences, besides having good and AMI
10 barn accommodation in the rear. The
IL cation is unexceptionable, situated in t