Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1881-01-06
THE CITY TREASURER.
DOES SUSPENSION SUSPEND:
A Lively yIsO.y-yeIchans' Office Inns Police
men for Door Posts.

A Lively Eow-weichans' Office has Polio.
men for Door Posts.
Last nigh: as soon as the resolution su:
pendingC City TreasurcrW Welclans from ofiic
had passed councils, the finance committe
called upcn the mayor and asked HIM t
detail officers to protect the city treasurer
Office. The mayer detailed Officers Sven
and GiIch to that service, and one of then
stood guard a: the front door and the othe
at the back door all night. About 6 o c!ocl
this mornin. Treasurer Welchans callc,
ut his Office and attempted to enter. Tn
police, under instruction, refused him ad
mittance and the treasurer went home. 4
about o'clOck the finance committee, &C
companied by the city solicitor. went t
the tIeasureIs office, and after waitin;
there for some time sent Officer Swenk t.
the treasurcr's residence with a lie
quest that he meet the committee a;
the trCasurer's office. The treasurer sen
word back that Ec was acting under ad
vice of counsel and would not meet til,
committee unti! he had consulted coun
sci. Some time afterwards the city treas
urer, accompanied by his counsel, ex
Mayor At!ee and J. Hay Brown, esq.
called at the tTcasurcr's Office, and Mr.
Atlee asked what "thesc people" wcr.
doing there. He WAS informed that tht
finance committee had taken passes
sion under authority Of resolution
passed by city councils. Mr.. Atlee
told Treasurer Welchans to take
possession of his Office, and requested Al
dcrman Barr. the clerk of the finance com
mittcc. to retire from tt e treasIrer's desk
at which he Was sitting. Alderman Barr said
he was actin. under orders of the tinaucC
committee and the city solicitor. and de-
cliDcd to leave. Mr.. Atlee then asked the
city solicitor b. what authority he had
asked the mayor to place policemen at the
doors Of the trcasurcv's Office and
prevent the treasurer from entering.
Tie solicitor answered that it was
done by the authority OF the H.
nance committee. Mr.. AtIc> asked the
city solicitor 10 produce the law under
which the finance committee assumed such
authority. The city solicitor did not pro
dnce the law.
Mr.. Brown, of counsel for the treasurer,
requested the CITY solicitor to go into court
and have ii,c legality Of the proceedings
tested. The solicitor declined to do 50.
affirming he legality of the suspension of
the treasurer a,:! the legal possession of his
Office by the finance committee. Mr..
Brown thcvcupon told the treasurer to
protect the safe and the books and papers
OF the city, from any quarter. to the ex-
tent OF shooting, il necessary Treasurer
Wcichans said lie would do SO, and plac-
ing himself i'll front Of the safe, drew Il
revolver from his pocket, and laid
it on the desk IN front of him. The
trcasurer's counsel then retired, and as
they were going cut of the door the treas
,,-l,,t h, ,l, Il
mob in his office. Ills counsel told him
there, bat as Ills Office was public one,
open to the public, he had better not use
force, unies, they interfe,ed with him.
After Mcssrs. Atlce and Brown had left
the Office, the city solicitor demanded the
keys, books. papers, &c. from the treas
Grcr. The treasurer refused to give them
up. The solicitor then ordered the treas
urcr TO leave the Office. The treasurer
smiled blandly and declined to go.
Thus matters remained for some little
time. the treasurer holding the committee
at bay by force Of arms. solicitor and
committee putting their heads together
and consulting occasionally in the back
Office, Alderman Barr quietly occupying a
scat at the .reasuIer's desk, the reporters
alert to catch at anything OF interest, the
police on hand to keep the peace, and Il
few interested spectators seated on the
Office settees. The happiest looking man
in the party was select Councilman Bur-
ing, of the Ninth ward.
About II o'clock Messcs. Atlce and
Brown returned to the Office and stated
that as tic city solicitor had refused to 90
into court, as they thought he ought to do,
they had, after consultation. determined 10
go into court themselves. and 4. soon as
they could do SO, which would not per-
l,aps I've more than two hours, they would
prepare aud file q bill in equity asking the
court 30 restrain and enjoin the finance
committee from furter interference with
the duties OF the city treasurer. In the
meantime they cautioned the treasurer to
l.ol! the fort, and neither to take away
from the Office any books, papers or other
valuab!es. or permit any one else to do So.
After 4 rather angry coloquy between
ex-Mayor Atlec and Select Councilman
Eberly the party separated. leaving the
treasurer and Alderman Barr on guard.
The Legal Proceedings.
Lawyers At.ee and Brown presented ia
Judge Livingston in chambers petition
setting forth the above facts and asked for
an injunction against the city and all or
any of its agents. 10 prevent them or any
of them from interfering with the city
treasurer in any way in the discharge OF
his duties. A preliminary Injunction WAS
granted. City Solicitor lands and At
torncys D. G. Eshleman and G.. NJ. Kline,
engaged to assist him, moved to dissolve
the Injunction and this motion will be
argued next Tuesday at 2p. m.
Until then affairs will remain IN statu
gao antC tClIum.
The Law.
The act of April ). 1861, Sec. 25, as al
tered by the act of May 90, 1913, under
which the finance committee act, says:
"The said treasurer shall verify his cash
account at least once in every month. to
the satisfaction of 4 standing committee
Of councils, and upon the affidavit of a
ina jOrity Of such committee to any default
therein, the said treasurer may be sus-
pended from Office, and another appointed
until the further action Of councils and
the said treasurer, at the expiration of his
term of Office, shall deliver all moneys,
books and papers in his hauds belonging
to the said Office TO his successor in Office
Lancaster County at Harrisburg.
In the distribution Of the House patron
age, at Harrisburg, Alfred ID. Grosh, of
Mannheim, this county, was made an assist
ant doorkcepcr, and Valentine Nicely. of
Concstoga, a paster and folder. The
Democrats voted for Charles L. Green, of
this city, for assistant postmaster.
In the Senate Mr.. Mylin offered a reso-
luton that a new standing committee, to
be known rs the committee on insurance,