The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1886-10-21
THE COURT HOUSE PROPOSITION.
Statement by the Commitsce, Showing
Briefly the Importance
OF Carrying the Proposition % BuIld q
New Court House and JAN.


New Court House and JAN.
The Title to the Free site Thoroughly
Examined and Declared Coed.
The Cost Of the B1ildIags Not to Exceed
the Sum Voted.
To the voters OF Lyon county:
Alta lsrgelv attended msetiAg ct the
citizens OF Lyon county. held ct the
court house on Friday evening. October
18th, the undersigned were appointed >
committee to bring fairly before the Vo-
tiers Of the county the pen ling PROPOSE
ton, submitted by the county commits
sioners and to be voted on at the general
election to be held November and. 1856
authorizing the county commissioners
of Lyon county t. issue the bonds Of said
county in q gun, not to exceed eighty
thousand dollars, ESQ, 600 } for the pur
pose of erecting new court house and
Jail upon new site-said bonds to be
payable in not less than ten nor more
than twenty years from the date thereof,
rot to be sold for less than their par
value, and TO be on interest at q rate
not exceeding five (5) per cent per an
mum.
Believing, that upon ali questions Of
pubic policy there should be the fullest
light, TO the end that the voters may act
intelligently, and recognizing the fact
that but few days remain before you
will be called upon to cast your ballots
upon this proposition, we have deemed
it our duty TO issue this circular, giving
such information as we have been ena-
bled to secure from whst we consider
reliable sources bearing upon the ques-
ton and such reasons for its favorable
cORsidera ion as impress our minds and
leave the responsibility for the issue
where 1t belongs, with the people:
l. We hsve . court house that is too
small 10 accommodate the county Cffl-
cers-ss least TWO Of them hsve been
provided with rooms outside-fcr which
the county is paying rent,
ana these having business in the
court house know how cramped, and in
scn3e cssee, how entirely inadequate, Is
the space allotted to otbers-it Is not
putting il too strongly to say that there
is not sufficient room for the safe. speedy
and economical transaction of the busi-
ness in single one of the county Cffi-
ces.
2. The want of suitable protection
against destruction by fire for the records
Of the county, including those Of the
CO unity clerk, clerk Of the district court,
county treasurer and probate judge; de-
msnd that some hing be done immediate
ly. With the sole exception of the vault
provided in the flee of the register OF
d; eds, there Is no sufficient protection to
any Of the records. And in the cffis 3 Of
the clerk Of the district court there is alb
solutely nothing better than pine boards,
70 stand between those valuable records
and destruction by fire. That there IL
danger from that source, it is only nee
esssry to say, that the present building
has been on fire at least three times with
in the past two years, and at least once,
came very near proving disastrous.
In our opinion the citizens OF this
county can i'll sfford to longer run the
risk Of losing their valuable records, or
hi We them IL such jeopardy az at pres
ent.
The interior construction of the present
building, being lGth and plaster partitions
without auy brick or stone walls, would
conduce greatly to the rapid spread Of q
fire once fairly started.
8. The unsafe condition OF the build
ing, which rendered necessary the build
ing of an abu.ment on the outside. and
the pla ing Of rods through the building
10 prevent further spreading, is we'll
known, but how long that prec&utiOn
may render 1t safe is problematical.
4. The accommodations within the
present building for 8 court, OF
for the health or comfort Of
the officers of the court and the jury, are
to say the least not creditsble to cOun-
iy Of nearly twenty five thousand people
In state like Kansas. In It's present 10
cation the court is subjected to q contin-
uing annoyance and interruption Of il
business from the noise of passing trsinl
on the A. T. 6 s. 2 railroad which passes
Immediately to the south Of the building
an annoyance that ia increasing daily and
often delays the business Of the court.
5. Bat when we come TO the basement
Of this building where are located the
county jail and iaiier's residence We find
that the stencil of which pervades the eff.
ces above, but the actual presence IL re.
pulsive to every citizen possessed Of hu.
man feelings for his fel!o ws, even IL they
have fallen under the strong arm Of the
law. This institution, the jail, has falle1
under the condemnation Of the board o.
county commissioners, grand jurors, ply
sieiane, ministers Of the gospel, philAn-
thropists and good citizens Of ever
rank, and Is g foul blot upon the reputa.
ton of our people. rs dark, damp, fou
atmosphere reeking WITH the stencil it Il
impossible to prevent, for want Of suita.
bic drainage and Ventilation, Is constant.
IL breeding disease, and in more than Ont
case Is Is testified to by lawyers and ply.
sicians, have men gone forth from I'll
walls TO die or broken in health by req.
SON Of the seeds Of disease contracted with
in It. To say that men should not per.
NIT themselves TO be immured in such :
place does not relieve rs as citizens from
responsibility in this regard. A comm0I
humanity demands human treatment 70
even cTiminslE-but too often IL
true that other than the aetua
criminal, hardened and laW-defying. i
brought within its confines. More thai
this, common decency demands that pro
vision be made whereby the sane and In
sane, or males and females, or the nm
fortunate and desperately vicious, ms
be kept in separate wards Or apart
ments, for none Of which is proyisiOl
made In Lyon county jail. All admi
the necessity for radical change in thi
department, and All equally eoncede tina
material improvement in the present ia
"a an impossibilisy.
The time was when Lyon county
court house and jail might have bee
considered sufficient as to room, Il nc
provided with safeguards against nre