Omaha daily bee., 1890-05-19
A DIFFERENCE OF OPINION.
Can an Original Package be Opened by the
Liquor Dealer
HAUNTED BY SINS OF THE PAST
A Case in the Supreme Court that is
Viewed With Alarm by the Rail-
roads-Soyereign's Questions
-Iowa's Bar.

| cision still continues. But the original pack
| ages themselves are coming into the state
| faster than ever. A large number of stores
| have already been opened for the sale of
| liquor in this form, and the number is con-
stantly increasing. The usual construction
put upon the decision is that it permits the
sale of liquor by an agent of the non resident
importer in cases or bottles of the usual size
employed in that traffic; that such liquor
must be taken away, and cannot be opened
and drank upon the premises after the saloon
style. That is the usual idea But some
lawyers are insisting that it can be opened
upon the premises by the seller and be sup
piled by the glass to the purchaser provided
that the amount that he buys was put up in
separate bottle, even if it did not hold more
than two ounces.
In order to know just what the Iowa courts
understand by an original package, reference
has been made to a decision of the superior
court delivered in January 1889, in q case in
volving this distinction A subordinate court
at keokuk had held that dealer who i'm
ported beer by the case could sell it by the
case, but if he imported several bottles of
whisky packed in barrels, he couldn't sell
the bottles separately The Iowa supreme
court overrules the finding and says there is
no good ground for the distinction. 1t saws
that the only question to be considered was
as to whether the man had right to import
liquors for sale and sell them. If he had that
right it would make no difference in what
shape he imported his liQuor whether in bot
ties packed in barrels or stacked up in the
side of a car That would be u matter of
convenience to be settled by himself, says the
court.
From this it would be inferred that in the
opinion OF the Iowa supreme court an orig
inal package was an original package in any
shape or form in which it was put up and
that tive-ounce bottles or five-gallon bottles,
whether shipped separately or brought in
barrels or boxes, would be regarded as
original packages subject to sale by the non
resident importer. The decision referred to
was written by Judge Reed now congress-
man from the Council Bluffs district.
CASE OF IMPORTANCE.
The supreme court has before it again a
case of great Importance to the railroads. 1t
Is what Is known as the rebate case from Jas
per county. A shipper there has brought
suit against the Rock Island to recover the
difference between what he had paid for
shipments and what other shippers favored
by rebates had paid. The suit has nothing to
do with the present railroad law, but goes
back to the days when railroads were accus-
toned to give rebates to favored localities and
favored shippers. This suit is brought under
the common law, in the absence of any spe-
clal statute covering the case at the time when
the determinations were made. This ship
per claims that the common law forbids un-
reasonable charges, and since other shippers
in the same town received by means of re-
bates lower rate than he, this is proof, he
thinks, that the rate charged him was un-
reasonable. The district court of Jasper
county gave him verdict and the supreme
court sustained the decision at the
last preceding term. Now the railroads
ask for rehearing and the case was re-
opened last week. They admit the rebates,
but they claim that the system of rebates in
those days was considered right and proper,
and was regarded as necessary and reasona-
BILE arrangement to stimulate business They
also plead the statute of limitations. The
companies are very much concerned over this
case.' If it is sustained, 1t means that the
gates will be opened to flood of suits of sfini-
lar character, as rebates were very common
in this state six or eight years ago. Already
suits claiming in the aggregate $3.50, 900 have
been begun against the Chicago q Northwest
ern railroad. The superior court has taken
the case under advisement and decision
will probably be rendered during the present
term. If it is the same as before, a large
number of shippers will at once begin similar
suits to recover for what they call unreason-
able charges during the old days of rebates.
sovEREIGN's QUESTIONS.
Labor Commissioner Sovereign is making a
special effort to secure statistical information
that will be of interest to the farmers He
has prepared number of questions to be sent
to the farmers alliances of the state. Among
them are the following: What should be the
to net per cent profit on the investment,
basing the calculations on the average cost of
production, the average value of land and the
average yield per acre since lSS5l Has the
general range of farm products sold above or
below the cost of production since 1885?
What kind of farm products have sold at a
profit since 1885 and what kind at loss since
that time! How many out of every ten
farmers are prevented by the pressure of
their debts from holding their grain and
other products for the best market
prices' What per cent of farmers
have lost their farms by mortgage
foreclosure since 1880! What per cent of farm f,
laborers have been displaced by labor-saving
machinery since 1870. What is the average
wages paid farm laborers per month during
the busy season from April to November /!
What is the average number of hours per |
day farmers and farm laborers work during
the busy seasons What profit have farmers
received upon the labor of hired men since |
1851 Five thousand dollars loaned at S per
cent for ten years, compounded semi-an-
nually, which is the rule of most loan and |
mortgage companies, returns profit of s., $50, |
without depreciating the principal. Has a |
like sum invested in farming returned as
much profit, us rule, from 1880 to lS00t If it |
has returned greater profit, state how |
much greater. If it has returned u less profit, |
state how much less. What per cent of |
farmers children between the ages of eight |
and sixteen are kept from school TO do farm |
labort What is the average number of school |
uuyS lOSJ per year 10 Cnllufen Kept from |
school to do farm laborl"
THE IOWA BAR.
1t is becoming more difficult each year to be |
admitted to the Iowa bar. Applicants are |
now compelled to spend two years in study |
and then stand an examination before the |
supreme court. This examination is no easv |
matter and it seems to be getting more dinf- |
cult every year. When the present term of |
the supreme court convened there We're
nearly thirty candidates for admission, in
cludng one lady. They were given very
rigid examination first before a committee Of
lawyers appointed by the court and then be-
fore the supreme court itself. The result was
that only twenty-three of them passed The
names of the successful are as follows: Jacob
Beebc NintOn; A. j. Batchelder, Sioux CITY;
w. Il, Copeland, Extra; Cyrus h. Cooper,
Mapleton; Earl Edmunds, Correctonyille;
II, d. Hastie, Des Moines; Samuel +. Henry,
Council Bluffs; l.. " Harpel, Des Moines;
James H., Jamison, Osceola; d. A. Long, |
Waverly; Oscar Middlekauh, Sioux City;
Rube McFeren, Webster City; julius Pingel,
Dcs Momes; Orion G.. Pope, Fontanclle: Bert
Ready, Trear; John II. Vaughn, Usage;
George 4. Watson, Delhi; u. G.. Whitney, |
Union; Samuel ). Wright, Nashua; Nathan
10: Kendall, Osceola; ii. |. Pcrkoy Iowa
CITY; w. z. Anderson, Fort Madison; Ed l..
Fletcher, Des Moines.
DEATH RATE STATISTICS.