St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-12-21
THAT In. LION.
Two Factions DISCUSS the Court
House in Open Court. y

House in Open Court.
The main matter for attraction at the
court house yesterday was the hearing
of the application for an injunction
against the court honse and city hall
commission, filed few days ago. at the
instigation. of Dorillus Morrison and
others. The intention at first had been
to have the matter heard Monday before
the full bench, but all parties finally
agreed to refer the matter to Judge
Lochren, to whom it was argued and
who took 1t under advisement. The
gathering was representative one,
many prominent members of the board
OF trade being present aside from the
commission. which was out in force.
Judge Daniel Fish opened up the argu-
ment for the defense with an eXpiana-
ton that the movement was not intend
ed so much as legal battle, as desire
to see that everything was done for the
best good of the greatest number.
He then read the petition, after which
he explained his side of the question at
great length: ''The petitioners say
to the board" said he, .syou
were given Sl,5OO.OOO to spend
in erecting court house aud turning it
over completed to the public. You
have gone ahead and spent that money
and when you are done you are not go
ing 20 have a completed court house.
and therefore. all the money that YOU
have spent in erecting this building has
been wasted and thrown away, simply
for the reason that the building was not
completed for the 81, 500, 0O0." They take
the ground that should the county ever
again want to go into building a court
house they would have to buy new
piece of land and begin over
again. They don't state that the
commission is building the court
house too high or too broad or
that they are finishing it too elegantly,
or anything of that kind. 1t. doesn't
charge the board with extravaganza.
None OF these questions come into the
matter whatever. The only trouble is
that there is said to be limit here of
Sl,50O,000, within which the structure
must be completed. Here is the point.
Now if it should be found out that there
is no limit then the case of these petit
TONERS is entirely done away"
He then read the act creating the
board. 1t showed that there had been
] no limit placed upon the amount to he
expended. He thought it queer that
| the gentlemen of the legislature who
lived far away on farms anu i'm villages
should assume 10 say now much should
| be spent upon the building. IL was a
matter about which they knew nothing.
The petitioners did not pretend that the
taxpayers could not afford to pay for the
building. He closed by stating that it
was not within the province of the leg
| iSlature to fix tue cost of the building,
| as the board had been created for that
| purpose among other things.
| A. b. Jackson, for the petitioners.
stated his side of the case in much
| shorter order. He stated that the pc
tition had been drawn solely to de-
termine the question of authority. This
was the one point at issue before the
court, and the only point to be decided.
| According to the claim of the board it
had right to go ahead to
| any extent it might see fit, as there was
no limit save its own discretion and
good sense. His clients had no inten-
ton of stopping the work, but they
wanted a limit fixed, and from their
standpoint the 81, 100000 mark was that
| limit.
Judge Fish closed with brief re-
hinder in answer that the board was a
| fit body to attend to the matter, and NO
one had the right to dictate to that body.
Judge Lochren will render his decision
in few days.