The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-11-12
TACKLED THE LAW
MRS. LEASES HUSBAND Is THE LAT
EST CONSTRUCTIVE PRISONER
He has Locked Horns with the State, but In q
Friendly Way-He Proposes to have the
Same Privileges that Railroad Corpora
tions Enjoy and He VIII have Them il
there be Any Virtue in the Constitution
Complaint Made Against Him by Presi-
dent Lawrence of the State Board of
Pharmacy.

Charles L. Lease does not propose to
have his wife monopolize all the belli-
gerency of the family. No, not by a
great deal.
Mr.. Lease few days ago put a big
chip on his shoulder and invited Mr..
Attorney General Dawes, he of many
tastes and faces, to knock it off,
The result of this declaration of war
on the part of Mr.. Lease was that
he was cited to appear before Justice
Walker yesterday, and is now con-
structively a prisoner.
The arrest was made in diplomatic
way. No constable or high sheriff was
sent after Mr.. Lease to drag him up be-
fore offended Justice. He was informed
by a polite note that a complaint had
been made against him and for him to
kindly come UP and be arrested which
he did when he got time.
The complaint was made in a friendly
spirit by Charles Lawrence, president
Of the state board of pharmacy.
As is we'll known Mr.. Lease is a drug
gist. Not a puny, youthful, dreamy
druggist, but a pharmacist of the old
school who can tell simple syrup from
cod liver oil two blocks away. He has
always been a registered druggist until
about two years ago when he went out
of business. There is law in the sta
tute book providing for the mainte-
nance of a state board of pharmacy by
the licensed druggists of the state. In
other words no man can legally COM
pound drugs unless he pays a fee of so
cents a year toward the support of this
board When Mr.. Lease went out of
business he quit paying the annual
Zee and by the operation of the law he
was placed outside the pale of a legiti-
mate pharmacist. He resumed bust
ness about a week ago and his attention
was called to the law.
Now, then, everybody who knows
Charlie Lease knows that he cares no
more for fifty cents than same people
do for a penny, but he saw that there
was constitutional right involved.
Some years ago the state board of rail-
road commissioners was maintained by
a certain tax on railroad corporations
and one of the railroad companies of the
state attacked the law on the ground
of it's uaconstitutionaiity, alleging that
a law compelling one class of people TO
support a state Institution was class
legislation and hence unconstitutional.
The result was that the case went to
the supreme court and was decided in
favor of the railroad corporations. Mr..
Lease thinks that if it is not constitu-
tional for the railroad companies TO
support the state board of railroad COM
missioners ii is not constitutional for
the druggists of the state to support
the state board of pharmacy.
1t was at first stated that Mrs. Lease,
who is quite a constitutional lawyer,
would defend her husband, and she
probably will do a great deal toward
enabling the "old man" to carry his
point, but to the outside world Otto
Eckstein will be his defender in the suit.
The caseof course will be carried TO
the supreme court unless Judge Wal
ker takes it upon himself to declare it
unconstitutional.
While Mr.. Lease is constructively
sleeping on a cold cot in a cherries
cage in the county bastile, he is reality
sleeping in a cosy featherbed in his own
castle cheered by the smiles of his low
ed ones.