Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1896-06-02
WOODMEN, VICTORY
The Decision of Judge Shaw
in the Morrison Court.
FULToSITEs COMPLETELY BEATEN.

FULT0NITES COMPLETELY BEATEN.
The Court More Convinced of the Justice
Of Rock Isl.ad's Position the More He
Head Once Litigation.
William jackson has returned from
Fulton where he appeared rs associate
counsel with j. e. johnson for the
Modern WOodmeu of America in the bill
for injunction dismissal before Judge
Shaw yesterday in the circuit court
at Morrison. The victory for the
Woodmen is complete, and while an
appeal is taken aud the injunction
continued in effect and $1,000
in bonds are furnished. Mr.. Jackson
says that Judge Shaw went over the
ground so thoroughly and exhaust
lively that he can see no reason to feel
that the appeal will result otherwise
than in ultimate triumph for the
order. although the delay pending
the hearing in the higher court is
vexatious and annoying. Judge
Shaw said at the opening of his ruling
that his first impression was that the
petitioners for the dismissal had no
standing, but that the more he had
looked into the matter, the more
convinced he became that the il juno
ton could not be sustained. He held
that the Fulton people had no equit-
able ground for relief, and in review
ing the acts of the legislature OF 1898
he maintained that the desire of the
order to move its head office was not
in conflict with the law either by in
tent or implication and that no single
section could be taken out to bear
expressly on this case. but the pur-
pose of the law as a whole, and as it
governs all cases must stand.
History of the Removal Question.
The history of the head Office re-
moval question has been frequently
told in The ARGUS, and it will suffice
here to say, that the session of the
head camp at Omaha in the summer
of 1892 ordered the offices removed
from Fulton to Rock Island. In No
vember of the same year an injunc-
ton was sought and secured in the
Whiteside county circuit court re-
straining the order from changing
the location OF its Offices, on the
ground that the proceedings of the
Omaha meeting, having been con-
Quoted outside OF the state, were not
valid. II is this injunction which is
still in force. IL was also con-
tended that a two-thirds vote OF the
delegates to the head camp was nee
essary to move the Offices, and that
the decision reached at Omaha was
not based on such a vote. The order
interposed a demurrer at once set
ting forth that the grounds set up in
the bill OF the Fulton citizens were
insufficient and moved to dissolve the
injunction. Judge Crabtree, before
whom the arguments were made,
however, sustained the injunction,
holding chiefly that the acton was
void on the ground that two-thirds
vote Of the delegates to the Omaha
meeting had not been taken on the
removal question. In this view OF
the case there was nothing to do but
await the next meeting of the head
camp and revOte on the proposition,
which was done at the Madison head
camp meeting year ago this month.
and then by more than a two-thirds
vote the delegates decided again
to move to Rock Island. Fulton went
into competition before that meeting
and was overwhelmingly defeated.
Thus this point was covered.
In the meantime, however, the
order secured the passage of an act
before the Illinois Legislature amend
ing the statutory provisions under
which the order was incorporated.
expressly providing that any society
organized or doing business under
| the act may transact any business
outside of the state of Illinois and
also legalizing any business SO trans
acted outside OF the state prior
thereto. A subsequent amendment
was. however, also secured in the in
terest OF the people of Fulton enforc-
ing the application Of this provision
to all cases except as to the head
Office removal. The direct contention
on this point was that the relocation
of the head Office was an amendment
OF the bylaws, not the charter, and
hence the section of the law of the
order had no application.
The Last Coort Proceedings.
The order having at the Madi.
son meeting overcome the objection
as to the two-thirds vote, and rati-
fled to the letter of the law the ex.
pressed will of the order. there was
nothing left to be done but to take
up the hearing and construction oil
the legislative amendment. Hence
the proceedings before Judge Shaw
on which the ruling OF yesterday was
made, also favorable to the order.