Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1897-04-13

street commissioner and marshal Tor
the ensuing term.
Physicians who are in attendance
upon Alonzo Merchal, of Maxwell,
have given out a diagnosis of his case.
Merchal is 80 years of age. Before
the prohibition law was effective in
Iowa, he was hard drinker, but after
its enactment he stopped and for
several years was a tetotaler. Then
he formed the hard cider habit, drink
ing several quarts of the manufactured
stuff a day. The doctors say
mother of vinegar has formed in his
stomach, and surgical operation will
be necessary to remove it.
A fatal accident occurred at Smoky
Hollow mine, located between Fred
erick and Avery. Ed Johnson, who
lived at Frederick, and had worked
for two years at the Smoky Hollow
mines, was engaged in pouring pow
der from one can to another, and at
the same time was smoking a pipe. A
spark from his pipe dropped into the
powder, ignited it, and terrific ex-
ploslon occurred, which inflicted such
injuries on the un fortunate man that
he died in few hours Deceased
leaves a wife and one child.
A saloon fight that will probably end
fatally occurred at Luck & Gegner's
es tablishment, at 115 East Fifth street,
Des Moines. In quarrel, Carl Le-
veke, well known resident of the
east side, was struck on the head by a
beer glass, at the hands of Fred Reil.
Leveke's skull was crushed, and his
life is now despaired of. Rel is locked
up in the city Jail where he may be
held to answer to the charge of muir
der. Reil is a stone mason and brick
layer about so years old and is gen.
orally considered peaceable citizen.
He and Leveke quarreled over trivial
matter and the result is as stated
above.
At Fairmont, Mimi, the jury re-
turned a verdict of guilty of murder in
the first degree against Lewis Kei-
Than, who in company with his
brother killed the cashier of bank at
Sherburne while trying to rob it, and
recommended him to mercy. His
attorney asked for a stay of sentence
to prepare bill of exceptions. A
stay of sentence was granted until
April Il, when the argument will be
heard. Keliihan's brother committed
suicide when about to be captured by
his pursuers. The home of the
Kellihans was at Rock Rapids, Ia,
and Kellihan was defended by ii. e..
Mcmillan, chairman of the repu blican
state central committee.
Frank Rogers, of Lehigh, who was
about forty-five years old, drove from
his home in Lehigh to Dayton, a dis
lance of about six miles. He fingered
in the town longer than he should,
and when he started TO drive home at
about o'clock in the evening he was
well under the influence of liquor.
While driving across q bridge, about
two miles out of Dayton, he approached
too near the edge and the team and
buggy went over the embankment,
about sixteen feet high. Rogers was
carried with the buggy, and in his
helpless condition was killed, as was
also one of the horses. The body was
found the next morning and taken to
his wife, who is nearly FRUSTRATED with
grief over her husbands untimely
death.
Arthur Courtney, the notorious
Henry county farmer who robbed
farmers by wholesale, has given up
the fight after an almost endless series
of sensational episodes. He pleaded
guilty to three indictments for grand
larceny. On one he was convicted and
is under sentence to eighteen months
in the penitentiary. The pleas Of
guilty were the result ofan agreement
with the state, by which he is to get
six years in prison. His accomplice,
Sam Earhart, who confessed and
implicated him, is to get two years.
and the other charges are withdrawn.
There were four other untried charges.
The stealings of the pair consisted of
live stock and every thing movable on
farms in the vicinity, and amounted to
thousands of dollars. Courtney was
very prominent and highly esteemed
before his connection with the thefts.
Judge Holmes, of the district court
of Polk county, recently handed down
a decision in the case of the state
against John Weber, Jr., in which he
holds that saloonkeepers must file at
the beginning of each year new reso-
lutions of consent from the city council
and from the adjacent property
owners, and new bonds of sureties, in
order to comply with the mulct law
and escape prosecution under the
prohibitory law for keeping a nuisance.
The Judge gives the saloonkeepers of
Des Moines-all of whom are selling
in violation of the law as interpreted
by him-twenty days in which to file
these new consent resolutions from
city and property owners, and new
bonds. After twenty days the county
attorney will proceed under this