Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1897-04-01
EVENT in EVENING.
Close. Of Court House 0edica-
tory Ceremonies.
NEW BUILDING FULLY TAXED.

BeiliiAatly uluminaeod Wlthln and with. /
cat and An Were Pisassd Despite the
UaoemfostabIe CFovd-asa. n. 4. Alns-
woeth's Aadress-A bar Msssmg.
The new Rock Island county court
house stood as severe . test rs it
will Pre- badly be called upon to sus-
tain, last night. It is doubtful il
such . Jam Of people was ever con-
gregsted within the walls of any
building in the three cities before.
Indeed, there 10 no structure with
to accommodate such .
crowd. 1t is impossible to estimate
the number Of people who thronSed
the building for the evening exer-
cises, they were scattered 30 over the
aoorA, but estimates place the at
tendance at from 5000 to 10000
When the hour arrived for the brief
exercises to be held, the crowd, al
though good natured and taking the
situation philosophically, was sim
ply beyond the power Of human con-
troll. In vain Chairman Sturgeon,
of the committee on arrangements,
endeavored to make himself heard in
order to announce the ceremonies.
1t was simply an impossibility and
when States Attorney G. J. Searle
undertook to preside in accordance
with the duty that had been assigned
to him. he found hopeless task be-
fore him. He, however, managed to
present Hon. H. A. Ainsworth as the
speaker Of the evening. The latter
stood upon an improvised rostrum
on the first rotunda floor, and de-
spite the difficulties encountered,
succeeded remarkably well in MAX
ing himself heard.
Mr. Ainsworth's Address.
Mr.. Ainsworth spoke of the pride
which the court house should be to
every resident of Rock Island county.
He said that he had not maze any
preparation to deliver an address,
but as long as he was there, and ex-
pected to say something. he would
do SO. 1t seldom occurred to us, he
said. to think what the courts
amount to, and what significance at.
tsch to them in the light of human
development. We are so accustomed
to our courts and their methods of
procedure that they are taken as a
matter of course. II We 20 back to
state of savagery we fiad that the
strongest man took the property oil
his neighbor which he coveted. and
there was NO recourse for the matter.
In the course OF events we have
evolved a better system. Now when
man has been injured in his posses
sions or damaged in his person, in
stead of using bludgeon to right
his wrongs, he follows the law. In
the court he hears the other side and
has time to cool off. and even the
party against whom the decision il
rendered, invariably realizes the JUS
tice of it and contents himself with
cussing the court, and seldom, in.
deed. does he thereafter attempt ia
take the law in his own hands. We
can see this illustrated when some
particularly atrocious crime has beer
committed and the people in thu
excitement Of fierce anger are mo-
content to await the seemingly dila
tory methods of the court and insti
tute lynch law. They can never
have the assurance in these casel
that the right individual has beer
punished, and remorse must event
ually ensue to every one who had {
hand in the unlawful act. Will
rejoicing with others in the dedica
tion OF the new building, Mr.. Aims
worth said he could not help regret
ting parting with the old cour
house, the life of which has beef
closely identified with the histor
land development Of this section. Ii
CONCLUSION Mr.. Ainsworth espresso,
the hope that prosperity should eve
be the lot of Rock Island county.
The magnidcently trained Bee
thoven club. of Moline, under th
direction OF Prof. Davies, had sun
ION to the Battle" to open the prt
gram. the volume of sweetest ha,
mony swelling up through the corr
doris to all parts of the building
The chorus had planned to preser
other numbers, but after the diflicu
ties encountered in the rendition ,
the first selection, the singers wei
so walled in by people that the
could not see THAR leader, much lie:
bear the chords which were to dire
them. gave it up. Ogden's orchestI
continued to furnish music durir
the evening.
Boys Maks Trouble.
Much Of the discomforts Of Il
evening was due to the conduct Of
number OF boys. who took possessit
of the stairs from the main floor, al
by q series OF foot ball mapeuve
kept the crowd congestsd. except
such times as these young hoodlun
made q flying wedge. and then the
was pandemonium for . time. Al
on several of these occasions pan
seemed inevitable. The attentit
OF the police was finally directed
the eapers mentioned, and Cap
Kramer soon drove the cause OF q
disturbance from it's position and 9
tabl;shed . system Of moving fro
one floor to the other. going mp Of