Evening journal., 1897-05-20
THURSDAY. MAY 90, 1897.
THE ACKLAN pIvoRCE CAsE.

The House yesterday, Dy an over
whelming majority, decided that the
procedure by which the Acklan divorce
bill mad been indefinitely postponed
and killed was irregular. The record
shows that the bill had not been re-
ported to the House by the committee,
and therefore was not I'm the House at
the time the motion TO indefinitely
postpone was entertained, but was still
in the committee and under the COM
mittee's control until reported by the
committee to the House or called out
of the committee by the House, neither
OF which things had Deen done.
To the casual observer this may
seem to be a small matter and may
seem to be mere technicality-a pes
on which to hang an argument for a
reconsideration. To the legal mind,
and to the mind of anybody who has
aught to do with matters OF legisla-
ton or law, this technically" is a.
serious matter. A matter Of law or leg
islatlon is comparable TO perfectly
straight line any deviation from which
is fatal to public interests. Law is not
always Justice One person may have
a perfectly Just and equitable claim
against another, and yet may not have
the law on his side, and for that rea-
son the decision will go against him.
SO It is with the course of procedure
in the Acklan divorce case, and when
nTOrf.HnTo
was irregular it had nothing left to do
but TO expunge It from the record and
begin all over again. This it did and
thus the Acklan divorce bill Is de-
cided by the House to still be in the Dl-
vorce Committee. OF course the House
has the power to call the bill out OF
committee at any time and kill it. So
much for the action OF the House yes
terday. It did the proper thing in cor
recting an error.
Tho reoard nlsn shnwa thnt tho House
never had the bill under consideration
and therefore had no knowledge what
ever of the case other than the hear
say, drivel and rot OF lot of penny-a-
line newspaper fakirs who hang around
the legislative halls and magnify every
morsel of gossip which drops into their
way without making any pretense Of
verifying It.
The uncalled-for, ill-tempered and
highly-sensatlonal comments OF some
local newspapers who have arrogated
TO themselves all the virtues of the
profession, have assumed a holier-
than-thou attitude, and might be bet
ter employed in keeping their own
doorsSeps clean; who have had no op-
portunity OF knowing anything about
the case, but have prejudged it and
have taken the position that the bill
ought to be killed on general princi-
pies, had much to do with bringing
about the hasty action of the House
which. had it not been for its error
might have resulted in the burial alive
of the bill.
Now that the bill Is decided to b'
alive and Mrs. Acklan asks for hear
ing. which in all fairness she ought t
have had before action of any kline
was taken, let the House take the onl.
manly course and grant the hearing
hear the evidence. weigh 1t and dispos
OF the case purely on its merits, with
out regard to what has been said o
done by anybody. We do not know
Mrs. Acklan, nor have we been in an
manner approached in her behalf TIL
woman has no doubt bee
mistreated and misrepresented an
she should have an opportunity {
properly present her case, and if an
of the members of the House find tina
they have too hastily committed them
selves the only manly course will
for them to remedy their error. Near
while those papers and persons VIII
have been so assiduously engaged
personal attacks on the applcar
should suspend judgment until the ev
dence is All in.