Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1899-10-17
The Supreme Decides for the Woodmen Order ard
Rock Island
IT KNOCKS OUT THE FULTON INJUNCTIoNs.
End at Of All Litigation Surrounding the Head Office
Removal.

iifving, for it means the removal
of every possible source of anxiety
and the absolute establishment of
peace as regards the orders perma-
nent home here. 1t is the coming to
an end of n warfare carried on by Full
ton in the courts since 1892. Rock
| Island has won the location of the
| mead office from three head camps Of
the Woodmen order, those of Omaha,
! Madison and Dubuque, and Just as
often as the great order has said that
| its head Office should be taken out of
Fulton the people of that place have
said that it should not. and rather
than to have the order carry out its
expressed and repeated wish and in
teution. the town has involved the So
ciety in litigation and resisted to the
point of mob violence the carrying
out of the stand of the order and rul-
ing of the courts.
When the Trouble Began.
In 1892, at Omaha, the lawmaking
body of the society decided to remove
the headquarters of the society from
Fulton to Rock Island Technically
this action was Illegal. under the III
nOis laws. The people of Fulton took
in unctiOn proceedings, threw the
matter into the courts, instead of be-
ing willing to abide by the will of the
majority as expressed through the
regularly constituted lawmaking body
Of the order. Remedial legislation
was procured which il was believed
would correct this technicality, and
again at a head camp meeting neld at
by an almost unanimous vote of its
delegates, again declared in favor of
removing the headquarters from Full
ton to Rock Island. The injunction
was then pressed for a hearing and the
society was successful in both the cir
cult and appellate courts. Fulton
appealed to the supreme court and tine
society met an adverse decision and
was restrained from removing under
the action of the Omaha and Madison
head camps, on another technica,itv.
The supreme court. in rendering its
decision. gave directions whereby the
technical objections could be RENE
died, and this was done by an act of
the Illinois legislature in 1897,
this emergency legislation being
secured through the efforts and influ-
ence of Lieut.-Gov. Northcott, head
consul of the order, in the senate,
and of Representative William Nc
Entry in the house. Working under
these new conditions the head camp
at Dubuque, in June. 1897, for the
third time declared ii to be the almost
unanimous desire of the Modern
WoOdmen of America to remove the
headquarters from Fulton to Rock Isl
and. An attempt was made by the
board of directors to effect n removal
in February, 1897. before an appeal
was taken by the Fulton people To the
supreme court, but they were met
with armed resistance and prevented
by force from removing the records,
and another injunction was procured.
The Dubuque head camp was held
after this and the proceedings author
izing 4 removal were so carefully
drawn, in conformity with the new
law, that it was believed there could
be no further objections interposed by
the Fulton people, but these people
had no idea of letting the Sffice be
removed as long as they could hold it
b resorting TO any and all kinds Of
obs ,ructive tactics.