The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1899-08-24
HIRE MORE LAWYERS.
City Hall Opponents Growing
More Desperate.

The city hall opponents have begun
to look around for some way to enjoin
the city hall bonds after they are voted.
With this in view they have employed
David Overmyer and A. H. Vance to
assist G. G. Clemens in their next move.
A committee consisting of John Wilker-
son, ]. B. Billiard and Thomas NOIand
got together Wednesday afternoon to
see about employing additional lawyers
but they ran up against two PROPOSE
tions: One was that Will1erson is
Prohibition Republican and he wanted
to employ Mr. Vance, a prohibition
lawyer; VOiland is a Democrat and he
wanted to employ Overmyer, while Bill
lard as a POpulist, wanted to retain
Clemens. They finally decided to en-
ploy all three, but the question OF
funds stood in the way. However,
Clemens is getting rather tired OF
standing in the way of progress, ana
it is said that he viii not have much
to do with the future movements OF the
obstructioniSts. His firm will still be
in their employ, but he viii leave most
of the active work to be done by his
partner, Clarence Nelly, a young ana
inexperienced attorney.
Last night a written request was
served on City Attorney Bird asking
him to begin action in the courts
against Mayor Drew and the members
of the city council to make them per-
sonally liable for the amount of money
expended in purchasing the new site
for the city hall The request was sign
ed by Billiard, Wilkerson, Voiland and
Archie Baird. It was simply a matter
of form. as they knew that Mr. Bird
would do nothing of the kind, as the
purchase of the site has been perfectly
The next move will be to bring a
mandamus act on in the district court
to compel Mr.. Bird to do as requested.
The claim of the ObstructioniSts in do
ing this will be that the money with
which the site was purchased belonged
70 fTn nd hot
the council had no right to take it
from that fund to purchase real estate.
Lawyers generally are of the opinion
that the money derived from the sale
of the old city hall has no connection
with the general revenue fund at all
The following from the Lawrence
Journal is worthy of consideration:
Topeka is in the throes of a NUM-
cipal election, called for the purpose Of
voting bonds for an auditorium 1t ap-
pears there are serious objections in
Topeka, to auditorium bonds. But how
to get an auditorium without bonds IS
a question they do not appear to be able
to answer. The fact is they are Op-
posed to an auditorium, those people
who opposes the bonds, and in opposing
both they are making OF themselves en-
emies of the town in which they live.
If there is any city in the great middle
west that is sOrely in need of great
big building that will accommodate
large crowd of people, that city is To-
peka. The capital of the state has lost
a great many gatherings of Importance
because it had no place for the crowd
to meet. And in the future it will lose
a great many more unless a place. is
provided. 1t is a matter OF business as
well as local and state pride for Topeka
to have a public building large enough
to accommodate state conventions, and
state gatherings of all kinds. Even il
there was not a dollar in it for them,
still the people of Topeka should have
pride enough to provide accommOda-
lions for guests. But there is money
in it, money enough every year to build
the auditorium. To refuse to erect it
will be a policy so hort-sighted and so
suicidal that it does not for moment
seem possible that votes will be cast
against the proposition"