Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1899-10-17

| ed. Unable to remove the records
after safely on train. because of the
riotous Fultonites, who delayed the
train until another Injunction was
procured from the same master, the
| second attempt to remove the Office
had to be also temporarily abandoned
until the Injunction was dissolved.
. This injunction was dissolved along
I with others, until the officers of the
Woodmen secured an injunction re-
| straining the people OF Fulton, and
the master in chancerv, from inter-
| fering with the removal OF the records,
but even after this injunction was is
sued the same master issued still an
other in junction and the attorneys
for the Fultonites went before Judge
jenkins in the federal court and got
a temporary restraining order pre-
venting the removal. This case in
in the federal court came up for hear
ing before Judge Showalter, in Chica-
90, and for four days he gave it very
careful and exhaustive hearing. After
thus carefully going over the case on
its merits. in which the Fulton people
were heard for nearly three days,
Judge Showalter refused to grant an
injunction and told them there was
nothing to their case. The last in
junction of the Whiteside county
master was then dissolved and condi-
tions so changed by Judge Gest going
into Whiteside county, that he was
powerless to issue another and then
the records were removed to this city
on the last day of September, 1897.
Later the cases were consolidated and
heard before Judge Bigelow at Nor
rison. He dissolved the injunctions
and an appeal was taken. The
supreme court has now decided
the worth of the Whiteside master in
chancery inJunctions.
The Victorious AttorneSs.
Probably 10 one man in or out of
the order will read the decision of the
court with greater satisfaction than
j. e.. johnson, the former general at
tornev of the NJ. W. of A. 1T is near
lv seven years since he filed the first
pleading in the case on behalf of the
order, and he had it for breakfast, dim
ner and supper every day there
after until few months ago.
He staid with it through eight
suits in the state courts. one in the
United States circuit court, one hear |
ing in the appellate court and two in
the supreme court. He has been ar
rested and imprisoned on account of |
it, narrowly escaped lynching, in
dicted. and on hearing. discharged, |
and all our citizens who were at Full |
ton on the evening of the 18th of Aug
ust. 1897, agree that no soldier who |
went up San Juan hill ever faced i'm |
minent death with more personal |
courage that Mr.. johnson displayed |
in that affair. He has special reason
to rejoice in the final triumph of the |
cause he so persistentlv fought for.
Associated with Mr.. johnson |
throughout the tedious and what ap-
peared at times to be never-ending |
proceedings. and rendering abe and |
faithful service on behalf of Rock ISL
and, was Hon. William Jackson, than
whom no one has a greater right to
rejoice over the ultimate disposition ]
of the matter. There have been few
cases in the history of Jurisprudence
in which so many and such compli-
cation of fine points of law were in
volved. or where the proceedings were
fought step by step throughout one
long hot summer with so much earnest
ness, and at times from the Fulton
a war of ever-changing scenes and sit
The attorneys were obliged |
to be ever on the alert. ready to meet
new issues daily and prepared to jump
at an instant 5 notice from the court
of a master in chancery into the pres
ence of United States Justice. 1t
was 4 case that tried not only the
legal capacity of the attorneys who
repres ented the WOodmen order and
Rock Island, but it tried their courage
"a well.
All the people of Rock Island. who
have since the removal of the Wood
men office here found that they build
ed better than they knew when they
went after it, and that it was worth all
that was expended and risked to Sc
cure it, and the Woodmen order whose
have labored denergetically
to the end, will rejoice that the courts
have gi9en victory to their cause.