Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1900-10-04
NOTES FROM THE CAPITAL

Des Moines. October 1, 1900.
+. S. Ellsworth of Iowa Falls, who
IS the president of the proposed Des
Moines, Iowa Falls & Northern rail-
road, was in the city meeting with
some of the promoters of the Duluth
Il New Orleans road relative 10 the
retirement from the field of the lat
ter company. THE Des Moines az
Iowa Falls road is certainty at any
time that we are confident that the
other road has been given up" said
Mr.. Ellsworth. 1T would be impos.
sible to do anything with the bonds
of our road while the other road was
being planned and work was being
done on its construction. No east
ern bond house would take the bonds
with the possibility of any trouble
arising. The consequence is that we
have lost all the best of this year,
while the Duluth Il New Orleans
company has been going ahead and
spending money continually. | m-
derstand that about $1,000 per month
has been expended ON the work that
has been done. If they are now
ready to give up the road we will go
right ahead with ours. and will have
some of the work done before win
ter stops us. A corps of engineers
was kept in the field all last year,
but nothing has been done this year
and nothing will be done unless we
are definitely assured that the Other
road is out of the way"
Representatives of two voting ma
-, M,t,
trying to induce the county board of
supervisors to adopt their respective
machines for use in this county. They
are the Climax company, represented
by +. 4. Miller of Franklin Grove,
ILL.,, and the Standard company, rep
resented by Mr.. Gillespie of Atlantic.
The Climax people feel confident of
selling their machine, if the board
decides to purchase machines for the
county. The voting machine commits :
sion appointed by Governor Shaw last
winter inspected the Climax at Cedar
Rapids about week ago, and de-
clared that ii fulfilled the require
ments of the statute. The Standard
has not been passed on. but it will
probably be submitted to the COM
mission shortly.
The Bonaparte dam case will be
neard from at the coming session of
the supreme court, the case having
been advanced upon the calendar by
request. The lionaparte dam case will
be remembered as case against
Meek Bros. of Bonaparte, owners of
WOODEN mills operated in that city,
! which were run by water power Sc
cured from the dam on the Des
Moines river. Fishermen in the
| neighborhood of Bonaparte and up
the Des Moines river to Des Moines
complained that the dam INSTRUCTED
the free passage of fish up the river,
| and the Iowa Sportsman associa-
ton began an action to compel Meek
Bros. to remove the dam or to pro-
vide fishways adequate and suitable
for the river. The state of Iowa
joined with the plaintiffs, and the case
was bitterly contested. A verdict in
favor of the defendants was secured
in the lower court and the plaintiffs
at once appealed the case. The re-
cent advancement means that il will
receive early consideration at the
October term.
The investigation arising out of the
arrest of John w. Stone, superinten-
| lent of the industrial department in
the hospital at Mt. Pleasant for al
legged theft of supplies, has been near
ly brought to "A close by the board of
control. Judge Kline has just re-
turned from Mt Pleasant, where he
made the regular monthly inspection
of the hospital and took testimony.
Judge Kline, in speaking of the case,
refused to disclose what the testi-
mony indicated, but told what had
been done to make the examination a
| thorough one. While at Mt. Pleasant
he examined he employees, the super
intendent, the express agent and all
| persons that could have any know
ledge of Stones conduct as superin-
| tendent. lie also went to Burlington
| and made investigation there, since
| it had been charged Stone shipped
goods to Darlington. The cause of
the fire at Mt. Pleasant last Febru-
AIRY and the circumstances surround
ing it, were looked into with especial
| care, because of the allegations that
| the fire was started to hide thefts
| of state supplies. 1t is learned from
another source that the testimony
| thus far taken fails to prove that
| Stone had stolen any state supplies
| outside of those sent to Des Moines.
1t contains nothing to prove the
charge that the thefts extended over
a long period, and there is no evil
dence to show the fire last February
| was started Wy anyone or for the pur-
pose of coneealing thefts from the
state. There is no evidence that any
state supplies were shipped to Bur
| lington or to points other than Des
| Moines, and there is every indication
| the board will be able to make u
report based on the sworn statements
in its possession that will vindicate
the position it has all along taken in
| the matter.
HOWARD SENTENCED TO HANG