The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-07-22
WHO is IN CONTROL?

An unfortunate disagreement has eX-
listed for some time past with reference
to the extent of the powers of the COM
mittee which, under the city charter,
has charge of the city hall building.
That disagreement found expression. in
these columns yesterday through a
quoted statement of Mayor Smith, who
is ex-officio a member and chairman
of the committee mentioned. 1t arisoy
out of the utilization or attempted util-
ization by the court house and city
hall committee of certain rooms in the
city building now or Immediately there
tofore used for the purposes of the dis
trict judges of the district.
So far as T lie Clio b e understands
the disagreement, from the statements
imputed to the parties to it, the mem
bers of the district court insist on their
absolute right to control the rooms
now used or intended to be used for
court purposes. Tho court house and
city hall committee, on the other hand,
claims to be judge of the best DISPOSE
ton to make of those rooms as we'll as
| of the other rooms in the building. The
issue thus created came up in rather
militant form some time ago, as Mayor
| Smith suggests, but was left unsettled
| through the unwillingness of the then
! members of the committee to dispute
the position understood to be assumed
| by the members of the court. The
| statement was then current that the
| district judges would treat the mem
! bers of the committee seeking to util-
ize court room space for any other than
| court purposes as involving a contempt
of court, if they took any positive ac-
| ton in that direction.
In it's provisions creating the city
hall and court house committee the
city charter says:
The said building (court house and
city halD shall be in charge of a joint
committee of seven CD to be appointed as
follows: The mayor of said city of ST.
Paul shall be eX-officio a member of and
the chairman of the said committee.
Three go of said committee shall be APP
pointed annually by the president of the
Of sao Of fo sad city from rom the
shall be appointed annually by the board
or county commissioners from the mem
u.
have entire charge of said building and
shall have power to appoint such janitor
custodian and other employees as they
shall deem necessary for the proper care
and management of said building and at
such compensation as said committee
shall determine.
This language seems to sustain the
claim of Mayor Smith as ex-officio
chairman CT the committee that that
body has discretionary power to make
such division and redivision as it
thinks proper of the rooms in the court
house and city hall building among the
various departments of city and coun-
ty government, according to their
needs.
If, in the exercise of it's power, the
members of the committee should be so
unfortunate as to find themselves sub
ject to contempt of court the situation
would be no doubt embarrassing in
the extreme, both for the members of
the committee and the judges of the dis
trict court, since it is not unlikely that
some at least of the members of the
court might not be disposed to accept
in that behalf might place them, of
being at once prosecutors and judges,
and since the members of the commit
tee might regard themselves as being
punished for the legitimate exercise of
the duties imposed on them by law
e G l b sincerely hopes that no
such question will be ever raised. The
public accepts the desire both of the
judges and the committee to be fair.
But if in the proper disposition of the
rooms established by the public for
the accommodation of the representa-
tives of the different departments of
local government, such a question
should arise, it seems eminently proper
that it be determined forthwith, either
through contempt proceedings or 9TH
erwise, in order that the real extent of
the powers of the committee shall be
determined in disposing of such rooms.