Evening star., 1902-04-23
HEARING IN COURT
THE LAUREL CITY COUNCIL
TROUBLE AIRED.
Asked to Compel Old
Mayor and Town Council to
Surrender.
special Dispatch to The Evening Star.

Special Dispatch to The Evening Star.
| UPPER MARLBORO, Md, April 23.-
Judge George c. Merrick sitting in the cir
cult court of Prince Georges county at
| Marlboro, today gave hearing in the case
| of Mayor G. B. Timanus and the newly
| elected city council, who, through their at
| torneys, City Solicitor Charles W. Darr and
| Mr.. James c. Rogers, petitioned the court
| for a mandamus to compel the old mayor
and town council to surrender all property,
| books, papers, records corporate seal and
archives of the corporation of Laurel The
case was continued over until Friday.
| The petition for a mandamus was pre-
sented to the court Saturday of last week
and was the result of a controversy grow
| ing out of the recent town election held
Monday, April Z, when an election was held
| for the offices of mayor, three ward coun
| cilmen and two councilmen at large. AS
| the result of that election Mr.. G. b.
Timanus was returned elected mayor and
MessrS. Robert l.. Frye, H. H. w. ThieS
and James A. Brown elected to serve for
| two years as councilmen from the first, sec
ond and third wards, respectively, with Gil
bert A Haslup and Walter A. Martin as
councilmen at large to serve one year.
According to the law governing the case
the election judges had until Wednesday
following the date of election to make the
| returns. and on that evening Mayor Ed
ward Phelps and the old council assembled,
when the returns were received and ac-
cepted. The certificates showing the cleo
tion of Mr.. TimanuS and the new council
were duly signed by the officials and, ac-
| cording to a statement of Mayor Phelps,
everything in readiness for the newly
elected officials to qualify. None of the
elected officers appeared, however, and their
failure TO qualify, according to the stand
| taken by the old mayor and town council,
was accepted as a refusal on their part to
accept the offices.
Accordingly a nneeting of the old rnayor
and town council was held on the evening
of April -, when Mayor Phelps was direct
ed, by an ordinance unanimously passed, to
issue proclamation calling for a new cleo
tion for mayor and five councilmen, to be
held Saturday, April 25. This action was
taken as the Interpretation put on section
199 of the charter of Laurel, which provides
that the mayor and city council shall quail
fy and take their offices respectively by
the second Wednesday in April of each and
every year, and a failure to qualify within
the time prescribed shall be deemed a re-
fusal by the party failing to qualify to ac
cept the office, whereupon a new election
shall be proclaimed to fill the vacancy oc-
casioned.
On the other hand the newly elected
members of the town government contend
that according to the wording of section 202
of the charter laws of 1894, the COM
piled with the law, that section providing
that the council shall meet on the Monday
night following the election and after quail
flying shall proceed to organize by electing
one of its members as president, etc.
The petition for mandamus sets forth
that the certificates of election were not
delivered until the 10th day of April the
day after the date set forth in the charter
for the qualification of the mayor and
council. 1t also asserts that the new mayor
and council qualified by taking the pre-
scribed oath of office before justice of
the peace. These oaths, it is stated, were
subscribed to before the announcement of
the proclamation calling for the new cleo
tion.