The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-12-30
THINK THAT
THE INCIDENT
is CLOSED
Ames and Lowry Discuss Wea-
therford School.
THEY WERE INTERESTED
Tell of Progress of the Case
From Its Inception.

Guthrie. O. T., Dec. &C. .B. Ames
of Oklahoma City and Robert y. Low
~ of saltwater were here today. Both
these gentlemen were members of the
Barnes school board which located tha
Southwestern Normal school at Wealth
erford and were the counsel for Weather
ford when the case was carried to the
supreme court and won by them. The
news that Granite has prepared to bring
injunction proceedings has caused added
interest in the Southwestern normal mat
ter and so these two gentlemen were
| asked by the correspondent for the Eagle
what chances Granite had for accom-
plishing her purpose
Mr. Ames answered for both. He said:
I'VE hardly think it possible that any
further legal proceedings will be taken
relative TO the location of the Southwest
ern normal. Every possible phase of the
matter has been fully considered by the
courts. First Judge Hainer passed on
the case on motion to dissolve the IN
junction. Then Judge Burwell tried the
case on the merits. Then the supreme
court considered it fully. No new facts
can be brought forward because the case
was tried on an agreed statement of facts
which included every important step from
the passage of the law by the last legis-
lature 10 the selection of our commit
tee by Governor Barnes, the selection Of
the other committee by Governor Jen-
kins, the action of our committee in To-
eating the school at Weatherford, the
action of the Jenkins committee in un-
dertaking to locate it at Granite and all
proceedings of whatsoever character. On
this complete statement of facts, to which
all parties agreed the trial judges and
the supreme court held that the Barnes
committee was the only legally consti-
tuted committee and that the school would
haev to be built at Weatherford Judge
Burford, in the opinion of the supreme
court, says:
1.-The limit on the authority of the
/ governor having expired before the sec
| ond committee was appointed, his ac-
| tions were functus officio, and the second
! committee was not even a de facto COM
/ mittee unless the first committee were
removed, or had in some manner vacated
| their positions. 1t is admitted in the stip-
ulation that the first committee was
]
prior to the appointment of the second
! committee.
These appointments were without au-
| thority at the time they were made, and
! hence conferred no authority on the APP
/ pointees The appointments made
| by him (Jenkins) being of no force as
appointments, it cannot be said that they
were effective as removals. And if it
were conceded that he had the power to
remove the old board at the time he made
the appointments of the second commit
tee (Which we do not wish TO be under
stood as conceding), yet he did not ex-
ercise such power in the manner to make
| it effective, and the Barnes committee
was never divested of it's powers, and
its acts were within its authority
"All the other judges concurred in this
opinion. This being the case. We do not
think that any county attorney of the
territory would apply for another injunc-
ton: nor do we think it possible that any
probate judge would grant the writ; GER
! tainly not after reading the opinion of the
supreme court. 1t is, of course, certain
| that none of the judges of the supreme
court would entertain such an applica-
ton. We. therefore, think that this whole
| matter is a closed incident and that the
board of education will at once establish
| the school al Weatherford."
| 1t is stated on good authority that the
normal board, when it meets on January
.. will begin advertising for bids for the
construction of the Weatherford normal
On March 1 the construction will begin