The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-10-01
ITO CONDEMN PROPERLY
HEARING TAKES PLACE BEFORE
 PROBATE JUDGE.
Owners of Half Of Capitol Block Cen- V tend 1t is Not Necessary For
 agtnte to Acquire It.

Is it necessary for the improve. | ment and extension of the State Capf- | tot that the State should acquire tn, possession of the property on thu south half of the Capitol Sauare7 Probate Judge J. B. Gaston wiu at 10 o'clock this morning make a ruling on this question. On his decision may fest the future of the Capitol Square rcndemnation proceedings. The att tcrneys who represent the owners of the property in question made the point at the hearing yesterday that the minutes of the proceedings of the
 Capitol Square Commission did mol
 show that condemnation proceedings
 were necessary on that the State should
 necessarily require the property. There
 was apparently some merit in the issue
 raised by the attorneys.
 Judge Gaston took the question un-
 der advisement with the announce
 ment that he would render decision
 this morning.
 It will be recalled that Attorney
 General Massey Wilson acting for the
 Capitol Building Commission and at
 its instruction filed a-petition in the Probate Court of Montgomery Coun- ty asking that commission or jury of three property owners and tax-pay- CTS be appointed who should fix a yaln- ation of the property on the south half of the Capitol Square. . A hearing of this petition was had yesterday at noon in the county court house. The State was represented bv Attorney General Massey Wilson and c. P. Mcintyre. For the property ow- ners Congressman A. A. Wiley and General W. c. Oates appeared. They represented the property owners, P. J. Anderson, T. J. Toole. Thomas Davis, Mrs. owens and the heirs of the Burke estate.
 The attorneys for the petitioners moved that condemnation proceedings
 be instituted in accordance with the
 petition and that a jury of three be
 named to fix the value of the property
 General Oates objected to the motior
 and demurred to the petition saying
 that 1t should have been directed tc
 each individual property owner. Af- ter some discussion this demurrer wal
 withdrawn and the motion to grant
 the prayer of the petition was re- newed.
 The attorneys for the property ow-
 ners objected to this motion. The petition they cia.meC dld not show clearly that the jury should be named The petition 1t was asserted did not show thas such proceedings were necessary.
 Director Thomas M. Owen who is Secretary of the Capitol Building Com mission was called to the stand and asked to testify as to the minutes of the meeting The feature of the minutes which was under scrutiny was the passage of the resolution instruc- ting the Attorney General to begin con- dcmnation proceedings. MT. Owen read the minutes of the meeting ir question and testified to their accur' | acy.
 The attorneys for the property ow. | ners submitted that the minutes | did not show that condemnation pro. ceedinEs were necessary and argued \ this point at length.
 The attorneys for the State argued | that while the resolution did not state | in explicit terms that condemnation proceedings were necessary the reso' | lution plainly implied that the pro ceedings were necessary and exped | tent.
 @ Generai Oates contended that such ( thing could not be taken by inferenc, l and that the necesssisty of the pro | ceedings should have been plainly | stated.
 1 Judge Gaston announced that ht would rule upon the question at 1t | o'clock today.