Audubon Republican., 1904-10-27
NOTES FROM THE CAPITAL
Des Moines, Oct. "a. 1904.

company for injuries inflicted On
her husband through negligence ct
the employees of the company result.
Ing In his instant death, but the hus.
band has no right of action In case
OF the instant death of his wife under
like circumstances. This decision was
so amplified by the supreme court in
the case OF Robert j. Seney of Wood
bury county against, the Milwaukee
railroad.
He sued the road to recover dam
ages for the instant death of his wife.
due to physical injuries resulting
from its negligence, The supreme
court recently decided in Major against
the Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Nor.
thern railroad, that the wife has no
right OF action for damages on ac
count of the negligence of the roads
employees. In the Seney case this rule
Is extended to apply to the rights of a
husband. Judge Hutchinson had sus-
tained the railroads demurrer to
Seney's petition and the supreme court
affirms his decision.
While the common law may recog.
nize that husband has a property
right in his wife's services while the
wife has no corresponding property
right in the support which she is en-
titled to receive from her husband.
yet the husbands right to recover
danes ges is not thereby established.
BY well settled principles of the COM
mon law no person can recover dam.
ages from another for wilfuIly or neg
ligently causing the instant death of
a third person, no matter what may be
the relationship between the deceased
person and the plaintiff BY statute
certain exceptions have been made
such as the right of a parent to re-
cover damages for the death of
minor child, and the right of legal
representative to maintain any action
which might have been maintained
by the deceased if he had survived the
injury.
But" says the court, there is no
statutory provision authorizing a re-
covery by husband for injuries to
the wife causing her instant death.
The husband certainly has not bet
ter right of action for loss of services
Of the wife than the parent has for
.oss Of services of a minor child; and
yet We suppose it would not be con-
tended that without statutory provis-
ion a father could recover damages
against railroad company for in
juries causing the death of his minor
child"
Nearly seventy-five stockholders of
the New Liberty Savings bank in
Scott county have commenced an &C
tion in the federal court before Judge
Smith Mcpherson against Martin and
Arnold Buethien. president and cash
ier Of the defunct institution, to force
it into bankruptcy.
They allege that the bank is a cons.
plete wreck beyond hope of repair.
and that unless they are granted re-
lief in the federal court the officers
will turn the available funds to other
persons to prevent settlement.
The Indebtedness of the institution
is placed at $4,000, and the creditors
want the Beuthiens thrown into in
voluntary bankruptcy, in order that a
portion of the wrecked New Liberty
bank may be saved. Louis Block an
attorney of Davenport, appears for the
defunct bank.
IS chdII, NulCll HdS CduSSu SuCH
CONSERVATION among the financial
minds of Davenport and Scott county,
has now resulted in the arrest of both
father and son, and charges have been
made against them of defalcationS
reaching far into the thousands. From
the list of complaints it appears that
a large number of Davenport people
have been injured in the wreck of the
bank.
In the Odebolt school house case
the supreme court reaffirmed it's for
mer decisions that the Iowa statutes
do not authorize the creation or filing
of liens in favor of mechanics and
material men as against public build
ings. Indeed, the Iowa court holds
that section 3102 of the code-whicn
provides that sub. contractors of any
public building (not belonging to the
state) shall have a claim against the
public corporation in question for the
value Of such materials, not in excess
of the contract price to be paid for
such building-cannot be construed
either to authorize lien upon a pub
lie building or to create lien in favor
funds due the principal contractor
erecting such building. In the OdebOlt
case, the Grf<n Bay Lumber company
sued the school district to recover the
value of materials furnished the con-
tractor, and the case was dismissed
by the lower court. this decision being
sustained and affirmed by the supreme
court.
The long cherished hope of the
physicians of the state that sometime
Iowa would make meteorological
analyses for the benefit of the people,
is realized. The laboratory for which
the last legislature appropriated funds
and made plans is now running at
Iowa City in connection with the bac-
teriological department of the State,
university. It Is engaged in the dis
charge of the duties incident to the
plans devised by the legislature. For
instance. DR.. A. M. Linn of the state
board of health reported to the board
that he had forwarded a specimen
for examination to the laboratory at
noong and at 8 o'clock the same night
had the result. Physicians agree that
the Importance and value of this sort
Of service on the part of the state IL
Intellectually great
French prune growers impart To
their fruit glistening appearance by
the use of light coating of diluted
glycerige.
The dolphin is the fastest swimmer
Its speed varies from thirty to forty
miles an hour, and it can swim round
and round a vessel going at high
rate of speed.