Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1905-04-13
/ NOTES FROM THE CAPITAL
Des Moines. April 10, 1908.

Des Moines, April 10, 1905.
| Auditor OF State Carroll announces
! the appointment Of r. NJ Haines OF
Grinnell to be assistant to the state
1 insurance examiner. Mr.. Haines will
assist Examiner Wilmington in work
! that is now going forward under the
| direction Of the examiner, and his
connection with the department will
continue indefinitely Edridge Daw-
son is the other assistant In the de-
partment. He resides in Des Moines.
The auditor of state and the treas
urer of state made quarterly settle
ment on the Ord, and discovered that
the books and cash of the latter Of
ficer agreed perfectly with the books
of the former. More than $1,000, 900
cash on hand was found to the credit
of the treasury of the state of Iowa
In the Office Of the treasurer and on
deposit according to law. Indeed. the
cash assets amount to $1.733,649.64,
counting the agricultural college
bonds held by tie state treasury. The
actual cash on hand was $11 ,722.02,
and the cash on deposit in banks
amounted to $1,074,027.6S. The agrt
cultural college bonds amount to
SCAT 900.
The secretary of state a few days
ago issued commission for automo-
bile No. 1000 1t is estimated that
the average cost OF these machines
could not be under $1,000. There is
therefore invested in automobiles in
Iowa about $1,000,000.
The legislative commission in
charge of an investigation into the
feasibility of establishing a single
board of control for the three state
educational institutions adjourned af-
ter having voted to visit Vermillion,
S. D., on April &C. if that date and the
visit to the institution prove accepta-
bic to the authorities of South Dakota.
During the final sitting of the COM
mittee Judges Kline and Robinson OF
the board of control appeared before
the commission, at its invitation, and
spent an hour or more in furnishing
the legislators with information con.
corning their methods of conducting
the business of the state penal and
charitable institutions No record OF
their testimony was made, by agree
ment, and 1t was also agreed not to
divulge what was said by them or the
line of inquiry which was followed
1t is understood, however, that inquiry
was made with special reference to
the method of buying supplies.
On the 4th the Hubbell estate paid
County Treasurer Murrow $4,000.
as one-half of the taxes for the cur
rent year. The assessment is $1,000
600. In addition to this the Des
Moines Union pays about $4,000 per
annum, making a total taxation OF
about 100000 per year for F. M. Hub
bell, as he practically owns the rail
way.
Depositors are preferred creditors
of state and savings banks in Iowa.
The depositors in the defunct Corn.
ing State Savings bank will get their
money first, and from the report on
assets made by Receiver C. F. An.
drews they will get all of the money
that will be realized out of the failed
institution, whose wreck was due to
Cashier Leroy, who killed himself
about year ago. The statute OF
Iowa provides that the assets of an in
solvent bank shall be "ratably dis
tributed among the creditors thereof.
giving preference in payment to de.
positors." 1t was the contention of
other creditors of the Corning bank
that this provision did not require the
payment of the depostors until their
claims were satisfied before other
creditors could receive anything, and
1t was insisted that the provision as
to preference being given deposltors
was either surplusage and should be
ignored or merely gave preference as
to time of payment. The supreme
courts says that these suggestions are
very ingenious, but they are not cor
rect and plainly the statute means to
guarantee the depositor actual pref.
erence in the distribution of the as
sets of failed bank.
Those who expected a decision
from the supreme court on the ques-
ton raised in Pottawattamie county
as to the right of telephone compan-
les to occupy the rural roadways
without compensation to the abutting
land owners are disappointed when |
the court filed it's opinion, for the
court thought it not necessary finally |
to dispose of that question in settling
a controversy between the council OF
Council Bluffs and the Nebraska or
Bell Telephone company. 1T is sug-
gested," says the court, "that the stat
ute imposes an additional burden on
rural ways without providing compen
sation to the abutting land owners,
and is, for that reason, unconstitu-
tional. But whatever rights the abut
ting property owners may have are
private and personal rights in which
the state has no concern, and no land
owner is here complaining. 1t is
fundamental that the court will not
consider constitutional questions I'M
less it be necessary and 1t is clear
that the necessity therefor does not
exist when no constitutional rights
are involved" This language leaves
the impression that it might be to the
interest of affected land owners to
ask the attention of the courts di
rectly to the question of whether tele-