Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-03-07
QUEER COUNTY MOVE
Scheme Being Worked to Make
Two County Seats in Several
Iowa Counties
INSPIRED BY CEDAR RAPIDS
ParIor City Attempting to Take Away
Marion's Prestise-other Cities That
Would Benefit Get Into the Move
s ment-convict Labor Scheme for
State Printing Abandoned.
Special to Times-Republican.

secondary county seats OF every Guy
in the state of population of 5000 or
over was brought to light in the house
judiciary committee hearing in the bill
introduced from Cedar Rapids to make
the superior court of that city of con-
current jurisdiction with the district
court. The Cedar Rapids bill applies
to cities having q population of $4,000
or over that are not county seats. It
was disclosed in the opposition to the
bill that there is q scheme to amend
this and make it apply to cities of, 81
600 or over that are not county seats.
Since the Cedar Rapids bill puts the
superior court there on an equal foot
ing with the district court at Marion
and in effect makes two county seats
within five miles OF each other, the eff
feet Of the amendment would be to all
low every city in the state Of over 81
600 population to have superior court
with concurrent jurisdiction with the
district court.
While they did not appeal before the
committee At that time there were in
the state house while this hearing was
going on representatives from Perry,
Iowa, and some other good sized cities
that are not county seats, who have
been working for some days to get
legislation that will permit the organ
ization OF superior courts in those
places. The superior court in Cedar
Rapids and some other cities that have
them are in fact now nothing more
than police courts.
Attorneys Voorhees, Of Marion and
johnson OF Lisbon, in Linn county, who
appeared before the house judiciary
committee in opposition to the Cedar
Rapids bill, declared that the Cedar
Rapids move was nothing more nor less
than the aftermath Of the attempt tol
take the court house from Marion toll
Cedar Rapids. They argued to the COM
mittee that 1t and the legislatures
should allow Linn county to fight out
its own county seat problem and they
referred to what they considered al
rather odious attempt at this session
to steal the county seat from Marion
in bill introduced by Moore, of Linn,
which the judiciary. committee killed
without allowing hearing upon it,.
It 10 anticipated that the house jul |
dietary committee after all will report
for indefinite postponement of the bill
by Hughes making the possession of a
pass disqualification for jury serv-
ice where common carrier is con-
cerned 1t voted to SO report at one time
and was persuaded to give an oppor-
tunity to persons to be heard in the
bills defense. The senate passed the
measure. An effort may be made to
get q minority report
In order to get standing for the
to abolish the offices of state
printer and binder, the scheme to adopt
convict labor for the state work has
been ostensibly abandoned. This was
brought out by the committee on print
ing yesterday Representatives of the
union declared their
unanimous opposition to the bill as it
stood. and referred among other things
to the clause referring to having the
work done at the state institutions.
the fact that it is his intention to move
denied that 1t ever was his intention to
permit convict labor. He also said that
he had prepared this amendment to be
submitted at the first meeting but |
others stated that at that meeting
Lambert had insisted there was moth
ing in the bill to suggest convict la
Dor Attention was then called also
to the fact that the recommendation of
the visiting committee at Anamosa,
for $4,000 additional for equipment of |
the printing plant there, which report
was signed by Lambert, has not been
withdrawn. But 1t is certain there will |
be no insistence on convict labor for |
state printing. The committee secured |
some information as to how the work
has been done in the past from Mr. |
Hall, whose company has done the |
work, and from Mr.. Murphy, state |
printer the past six years. 1t was also !
disclosed in evidence that while there |
has been no increase in the payments |
by the state, the cost has been in |
creasing, and whereas six years ago
the wage scale was $14.25 for nine |
hours labor, 1t is now SIT for eight |
hours, and soon will be $1S for eight |
hours labor. Mr.. Hall In his testi- |
mony, stated that in the six years he |
had done the work for Mr.. Murphy he |
had paid him $29,6OO as his compensa-
ton for the work done Mr. Murphy |
declined to discuss his contract or his |
affairs, but gave all possible |
as to the manner of the |
doing of the work and cost thereof A |
representative of the typographical |
union declared his belief that the prices |
paid by the state are too low now and |
that they ought to be higher, and that |
better prices are actually received from |
private parties for similar work 1t |
was also brought out in committee |
that Governor Crawford, of South Da-
kota, has recently recommended |
abandonment Of the contract system |
there, and that when he was governor
Of New York, Roosevelt recommended |
the same thing for that state.
ALARMED OVER SPOTTED FEVER
Several Cases, One Fatal, Near Pacific
junction.
Special to Times Republican
Council Bluffs, March 7.-Spotted fe-