The Norfolk weekly news-journal. (Norfolk, Neb.) 1900-19??, 1908-03-06
LITTLE MISTAKES OFTEN FATAL
Wrong Date In farmer License May
Have Had Dramatic Meaning.

ment the story of that May day killing
the spectators have marvelled, as they
always do when such stories are told,
at the very serious role in the life Of
the world that Is played by the little
things, the minor details of every day
existence, apparently unimportant in
themselves at the time of their pass
Ing but oftentimes of mighty and ever
lasting consequences.
A false step here or there, an err
roneous stroke of the pen, little de-
tail left undone or neglected In ordi-
nary every day common place Incl
dents-and lives often pay the penal
ties, families are broken up, the whole
complexion of community life Is al
tered and sometimes mixed with trag-
edy that, were humans gifted with
foresight, might, by a simple touch
here or there, have been altogether
prevented.
Such trial as this impresses upon
spectators the fatality Of chance and
the irony Of fate. 1t tends to empha-
size the fact that lifes tragedies and
LIES bloodshed hinge, more frequent
ly than not upon little trivial mistakes
which might just as easily not have
been made at all.
One bit of testimony-that showing
that mistake had been made in issu-
ing farmers saloon license and that
he really ought to have had several
days more in which to secure license
money-tended to drive home with
dramatic intensity to all who sat in
the courtroom, the serious conse-
quences, oft-times tragic, which may
attach to the slightest detail of bust
ness transaction, and more particu
larly to business matters involving
the making out and signing of legal
documents, even those that seem at
the time comparatively unimportant
and Insignificant.
The theory of the defense in the
Boche case is that farmer needed H.
cense money May / with which to re-
new his license. He had no money.
And so, the defense argues, he was
willing to take desperate chances to
get money without borrowing it, And
the defense claims that it was in try
| ing to rob Boche that farmer was
slain.
Mems minds are queer things and
the study of them brings out interest
ing conclusions. Who, for instance,
can say what might have happened II
farmer had had six more days in which
to secure money for the renewal of
his license? Who shall say that in
those six days-many things can hap
pen In six days, sometimes-Jarmer
might not have CHANGED upon a pur-
chaser and sold out his saloon? Who
shall say that some brewery might not
have come to his rescue?
Who is to say that something might
not have appened-nobody knows
during those six days, IL farmer had
not thought he must get money by
May 1, to have prevented that May
morning tragedy? What might not
have interfered to save farmers life,
to save Herman Boche's murder trial
and whatever shall be his fate, to save
Madison county tremendous expense,
to save Norfolk from another stain Of
human blood?
And who knows what effect the pre-
venting Of that murder might have
had upon the late William Boche,
brother of the accused murderer,
whose dead body was found in the
Elkhorn on the eve of the trial and
whom Herman Boche believes to have
suicided?
What anguish what suffering might
have been saved in three homes, If
| that killing had not occurred!
But would the murder have been
prevented if farmer had been given,
as he ought to have been given, six
more days in which to raise license
money? Aye, there's the rub.
1t was through an error of the city
clerk two years ago in making out sa-
| loon licenses, that the date of April
| 80 was set down as the time when the
| license should expire. Correctly, the
| license should not have expired until
May g. the end of the municipal year
The saloon men, therefore, paid their
years license money for license
which was cut short by about week
of the time that they were entitled to-
Their bonds were made out in accord
ance with the licenses, so that for a
time there was serious question as to
whether the saloons could remain
open during the time between April
80 and May 7. Some went on the
theory that the city council could meet
May and grant new licenses, begin
ming with that date. farmer was un-
der that impression, although it was
not right.
farmer believed that he must have
money by May l to renew his license.
That was the date which his erron-
eous license set and, the mistake hav-
ing been made, that date had to be
abided by. farmer was bankrupt at
that time. Settlement of his estate
gave creditors seventeen percent OF