The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1908-05-22
WILL BE REVIEWED
FROM START TO FINISH
The Vets Granted Alternative Writ
OF Mandamus by Court OF Appeals
County Court Files Return
PRESENT STATUS OF CONTENTION

option election VIII be reviewed from {
start to fnish"by the court of last
resort.
The "wcts," by their attorneys, |
Hon. f.. A. Rozier and former State
Senator Frank II. Farris, first APP |
piled to the st. Louis Court of APP |
peals for writ of mandamus, di- |
rectcd to the st. Francois County |
Court, to issue dramshop license |
to William McMahan. On presen-
tatiOn of this petition and applica- |
tlon, the st. Louis Court Of Appeals
declined to issue the writ, They
then applied to the Supreme Court
for writ of mandamus to compel
the County Court to issue William
McMahan dramshop license; but
they were again denied the writ, as
mentioned in ThE TIMES last week.
On last Friday Messrs. Rozier
and Farris again applied to the st,
Louis Court of Appeals, in behalf Of
A. Retornaz, to compel the County
/ Court to issue the latter dramshOp
! license. Judges Gnodc and NOrtoni
issued an alternative writ of man
damus, rcturnable Monday, May Is,
1908, Judge Bland refusing to sign
the writ.
The petition and application filed
by Messrs. Rozier and Farrs stated,
in substance, that Retornaz had filed
his application aud petition and all
other necessary atlidavits and bond
with the County Clerk ten days be-
fore the first day of the regular May,
lg0S term of the County Court; In
other words, that Retornaz had in
every particular complied with the
dramshop laws of Missouri; that
the County Court, composed of JEFF
fcrson ID. Mitchell, George w. Cow
ingtOu and Christian NJ. Heitman,
found every jurisdictional fact nee
essary to warrant the County Court
in issuing the dramshop license
asked for; thnt the County Court, in
; their official capacity, arbitrarily,
wantonly and unlawfully refused T."
grant Retornaz his license, even
after more than two-thrds of the re-.
quisitc number of qualified .igncrs
had attatchcd their names to the
RotUrnaZ petition.
On Monday, May Is, the three
4, County Judges, Ivy their attorneys,
Prosecuting Attorney Tucker, Chas.
G. Rcvcllc and Benz. II. Mnrbury,
filed return to the alternative writ
of mandamus as issued on Friday
May II, and stated in this return
that they tthe County Court had
taken up, considered, and found
that 4. KctornaZ had done every
thing necessary under the dramshOp
act to cntitle him to n license to keep
n dramshop; "hut the County Court
refuses to grant said A. Retornaz II
license as n dramshop keeper, for
the reason that the law known as
the local option law, being article
three of chapter twenty-five Of the
Revised Statutes of Missouri, 1879,
has been adopted within the limits
Of st. Francois County, inclr"'ng
: said City OF Pennington, on the 7th
day of March, 1908, and il now in
force over the entire limits of said
county," and further state in their
return, that mt the election so held
on March 7, 1908, G,0O3 votes were
cast, setting out in full the tabula-
tion Of the vote as 1t was made by
County Clerk j. A. Lawrence, and
George NJ. CovingtOn and Christian
NJ. Heitman, two of the County
Judges, and also the order of the
County Court declaring the election
carried by the "drys" by n majority
of Az, and the proof of publication
by Chas. r. Pratt of the notice of
the results of the election.
On the filing of the return by the
County Court Judges, the st. Louis
Court Of Appeals granted Messrs.
Rozier and Farris until Tuesday,
May 26, In which to file Retornaz's
reply to this return. When this re-
ply Is filed, the County Judges may
then deny any new matter therein
contained, and then the cause will
he set down for day certain, at
which time attorneys on each side
will appear and present written and
nrnl QrDlImanfz aunnnrf nf THAR