Omaha daily bee., 1908-02-07
BETTER HIDE THAT CHICKEN
city Collector OF Dead Animals Has
Power TO Cart a Away, says
Decision of Judge Munger.

Houselolders in the city of Omaha, keep
ers Of restaurants and hotels and pro-
pretors OF meat markets are IN momentary
danger OF having their meats confscated
by the city collector Of dead animals. and
in addition can be compelled to pay the
collector from 81 to s. for converting to
his own use the meats he may seize upon.
Judge w II. Munger of the United States
circuit court pointed this out today in
handing down a decision in the case OF
James Whelan city collector OF dead ami
mails, against Charles Daniels, who has
been trespassing upon the preserves OF the
favored one and collecting and Carting off
dead animals on his own hook. The de-
cisiOn OF the Judge was on a demurrer in
troduced by the attorneys for the defend
ant who argued on the theory that Whe-
lan's contract with the city was void be-
cause it undertook to deprive parties Of
their property without due process Of law,
i'm that the contract undertook to give to
the plaintiff all dead animals found within
the limits OF the city. Judge Munger SOS
tained the demurrer, though granting the
plaintiff leave to file an amended petition
within five days, holding that the con-
tract is too broad.
THE contract does not even axcept ami
mails killed for food purposes" cites the
judge in his decision, and surely no one
would for moment undertake to say that
where a party residing in, some outer por-
tion of the city, very thinly populated,
should butcher a healthy hog for the pur-
pose of curing the meat for home consump-
tion. that. as soon as he killed the animal
and it became dead, that the city could
transfer the ownership and property in
such hog to the plaintiff in this case and
authorize him to take or remove It and
convert it to his own use; or supposing
there should be hanging the carcass Of a
dead calf or sheep or pig or steer in one
of the markets of this city, may the plain
tiff remove it and convert it to his own
use? That is the authority which the con-
tract, according to it's liberal terms. gives
the plaintiff"
The contract between the city and the
carter of dead animals emphasizes that
"all dead animals wherever found in
the city of Omaha can be seized and dis
posed of by the party holding the con-
tract. The manner of disposal is not speci-
fled. and it is therefore argued that the
collector can enter a householder's kitchen
and take the chicken which he has pur-
chased for tomorrows dinner and dispose
of it by eating the said chicken himself
II he so wishes. The contract with the
collector of dead animals is authorized
by rule 81 in ordinance 5l91 and is very
explicit in the following paragraph:
THE said party of the second part (the
collector) agrees to and with the party Of
the first part Cthe city, that he will col
lect or have collected. removed, hauled and
disposed OF, free of cost to the citizens
thereof all dead animals wherever found
in the city of Omaha
The ordinance, however, provides that
he shall be entitled to charge, collect
and receive for the removal thereof from
the owner or occupant of the premises
from which the dead animals are removed
g for each dead animal weighing more than
500 pounds, or 81 for each dead animal
Weighing less than zoo pounds.
No Thanksgiving turkey has been known
to weigh more than 500 pounds, and there
fore citizens of Omaha will not be COM
PEELED to pay more than the sum of one
almighty dollar for the gratifying sight of
the city collector calmly walking away
with his long anticipated Sunday dinner.