Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-10-09
Local Comment

The mayors objections to bail bonds
offered seem to have been inspired
more by his indignation that strangers
should be trying to catch his friends,
the saloon keepers, at law violation
than by his desire to be careful and
cautious in observing the law himself.
He certainly took a great many
chances when he insisted upon keeping
United States officers in Jail
Attorneys Boardman and Northup
may be sure of the rights of their
clients to continue selling liquor under
Judge Parker's DEGREES of Injunction,
but the states special counsel seems
more than anxious to have the law
tried out on the subject. His request for
the saloon attorneys to admit the SELL
ing since the decree, so as to establish
the fact without the expense of wit
nesses, was a fair one if the saloon
attorneys are sure that the law will
sustain this right of their clients. 1t
would have brought the law question
directly to issue even tho it might not
have deviled Joe" SO much by the
cry of expense to the county Could
it be that Judge MoPherson's vigorous
dissent to the legal opinion given to our
mayor in the federal officer hearing has
shaken their self confidence?
Whatever may have been the general
opinion that Marshalltown's saloons
have always been observing the law.
we now have Attorney Bradford's
statement for it that the North First
street saloons recently closed were
operated knowingly by their owners
without legal consent. 1--WE knew that
we had no legal rights, but we ran
for two years and took our chances"
laughs the attorney. Why not, hereaf-
ter, put the city attorney on record
with a written opinion as to the legal
standing of every proposed saloon be-
fore a license is granted by city
| council?
| The attempt to organize MARSHALL
town club ought to be supported by
every active citizen. There may be
decided differences of opinion among
us as to public policies, but we are all
united on the one proposition that we
want to see the town go forward and
that we want to cultivate good fellow
ship. The man who tries to start
acquaintance first, but this kind of a
venture is doomed to failure before 1t
starts unless it is to be broad and open
to all, hence it ought not to be nee
essary to repeat the public invitation.
If you are not on committee, join the
club and you soon will be on one.
From newspaper standpoint the
f~l
in the women's club has a restful eff
feet upon us all as compared to the
storm and strife in the district court
sessions and in city council meetings.
Say, fellows, Mcbride and Stevenson
have pulled out. now why don't the
Fratt-JoIiss & Hovey crowd go ahead
with their franchise? What are they
afraid of?
| If something is not done to rush this
franchise thru. somebody is going to
discover that the ordinances require
the city to settle all damages of abut-
Ting property owners before any of the
street car extensions shall be required.
that freight cars may be hauled over
the street car rails at night. and that
If any accommodating owner of abut-
ting property can be secured to object
and enjoin, the extensions need not be
built until the city settles, and that II
the city would require them to be built
under the bond the damages must first
be settled by the city and then we
would be up to the next owner of
abutting property looking for easy
money. In five years the bond IS re-
leased unless action upon 1t is begun
within that time. Somebody ought to
rush this franchise thru like one OF
those dam contracts. and care should
be made this time that no stray copy
falls into an inquiring councilman's
hands.