Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1909-01-02
Peoples Pulpit
Ottumwa. Ia. Jan. /, 1909

Ottumwa, Ia, Jan. /, 1909.
Editor Courier:
We have been requested by the
Law and Order league to make state
ment with reference to its position rs
to the sufficiency and validity of the
petition of revocation recently filed
and as to the present action with ref
erence thereto now pending before
Thomas Kirby, police judge.
Before this petition was filed it was
carefully canvassed and copied by cap
able and competent men, who assured
themselves, before the time of fling,
that the petition was properly and
legally signed by a sufficient number
of legal voters of this city at the last
general election. There may be d
few names. on the petition of persons
who were not voters and these should
properly be stricken, but they are very
few in number and when the petition
is attacked in a proper and competent
court, the number stricken will be
very small and wholly insufficient 10
affect the validity of the petition.
| The league regards the present ac-
| ton as a wholly improper proceeding,
without any jurisdiction and, in its
opinion, the decision of Judge Kirby
no matter what it may be, will not af-
! feet the situation in any manner.
| The names published in the Courier,
as we understand the matter, have not
! been stricken off as yet; there have
been objections made to the counting
| Of these names and these objections
are to be considered at one time later
| in the case Many of these objections
are wholly frivolous and we are conf
dent that no district court will sustain
any objection thereto. As we have
stated, Judge Kirby's action i'll the
matter will have no bearing on the
| final decision by the district court in
some proper proceeding.
| Objections are being urged to all
names that are not signed exactly as
| the election boards have written them
in the poll lists and also to all names
signed by mark: none of these objec-
tons are valid in our opinion.
The poll list does not govern in as
| pertaining the signers to this petition.
1t does govern in the case of a petition
! for general consent to operate saloons,
but the statute with reference to pc
tition Of that kind Is very different
from the statute governing the suffi-
cheney of the present petition. Many
people confuse the law governing these
two petitions.
The canvass made in this case has
simply confirmed our opinion of the
validity of this petition.
The case now being tried before
Judge Kirby is, in our opinion, i'll adj
vised. This case was first commenced
n ID pf
peace. When case was called for
trial Mr.. Cornell, county attorney
filed motion for continuance, which
was sustained by the court. In this
motion, he said, THAT this action was
commenced, the information filed, war
rant issued and defendant brought into
court. without my having been con
suited and without my knowledge.
81 am informed by the attorneys on
both sides that this prosecution was
commenced for the sole purpose OF
determining the sufficiency and valid
ity of the revocation petition recently
filed with the county auditor by the
Anti-Saloon league of this city. Since
!. the commencement of this action tbs
Anti-Saloon League have caused to bt
commenced an injunction az
ton against this defendant, the hear
ing for temporary injunction havins
been set for Tuesday, Jan 5, before
Judge M. A. Roberts at the cour
house.
II am convinced that the sufiicienc,
and legality of said revocation pe3i
ton can be more satisfactorily deter
mined by a trial before the distric
cOurt that in this case
"A trial Of the question involved i,