The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1910-05-19

THE REPAIR OF THE
COURT HOUSE.

There has been an attempt in
some quarters to make a noun
tain out of mole Hill regarding
tlhe Marshall County Court
House controversy and for the
benefit OF our readers we review
some OF the facts attending the
case.
The fact that the Court House
was ont of repair and needed a
general overhauling seems to be
undisputed by all parties, and be-
fore the letting there was conSid-
enable talk and some effort to-
ward abandoning the Old building
and getting a new structure down
town.
Both Mr.. Metsker and Mr..
Lauer were working toward the
building OF a new Court House
In or near the business district,
on the theory that it would great
ly enhance the value of down
town property. Relative to this
Mr.. Lauer wrote lengthy letter
which was published in the Ply
mouth Democrat February 1908.
Mr.. Lauer volunteered later to
even pick the location for the new
building, selecting the old Jilson
Cleveland corner, one block west
OF the postofhce, which although
not in the heart of the business
district was closer to 1T than the
old location and was also ada
cent to Mr.. Lauer's property.
We presume that the agitation
for a new building was one OF
the things that hastened the
County Council and County Com
missioners in taking the necessary
steps to put the present building
in proper condition, otherwise
they would have to deal with the
question of an entire new build
ing.
1t has been about twenty years
since any repairs have been made
on the Court House, and in the
matter OF properly repairing the
old building at a reasonable cost,
against the proposition of build
ing new one, the Commissions
ers used good judgment.
The total contract for repair
in taxes to about sixty
cents to the average farmer with
eighty acres OF land. This
amount is certainly not going to
be so very burdensome to any
taxpayer.
AT the time of the letting there
were three bids filed and of these
three only Arthur O'Keefe filed
the proper and legal non-collu-
sion affidavit as required by law.
The Board was apprised of this
fact at the time of the letting,
and Judge Larry held this to be
correct when he passed on the
case. and finally the Appellate
Court holds that Arthur O'Keefe
was the only bidder who COM
piled with the conditions of the
letting and the only one whose
bid could be considered by the
Board OF Commissioners.
1t has not even been charged
that there was any fraud or any
perpetrated on the county,
vet the decision of the Appellate
Court prevent Arthur O'Keefe the
from getting cent of
his money because he sthted in his
bid that it was conditional upon
being awarded all of the work.
We believe that under the de-
rision OF the Appellate Court THAT
the taxpayers of Indiana will be
compelled in the future to pay ex-
horbitant prices for public work,
as it creates new hazard to- the |
contractors, and it is a well
known TACT that the more haz-
ardous the character of the work
is, the higher are the prices for
the same.
We do not believe that there is
an honest man in Marshall coun-
ty, who does not want Arthur o.
Keefe to have every dollar of his
pay for the honest work and ma
terial that ne has furnished to the
county.
1t certainly is not any more
for the law to confscate
a persons property under con-
tract, any more than for a conn