Omaha daily bee., 1911-04-24
Council Bluffs.
SALOONS IN THE BALANCE
Moon Law May Have Bearing on
Number of Drinking Places.
EVIDENCE IS BEING SECURED
County Attorney Capell and Deputy
District Clerk of Court Har-
desty Trying 60 Get Mt
the Facts.

County Attorney Capell spent several
hours yesterday, assisted by Roy Hardesty,
deputy district court clerk, preparing a list
of the saloons believed~to be affected by
the decision OF the supreme court and the
enactment of the Moon law, limiting the
total number Of saloons In any community
to one for each 1000 people. He expected
to have a statement prepared for publica-
ton in all Of the papers, giving the names
and location OF saloons touched by the
court decision and the new law, but the
task proved to be too great for accomplish
ment in the time specified.
The county attorney received a copy of
the supreme court decision yesterday. to-
gether with brief letter from Attorney
General Cosson. The letter contained no
expression of opinion and an hour or two
were spent studying the court decision.
The more carefully it was considered the
more difficult ii became to determine to
what extent 1t affected the Council Bluffs
saloons. The first list prepared and be-
lieved to be affected left only about five
| OF the drinking resorts of the city with a
clear title to continue doing business, but
when the decision was more closely exam
ined the greater became the doubt in the
mind of the county attorney. There was
q wide difference of opinion among other
local attorneys, no two scarcely agreeing
upon the degree of damage that has been
sustained by the local saloons. Attorney
Capell finally refused to make the state
ment which the saloonmen and the public
were anxious to secure. He decided to get
further advice from the attorney general
before taking any official action.
The county attorneys office was besieged
all day yesterday by an anxious crowd of
saloonmen from the city and country. They
were seeking advice and safe guidance in
the present situation. Mr.. Capell was in
conference with Emmett FINLEY during the
greater part of the afternoon, and it was
at the close of this conference that the
decision was reached not to make any
public statement at the present time
1t was found that forty-two saloons were
clearly affected by the court decision and
the Moon law If the first view of the
decision is sustained. The doubt arises
from the ambiguity of the decision itself
which was written by Justice Weaver, and
decided by the court upon a stipulation
of facts. none of which are really applica-
BILE TO the situation in Council Bluffs. The
opinion appears to be contradictory, sus-
tanning the text of the Moon law, which
uOSiotce tnAt On anu aILer the passage
of this act' 1t shall be unlawful for any
saloonkeeper who has been convicted of
selling liquors illegally or against whom a
permanent Injunction has been issued to
re-engage in the business anywhere in the
state for five years, and holding that by
the wording Of the act it went into effect
on April Is. 1909. In another part Of the
implication 1t Is as plain that the law did
not become operative until July T.
The forty or more saloons in Council
Bluffs whose owners got themselves perm
anently eRjolned after April Is closed their
places of business for one day, June &c.
after having surrendered their licenses and
legally quit business. They opened up the
next day with new permits from the city
council, filing the required bond in the
district court that they would observe the
requirements of the mulct law in the flu
ture. Whether these new beginnings upon
new permits are to be construed as con-
tnuances of the old permits or wholly
new starts within the meaning of the
| Moon law Is the problem that is perplexing
County Attorney Capeil, and one which
he does not desire to decide hastily. lie
intends to share the responsibility with
the attorney general and every other Off
cial due to bear It,.