Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-12-02
Local Comment


The time to buy your Christmas tur-
Key cheap is this week. The local
butchers claim that they got stuck on
the high market and hence could not
come down with the Chicago price for
Thanksgiving but with turkeys selling
below Is cents live weight in Chicago
no one should charge to exceed IS or
90 cents dressed in Marshalltown to-
Gay.
The change Of ownership in the two
Oldest drug stores in the city which oc
CURED this week marks the passing of
business from one generation to the
next. 1t has been said that every first
class druggist who ever engaged in
business in this city was a graduate of
either the Mcbride or Lander stores
and now both Of these pioneer estab-
lishments have passed into the hands
of worthy students trained In the busi-
ness under the tutelage of the proprie-
tors whom they succeed. The present
Mcbride is not the founder of the store
he sells. to be sure. but he is the son
of the founder so that the transition
of the business to new generation of
merchants really takes place now.
Councilman Herman's resolution to
settle with the paving compliments by
paying all but third of the cost on
East Main street and all but two thirds
for corner lot owners may yet prove
the nucleus for settlement. 1t has
all along seemed that the East Main
street property owners could not be
forced to pay to exceed one half Of the
cost even in a law suit. There would
be the hazard of proving that it was
reconstruction rather than repair and
if it were held to be repair the city
would have to pay all Of the cost. II 1t
were held to be a new pavement the
question then would be was the prop
erty benefited in value by putting
down new pavement. Courts have held
in some states that property is never
benefited by second paving improve
ment so the property owners have a
good chance to escape part of the cost
in all events. Inasmuch as this council
secured the pavement for so low a
price as 80 cents per yard settlement
at half for the property owner would
be as good as a third on the average
cost for paving.
! it is absolutely hopeless under recent
| court decisions to assess all of the cost
of corner lot paving to the property
owner. The final adjudication in court
is always determined by the testimony
of witnesses as to the increase in value
of the lot after being paved and no one
will testify fairly that corner lots as
residence property are enhanced in
value to the full extent of the cost OF
paving on two sides. The Morgan
| property got off with 90 per cent but
other corner lot properties in the as
phalt paving settlement paid only 2;
per cent An assessment of all of tbs
cost of the front and third Of the side
would be about all any corner lot coulc
be assessed equitably. 1t would ther
be paying twice as much for paving as
an inside lot and there is much merit
in the contention that even inside lots
should not pay the benefit which the
public receives from street paving a.
we'll as the special benefit to the prop.
erty.
No one will censure this council FOL
paving East Main street. That i'm
provement was imperative. There ha
been some criticism on the part of Mr.
Eerman's political friends that tn
mayor and Councilman Lamb had don,
something awful in regard to the Eas
Main street paving but as to what tn
crime was has never been made speci
fic. However. If Herman is now in ia
vor of settling with the property own
ers out Of court and at the city's ex
pense the other two ought to get to
gether on some equitable basis. Her
man has put himself on record ant
could not very we'll kick about 1t at
terward. There has never been a tim
recently when the city was not equita
bly, bound to pay for some Of tn
corner lot paving and for some of tn
East Main street Improvement but tina
should never have stopped this pavin
Improvement nor should 1t stop paw
ing in the future. The only question
is as to how much should the city pay
i r. N. A. Election.
Lotus Camp, No. 81, Royal Neighbor
II Of America elected officers rreda