Mexico weekly ledger., 1913-10-09
CRY COUNCIL RECORDS
INTO CIRCUIT COURT.

lNIO kIU40lN 00NH'
A writ Of certiorari was filed IN
the Circuit Court, Thursday. by
George Robertson. calling the Mayor,
lCity Council and City Clerk to bring
the records Of the Council proceed
Ings when the local option election
was called, into court. MI. Robert
son appears as q private citizen in
the matter and will be represented b
Judg Elijah Robertson. Of Kansas
City. The City Council and Drys win
be represented BY +. A. Shannon
ana p. 8. Can't.
A writ Of certiorlri Is issued by a
experimenting court to an inferior
body compelling IL to bEipg its rec
ords before the court for review, to
see II II exceeded its jurisdiction or
proceeded IN accordance With law.
The writ issued to-day ia returna-
BILE the tn Of October and the case
will be tried the 18th. The petitioner
makes the points that the City Coun-
ell judicially determined that the Pc
tition wal signed by one-tenth
Of a certain class of voters and
that the one-tenth is not
all the voters. The City Council bas
ed It's count on the qualified voters
in the general election In 1912. where
as the section under which the cleo
ton is ordered requires that It shall
be based upon all the legal voters at
the time Of the filing Of the petition.
liz is claimed the City Council there
by excluded a part of the voters from
the count.
The other Point made is that the
local option law as contained in the
Revised Statutes OF 1909 has been re
pealed and that the city Council had
no evidence before II that the Coun-
ty Unit local option Law had been an
nulled by referendum petitions; and
that the City Council did not and
could not pass upon the question Of
the adoption OF the County Unit law
Relative to the suit filed today in
the Circuit Court applying for a writ
OF certiorari, to have passed upon,
the validity Of the order OF the City
Council made September 22nd, for a
local option election, Geo. Robertson
who brought the suit in his W be
half to-day said:
Elm bringing this suit in my W
name. / represent no n but myself
and incidentally, that class Of citi--
zenship who believe in obedience tc
the law.
1t is hoped that by this suit the
community will be given an object
lessen in the fundamental principle
that the law is supreme and cannot
be set aside by the within Of any fac
ton or set, who imagine their owr
will must prevail regardless of JUS
principles OF the good Of the whole
citizenship.
"This community is badly in need
Of a concrete example that the City
Council is a body under the control
of the law. and that when an official
does his duty honestly and conscienc
iously, in an effort to guide the
Council correctly, he is at least en-
Titled to respect, and should not be
made the subject OF insult, misrepre-
s~entation and y~ituperation for having
done that duty.
"The order Of the City Council II
attended by such doubt and uncertai
ty as to It's validity, that the peopl'
of the City cannot afford to take the
chance OF entering upon a new pol
Icy until the courts. that highest AM
last authority on such things, shal
pass upon its legality.
at Is better that the questions
in issue be decided now so that tn
uncertainty Of the validity OF tn
election will not be a resort and ref
uge for the boot-legger."