Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1914-06-26
!. cTfN ORDINANCES REGULATING
TRADES KNOCKED OUT sY
SUPREME COURT.
CEDAR RAPIDS PREPARING
TO REVISE LOCAL LAWS
High Courts Declaration That E'ee'
trieians, plumbers and House Movers
Can Not Be Licensed and Regulated
in Extreme Manner Makes Job For
Solicitors in Meeting Requirements.

court by a decision last week knocked
several Cedar Rapids ordinances higher
than an aeroplane crossing the Alps
and has made it necessary for the coun-
oil to frame new ones that will be in
keeping with the decision.
The ordinances declared void are;
Requiring electricians to be licensed.
REQUIRING plumbers to be licensed.
Requiring house movers to be IL
censed.
The town Of Akron, Iowa, filed an
Information against j. e. McElliott, an
electrician, accusing him of wiring a
house without first obtaining license
for such work as required by part Is OF
section 2, ordinance 6s, of the town, and
procuring and fling the bond required
therein, contrary to the provisions Of
the ordinance.
McElliott was fined. He appealed the
case to the district court which re-
versed the lower court. The town of
Akron then appealed to the supreme
court. In sustaining the district court
and knocking out the ordinance the
had the right to make reasonable re-
quirements as to the work to be done.
and &c require submission to appropri-
ate inspection. and to require the elm
nation of all elements Of danger or
even waste.
Nothing of this kind Is attempted in
the rules under consideration. These
rules do not purport to deal with the
merit or method Of the work to be done.
They merely lay artificial and arbitrary
requirements on the persons who are to
be permitted to do electric wiring. They
can have not particular effect except to
limit the number Of competent persons
permitted to do the work. It is held to
be grotesQue to construe the cited
statutes as comforting power on mu-
nicipality to require a $1,000 bond from
q competent mechanic, conditioned that
he would pay all fines which might be
imposed against him for breach Of the
ordinance. He could as well be required
to give bond to keep the peace.
What the Court Says.
I'VE think Il too clear for extended
arguments that the rules In question are
not within the power conferred on a
municipality either by the express
terms Of any statute or by necessary
implications" the court says.
In other words, the court appears tc
incline to the belief that competen,
mechanic shall not be prevented from
following his vocation because he does
not happen to have license. Cases
have been known In Cedar Rapids
where a tourneyman of a certain trade
was not permitted to go to work be-
cause the field was overcrowded In
one instance a man was not permitted
to Join the particular union with which
he wished to affiliate because the grant
ing of membership card would mean
that he stood a chance of obtaining
work when all places were filed.
The decision, 1t was said at the city
hall, was a blow at the so-called
plumbers trust.
However, the most important feature
Of the decision of the supreme court to
local officials Is its effect on ordinances
here and 1t was the opinion of the COM
rnissioners that 1t knocks out the three
mentioned, and possibly one or two
others.
City Attorney Dawley is out Of the
city. On his return the supreme cour,
decision VIII be submitted to him and
he will be asked to determine which
ordinances are involved.