Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1915-10-29
NEWS CULLED
IN THE CAPITAL.
ACTIVITIES OF STATE DEPART
MENTS--OTHER HAPPENINGS
Special Columbus Correspondent.
Columbus.

~ ECAUSE certain farmer living
~ near Neapolis, in Lucas county, I
refuses to keep a gate closed the
state utilities commission has |
been appealed to to decide very |!
delicate question. The question sim |
ply is whether person can be COM
| PEELED to keep his gate shut, and if he
/ can be, what power exists that can ex-
! ercise the authority involved No less
| an interest than the Wabash railroad
has brought the issue to the front
The railroad, in very long and very
important looking complaint, says that
the farmer in question refused to keep
/ his gate closed and expresses the fear
! that if he continues so to neglect to
keep his gate closed his cattle may
wander out of their pasture, stray
upon the tracks of the complaining
/ company aUu cause an accident The
question is, perhaps, the most unique
that has come officially before the util-
ties commission during the life of
that body. 1t is superfuous to state
that the three commissioners are up
in the air. over the controversy. One
of them believes that the obstinate
! farmer can be compelled to see to it
that his gates are kept closed An
other believes that the presumption of
the railroad is too great and that there
is no authority in the laws that would
permit such an interference with a
mans right as would be involved in
forcing him to close his gates. And
the third member of the commission
says frankly that he doesn't know just
what the answer is.
An Ingenious kIi5i.
Frank Fink, Williams county horse
thief, just received at the peniten-
tiary, is giving the pen officials an
alibi SO ingenious that the officials are
wondering how the man ever came to
be convicted. No, sir, l didn't steal
any horse" says Fink to the pen peo-
pie; fact is, the horse stole me. You
see, was bit under the influence,
and when l get into that buggy the
blamed animal just started off and ran
away with me-" Well asked the off,
cials, how does it come that you sold
the animal to a liveryman for $10?'
Didn't do any such thing" replied
the prisoner. 1.-THE liveryman he jus.
took the horse away from me ana held
the $40 under my nose. And was
that scared by the runaway that put
the money in my pocket" The people
who have had to do with prisoners fol
years say that Fink has it on any Of
his predecessors, even on the mar
who said ne stole rope and latel
found there was cow attached to it
VIII Make Protest.
Protests of shippers, producers ant
consumers of road building materials
against proposal of the railroads tt
increase the freight rates on thes,
commodities will be aired at confer
ence to be held at the public utilitie.
commission Nov. 3, at which repre-
: sentatiyes of both sides of the contro
l. versy will be present. Pulverized ston,
3 and Stag are the principal materials in
. volved Formerly the railroads mad,
J. no charge for hauling away Stag, which
a they were allowed to keep for ballast
D ing roadbeds, but finally they refuses
/ to move it unless paid for doing Sc
a Some weeks ago the railroads formu
lated a schedule of rates to govern
shipments of all kinds of road buildin,
I materials, no such schedule ever be
:. fore having been in effect, but the ney
}, rates do not suit those who are Gale,
4 upon to pay them and hence their Pre-
tests.
A Pleasant Surprise.
The soldiers of the Sandusky hom
perpetrated pleasant surprise upol
D Gen. w. R. Burnett, commandant Q
the Sandusky home, and Mrs Burnet
II Tuesday. 1t was their 50th weddin
anniversary and the aged veteran
planned to observe it in an appropriat
way. They sent word of their inter
. tions to the state board of administrs
: ton and Thomas Davey, one of it
members, went to Sandusky to repre-
: sent the board at the function Ger
! and Mrs. Burnett had no inkling {
, what was to take place and were take
. completely by surprise when they wer
!, summoned to big hall where the so
a diers were gathered to do them homo
~ Failed to Provide Funds.
All road work for the coming yea
in Muskingum county has bee
n stopped because of the failure of th
county commissioners to allow fund
for the payment of the salaries of th
e assistants of the county highwa
superintendent, R. H. Strait The la
ter has appealed to State Highwa
Commissioner Clinton Cowen for hel
IN and Cowen will write to the commi
is sioners, telling them that it is the
fe duty under the new Case highway la
at to make the necessary allowance {
It. funds. There is an intimation in hi
IS. letter that if the commissioners do NJ
N act they may be proceeded against
Want to Charge Fees.
Deans or presidents of the five stat
=. normal schools conferred with Fran
in W. Miller, state school superintendent
co in effort to arrange for more complet
K coordination of their extension worl
10 There was disagreement over th
question of charging fees for extensio
purposes. All the schools except Ker
g. want fees to be charged for th
in course. Miami university had as re
rt- resentatives at the conference the CO
"a lege president, R. M. Hughes an
BY Dean H. c. Minnieh.