The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1918-04-12

night and preferred charges
against John Po!chow, alleging
that he sold liquor in that village
on the Sabbath day. PoIchow was
SUNNI to appear before the
council tonight and answer these
charges. There is report in
Good Thunder that Polchow's
saloon license may be revoked.
investigation into alleged malfea-
sance of non -feasance o. officers in
the row that took place at Good Thun-
der on March 25 was urged upon the
grand jury this morning by Judge W..
L. Comstock of the district court.
That body had been called into spe-
ciaI session. He also urged inquiry
into the alleged Easter Sunday sale
of liquor at Good Thunder, notwith-
standing the disposition of that mat
ter made by the Mankato municipal
court. He further urged the grand
jury to make a thorough investiga-
ton into reports of alleged disIoyal
utterances and disloyaI meetings,
said to be held for the purpose of
avoiding the draft.
The judge referred to a deplorable
incident that was reported to have
taken place at Good Thunder on
March 25. 1t will be remembered
that two men from Webster City,
Iowa, on the day after that paid fines
in the municipal court at Mankato
for having been drunk. The judge re-
ferred to the claim made by one Of
the men that after being handcuffed,
and in the charge of local officer of
the law, he was beaten and assaulted.
The Judge charged the grand jury
to make full inquiry into the circum
stances of this drunken row, and to
ascertain how far any Of the officers
were guilty of misconduct in the mat
ter. If such officers, sworn to abide
by the law, had themselves connived
at the violation of the law. or We're
guilty of nonfeasance or malfeasance
in office, it was a most serious offense.
1t appeared that there were about
thirty men engaged in the row at
Good Thunder. Under the law it was
necessary to hold strict accountable
ty of those who were charged With
the duty of enforcing the law.
Liquor Bought on Sunday Alleged.
The court spoke of the case of the
three men who were alleged TO have
purchased liquor on Easter Sunday at
Good Thunder. That case resulted
in fine being imposed by the Man
katO municipal court on the saloon
keeper who sold the liquor The Judge
declared that the penalty that had
been imposed in this case by the
lower court was not commensurate
with the gravity of the offense. He
charged the grand jurors to inquire
thoroughly into this case, and to carry
out the state law, Notwithstanding
what had been done in the lower
court. He said that in offenses OF
this character the grand jury was not
bound by what had been done by any
of the local magistrates. He said the
grave charge that the grand jury
should look into was not within the
jurisdiction of the magistrate of the
lower court. If the grand jury should
lower court. If the grand jury should
find that intoxicating liquors had
been sold in violation of the laws OF
the state, it was the duty of that body
to prefer charges regardless of any
attempt that may have been made by
any other court to punish that oifense.
Any attempt to administer those laws
by lower court was wholly null and
void.
Report of DisIoyaI Utterances.
The court called the attention of
the grand jury to the law forbidding
any person to advocate by oral speech
or otherwise anything that tended to
discourage the citizens OF the state
from assisting the national govern
ment in carrying on war against a
public enemy. He said the court had
information that there were persons
under the courts jurisdiction who
were in that respect conducting them
selves so as to violate the laws of the
state and the nation. He declared
that the state authorities should not
wait for the national authorities to
punish such offenses. The state
should keep it's own doorstep clean
When the same act was in violation
of both state and national law, the
state should proceed at once. The
means and powers of the state on
such cases were more ready and eff
fectual than those in the hands of the
national government.
Report Secret Anti Draft Meet.
The court stated that information
had come to him that young men sub
ject to the draft and others had been
meeting and cOunselling on methods
of avoiding military service, and OPP
posing the law of the draft. These
meetings, it was said, had been some
what secret. If such reports were
true, any persons connected with such
meetings should be charged under the
law and brought to trial.
He declared that there had never
been time within the memory oil
the people of today when the least
infraction of such laws was matter
of such grave moment.
France Cut Down Bread Ration.
limited Press Dispatchl