The Indianapolis times., 1928-05-22
CIVIL VAR IS
FACED BY CITY
ON FAST Time
Council 0. K. on Daylight
Saving 0verrideS Veto
of Slack.
SOME BALK AT CHANGE
Schools Will Stay on Old
Schedule; No 'PuShup'
at Courthouse.


Indianapolis business and social
life was in a tumble today, as every
citizen figured out for himself
whether he would adopt daylight
saving.
City council passed the daylight
saving ordinance over Mayor l.. Ert
Slack's veto Monday night, but no
one know whether to obey, because
a question as to its validity imme-
diately was raised by City Clerk
William A. Boyce, Jr, who asked
Corporation Counsel John w.
Hoffman for ruling.
The ordinance bears no penalty
clause. so it is not a public offense
to fail to set the clock up. This
being the case, public and private
institutions we're setting their clocks
according to the views of their man
ayers.
Move Up at City Hall
For instance:
Mayor Slack, though privately
opposed to daylight saving, chose
to follow the council majority and
ordered city hall clocks set up one
hour, with the exception that the
city hall must remain open until l
p. m. Saturday daylight saving time,
to comply with the law.
The law says the hall must be
open until noon, Central Standard
Time, and that the board of works
must be open until p. m. daylight
saving time, as remonstrances and
other filings must be received until
5 p. m. Central Standard Time.
City School Superintendent
Charles F. Miller said the 10000
public school pupils will continue
to go to school on Central Stand
ard schedule.
Police Make Change
Police Chief Claude M. Worley
said he would move up police shifts
one hour, but expected confusion,
because so many persons might
elect to stay on central standard
time that heavy traffic periods
would be heightened an hour both
mornings and evenings.
County commissioners declared
that they would not set up the
courthouse clock.
"The old town clock will continue
on Gods time, not council time, -
declared Cassius G. Hogle, presi-
dent of commissioners.
Governor Ed jackson indicated
that the Statehouse clocks woulG
not be tamrered with, because of
the danger of confusing citizens
from out State points.
Business was in confusion, no one
knowing whether to move ahead an
hour or wait until it is settled
definitely. 1t was believed most
institutions are awaiting a formal
opinion from Hoffman as to val
idity of the ordinance.
Passed 6 to- 3
The question arose when the or
dinance was passed, six to three over
the mayors veto. 1t was to have
become operative May 13, but had
not been passed over veto at that
time. The ordinance still reads that
way. Even the councilmen who
voted for the ordinance did not know
the answer to the tangle.
The vote was:
Aye: Meredith Nicholson, Edward
B. Raub, Earl Buchanan, Albert F.
Meurer, Robert E. Springsteen and
Edward w. Harris.
No: John F. White, Paul E..
Rathert and Herman P. Lieber.
Mayor Slack failed to observe the
ordinance this morning.
II got up at my usual time, be-
cause I did not know the measure
was passed over my veto. I am not
disappointed, but somewhat sur
prised to learn the council passed
the measure over the veto," Slack
said.
Believes It's Effective
MY veto message invited the
council to pass daylight saving time
if the councilmen still held their
original views"
Hoffman declined to give a state
ment on legality of the ordinance II.
advance of the formal opinion re-
quested by Boyce.
Holtzman said it was a question
whether council has inherent right
to pass such legislation.