LA
GRANDE EVENING' OBSERVER
VOLUME III
LA GRANDE, OREGON, THURSDAY EVENING, SEPTEMBER I, 1904
NUMBER 251
COMPLAINT FILED IN
COUNTY SEAT CASE
Charging the County Court and Hundreds of
Bonified Citizens with all Manner
of Illegalities.
Id the cirouit oourt, State of Oregon,
Count; of Union,
A E Eaton, Jamei K Hutchinson "
NelBon Bchoonnver, 8 O Swack-
pud F A Pnrsell, Plaintiffs. '
T8
All the county officers, Defend n a.
The rlaintiffs for cause of motion
against the defendants oomplain and
That eaoh of them are and were dur
ing all tbe times mentioned in this
OOmn aillt. rflflldpntfl Anil aiialiflnd
eleotors of Onion oonoty, legal voters
and tax payers of Union county and
4U- ,W 1. - I L - . '
umb bury enuu unu a (urge amount ox
property.
That the defendants ( which inoludes
all the county officers)
That prior to the first Monday in
July, 1904, tbe county court of said
Union rounty, consisted of M A Har
rison, county judge; J A Piloher, com
missioner; and R Blumenstein, com
missioner. That on the 25th of March 1001. there
was presented to said county oourt, a
petit on purporting to be signed by
2573 persons, wbioh said petition rep
resented that the petitioners were duly
qualified eUctorsol Union county, bad
been actual residents of said county
for a period of three months prior to
the signing of said petition and prayed
that the question of the removal of the
county seat from the city of Union to
the city of La Grai.de be submitted by
tbe county oourt to tbe eleotors of
said county at tbe next general elec
tion to be held on Monday, June 6,
1904.
That thereafter tbe plaintiffs, here
in and other qualified electors of Un
ion county presented to said county
court objection, and alleged that 1600
persons who signed sui'b petition, or
pretended to sign tbe same were not
qualified electors and bad not resided
SCHOOL
OPENS
Do the boys need a Suit, Cap or Enee Pants. We never have had as large
an assortment of BOYS CLOTHING as we have now. We nn suit you in
quality, fit, style, aDd price. We only ask for an examination of quality.
Our Boys Clothing is selling at psices never before offered in La Grande
aud we are positive that a comparison will convince you. Boys Knee Pants,
Boys Blouees, Boys Caps, and Boys Shoes. Call and see the BARGAINS we
are offering. -
The Chicago
THE BUSIEST STORE IN TOWN
Adams Ave., La La Grande,
In said county or been actual residents
of s.ld oiunty for three months before
signing such petition and ulaintiff al
leges that of 2678 names upon sa'd
petition many of tbe same were dupli
cated and some were signed by women
and specific objection i were made to
1500 names to such petition who were
designated as neither qualified eleotors
or actual residents of said county for
three months prior to the sinning of
aid petition that 1500 of said pretend
ed Bluners on said petition were not
qualified electors or had not been rest
dents of Union county, bonified rr
otherwise for three months prior to
the signing of said petition .
That BOO on said petition were false,
fictitious, and no such persons existed,
had residence or conld be found in
said county. Thereafter and after the'
said i-ouot) court sitting for the trans
action of county business, had ad
journed and after said couaty commis
sioners had left tbe court room, tbe
said M A Harrison, oounty judge as
afore ssid, on the 7th day of April
10 4, and in tbe absence of remoustrat
ors and tbeircounsel, Srcretly and sur
reptitiously and fraudulently made
and entered In the records of said
county the following order.
"Now at this time this cause coming
on for hearing on petition filed by V)
A Stephenson et ai, on Match 25, 1904,
asking that the question of removing
tbe county seat from Union to La
Qrande, be submitted to the voters of
said county at the general election,
June 6, 1904, and also, upon the pro
test and objections to the petition filed
by A B Eaton anil et al, and upon the
motion to strike from the petition a
large number of signatures thereto, tbe
petitioners appearing by J D Slater,
their attorney, and the objectors by T
H Crawford, their attorney, and the
objections to said petitions having been
SCHOOL
NEXT TUESDAY
argued and submitted, it is ordered
that tbe said objections be and the
same is hereby overruled and denied.
And tbe attorney for tbe objectors buy
ing been asked to offer testimony in
support of the motion to strike from
tbe names thereon, and petitioners
having submitted evidence by two wit
nes ea concerning certain namea on
the motion and petition, it Is ordered
that the motion be and the same ib
hereby overruled and denied and the
court, from tbe petitions filed and evl
dence taken, how finds that the tui
tion is signed by qualtfi-d electors of
Union county, who have, been aotunl
residents of the county, : (or at leuat
three months preceding suon signing
and equal In number to more thau S 5
of all tbe votes cast in Union county at
laat general election, and it furti.er up. t
pearing that tbe petition iB In i II
things regular, it is therefore order d
that the question of removing the
oounty seat from Union to La Grani'e,
be and the same is hereby submitted to
tbe voters of tbe county at the next
general eleotlon of county officers, to
be held in June 6. 1901, and tbe oounly
clerk is hereby required Co give notice
thereof, as required by law,"
That the findings of the attorney of
the said Eaton and others stated that
they had no testimony to offer, is
false and not true and that no such
statements were made, and the finding
ia that evidence of two witnesses bud
been submitted concerning tbe names
on motion and petition is - (alse and
that no such evidence was taken and
that no facts were luund by the oouuiy
court, that the said petition was not
. signed by 3-5 of the qualified electors
who had a bonified resideuce In said
oounty (or 3 months prior to said sign
; ing of raid petition. Tbat no witness
es were tubmitted before said uounly
oourt, sitting as a board of commis
sioners for the transaction of oounly
business. That raid petition of M A
; Stephenson and others was never con
sidered, passed upon, by tbe then
I oounty court, consisting of tbe said
county judge and commissioners, or
tbe said oounly judge or one of said
commissioners; tbat said petition was
never oonsidered by said board, but
only by said connty jude sitting se
cretly, clandestinly and alone, who
made the said order out of court, and
directed the said oounty clerk to enter
tbe same In the records. That said
act and proceeding of said oounty Judge,
in considering said petltiou, passing
the same, eald order as aforesaid, was
wholly void and of no foroe and ofreut
l'bat It did appear that tbe said peti
tion and all the evidence before said
county oourt tonohing the same tbat
said petition did not contain the name
SCHOOL
8
Store
Oregon.
of, and was not in fact algned by 1250
qualified eleotors of Union oounty, wbo
bad been actual residents of the oounty
for the last 3 months preoeding the
signing of tbe petition, and the acts of
said county court in and about the
granting it said petition ''Is wholly il
legal, and without afct'hority of tbe
law, and void. : - :
Tbat notwithstanding the faots, tbe I
illegality of said order, J H Mimnaugh, j
tbe then county clerk of said county
pretended to give notice based . upon
said pretended Older, stating that an
el. ol Ion would be held June 8, 1901, 1
for the removal of tbe county seat ot !
Bald county, from Union to La Grande, J
thereafter caused to be printed on the j
official ballot "For the removal of the j
county,'.' and the words "yes" and)
"No" V ' . i
That at said election there was pre-j
ronueu to do cast lor me removal or
Ik- -' . tlKKil . .1 I
i
vuo wuuby owii UU9 VUbCB, OB, WIU
1003, no. That of said votes pretend
ing to vote "Yes," 1000 of said votes
were cast by persons wbo a ere not
qualified eleotors in Union county.
That ot said 2659 votes voting yea,
1170 votes were cast lb precincts known
is "La Grande No. 1, 2, 3, and 4."
That 1389 of said voles were cast In
other precincts of Union county. That
of said 1389 votes, 1000 were procured
by fraud and bribery, in this: That
said Union oounty t the time of said
election bad a good, commodious, sub
stantially constructed court house,
with vaults and all fixtures, which
said court house and grounds, together
with tbe briok jail and steel cells ot
the reasonable value of S.16,000. That
for tbe purpose of induaing the said
1389 votes to vote yes for the removal
ot tbe county seat, J M Chur.h and
other oitizens, residents of La Grande
olle e l to eaob ol the said voters to
construct a court bouaa and jail and
maintain tba same free of charge to
said county (or the period of IS yean,
and for tbe purposes of carrying out
said agreement executed a bond, a
copy of whioh is marked exhibit "A"
and made a part hereof. That of the
said 138.' voters, 600 of said voters each
owned large amounts of property in
the connty, wbioh was annuilly sub
ject to taxation (or county purposes,
and that said 000 tax payers and roters
were Induced to vote "yes" on tbe re
moval of the county seat solely by eald
false, fraudulent representations of J
M Cliuroh and others, and were solely
influmced to so vote by the giving of
said bond and (aid pledges to maintaiu
a county court house and jail, free ot
charge for IS years, and but for said
pledge, and said promlie and said . in
ducement, each of said U00 voteiB and
tax payers would have voted no, and
against tbe removal of tbe said couuty
seat. That each of said vote so cast
and bo Influenced are void, and illegal
and against the statute, constitution
and publlo policy of the state of Ore
eon. Tbat o( the e iid 1170 votes catt
in the La Grande preoinots, 300 votes
were not qualified electors, and of said
voters voting yes in Summerville pre
cinct, 20 votes were not qualified eleot
ors, in Ferry precinct 20, in North
Powder 22, in Kaniela 15, in Island
City 30, in HUgard 40, In South Elgin
75, in North Elgin 65, in Allcel 15, mak
ing a total of 607 votes, ottnr aud dilf-
ereit from tbe 600 tax payers atoieBSld,
who were qualified o lectors, who voted
for tbe removal of the coumy eeat,
wbo were not qualified to vote at eald
eleotlon and wbo were not residents of
Union county Oregon,
The next several pages of tbe com
plaint alleges that suob removal Is con
trary to tbe constitution of the state
wherein the county has no suitable
buildings for the proper storing of the
records and will be put to an expense
ot 12000 persnnum and that tbe county
is now in excess of the constitutional
limit of indebtedness, and further tbat
the act providing for thia election is
unconstitutional. I
The plain iff s after having made tbe !
plea that they had no plain speedy or
ailoquate lomedy at law, closed with
the following prayer.
Wherefore the Plfs. pray for an In
junction enjoining tbe said defendants,
tbe oounty officers, from removing
their raid offices from tbe county seat 1
in Union to La Grai.de, and that they I
be enfoined from removing anv of their !
said respective offices, records, files or
other public property pertaining to
tbelr ssid respective olllces from said
town of Union to tald town of La
Qrande, and tbat an order be made
setting aside, aonnlingand holding fur
naught, each and all pretended pro
ceedings (or tbe removal of the county
seat and for such other and further re.
lief ss may seem meet and agreeable to
equity and good consolenoe, Including
plaintiffs costs and disbursements,"
ASSUME
THEIR
DUTIES
New O. R. & N. Offi
cials Assumed Their
Duties at the Depot
this Morning.
. The obansea
take place in tbe 0. It. A N. office at
thia nlacfi In it Fnrmni- tea,ia .1 ik.
Observer are now in effect. This
morning the new officers asuined their
respective duties and everything la
moving along as - smoothly If thore
bad been no change.
Mr Thomas Walsh who has been
Chelf Train Disratnhar fni- tho nan
eight years is now Train Master and
sat a u Andrew Uuckley who for tbe
past (our years bus been one of the
Dispatchers is now ohiof .Dispatcher.
Mr JW Began, formerly of Denver Ib
now third trick dispatcher. Mr F L
Uunble, late of Salt Lake la second
THE
The Great Fashion Center
-OH1 LA
NEW STYLES
NEW GOODS
NEW PRICES
You's for Fall Trad
trick dispatcher and Mr E J Wapit
is first trick dispatcher Mr E T Walsh
will ob soon as be can be transferrer!
from Umatilla be tbe second operator
I and Mr p Grant who formerly wusj
Koad Master for thia division, b it
lately on the Washington Division, ia
again Road Master here, relelvius'
acting road master Omanotf.
It will bo welcome news to tbe citi
zens of La Grande and O. P & N.
employees generally that the rolseiit.
changes have been such, as none of old
timers in the office have been oblige!
to take position at otbor points on tha
road and thereby cause tbe towu io,
loose thoBe who are numbered smoof
the cities best and mo it pogiesaiva
citzons. Train Master Walsh h..a
boeu a reaidenre of this oity'for tha ,
prst fourteen years during which tims
he has always been found In the rr. ikav '
of those wbo have worked tho harde t
and accomplished ibo most for the
advancement of La Grande and Uutou
County, - . :
Senator and Mrs Walter Pierce a o - -
intbeolty today and will leave fop ,
their borne in I'endlulon tonight whtui "
Mr Pierce will leave for the b.ia .
Francisco Kulgbt Templar Cone acre
Encouraging reports were reoolvod nl,
this morniog Irom MrsEinet Chenanlt V
who is in tha Pendleton hoeipti.l,
tier temperture Is much lower and :
while yat in a precarloua condition -.,
hopcB are entertained of bor recovery
Dr N Molltor wbo Is attending Ilia n
Medical association in Portlaud is ex pected
borne in tho morning. .
PAIR
GRANDE -
3