UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. (KANSAS.; 



701 



usually large number of the municipal elections 

 in April to hinge on the " wet " or " dry " ques- 

 tion. In many towns there were some exciting 

 scenes. At several points, following Mrs. Na- 

 tion's lead, mobs formed, and in many instances 

 women were the active spirits. Joints were 

 wrecked, and considerable litigation followed. 

 One of Mrs. Nation's Topeka followers, a young 

 man, who had been active in wrecking a joint, 

 appealed his case from the district court, where 

 he had been fined, to the Supreme Court, plead- 

 ing that an illegal business had no rights at law. 

 The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the 

 court below, and this put a damper on the ardor 

 of the Nation followers, and ended the " smash- 

 ing " campaign. Mrs. Nation then set out on a 

 lecturing tour, but financially her success was in- 

 different. Her husband, a veteran of the civil 

 war, brought suit for divorce on the ground of 

 desertion. She returned to Kansas in November 

 to fight the suit, but the divorce was granted. 

 During the progress of the trial Mrs. Nation ad- 

 mitted that one reason for fighting the case was 

 that she wished to be in a position to draw a 

 widow's pension on the death of her husband. 



For the purpose of ascertaining to what extent 

 the prohibition law is violated in Kansas, the 

 State Temperance Union instituted an inquiry in 

 the summer. Queries were sent to 200 cities, and 

 192 replies were received. For the purpose of the 

 investigation the cities were divided into four 

 classes: (1) Cities the known and avowed policy 

 of which is to collect license from the joints as 

 a means of revenue, the license taking the name 

 of a fine, and usually being collected once a 

 month. Twenty-five were, listed in this class. 

 (2) Cities in which the joints are probably li- 

 censed by the officers, but in a clandestine man- 

 ner, the joints running almost openly despite the 

 supposed efforts of the officers to close them. 

 Twenty-three were listed in this class. (3) Cities 

 in which it is generally known or believed there 

 are joints, but the proprietors of which " do their 

 business like thieves, avoiding the officers, and 

 constantly fearing arrest." Fifty-two were listed 

 in this class/ (4) Cities in which there is no 

 joint, and but little and only occasional " boot- 

 legging." In this class 92 were listed. 



Lawlessness. In March 'there was a mutiny 

 on the part of prisoners in the State Penitentiary 

 who worked the coal-mines. On the 18th they 

 overpowered the guards on duty in the mines, 

 and threatened to kill their prisoners unless the 

 warden would consent to reduce the amount of 

 coal called a day's work. The warden refused to 

 make any ternls with them. A negro convict 

 made the perilous climb of 720 feet from the bot- 

 tom of the mine up the shaft to the top, for the 

 purpose of acquainting the officials with the situ- 

 ation beneath. He went down again in a cage, 

 with guards. The convicts were fired upon, and 

 two were wounded. The imprisoned guards were 

 released, after having been held for two days. 

 The convicts were then hauled to the top and put 

 under close restraint. The negro who made the 

 climb was pardoned. Two hundred and eighty- 

 four convicts were concerned in the mutiny. 



Another mutiny occurred in November at the 

 Federal Penitentiary, within a few miles of the 

 State institution. A large cell-house was in 

 course of construction, the work on it being done 

 by convicts, out in the open and insufficiently 

 guarded. Presumably through the agency of dis- 

 charged prisoners, several convicts received weap- 

 ons, and on the afternoon of Nov. 7 overpowered 

 their guards, and 27 succeeded in getting away. 

 In the melee one convict was killed and another 



fatally wounded. Thr.-c u;tnls- were wounded, 

 one of them mortally. At N>i tonvillc, a day or 

 two later, in a light licl.uccn ;i -.pind of tin- con- 

 victs and a posse, two oi lh<- tanner \\cn- killed 

 and two were wounded. Our of the sensational 

 incidents connected with the < ^ |, ( . t .. tl ^. 



ture, by two convicts, of SherilV < 'ook, of >hawnec 

 County, within a few miles of i.h.- fsipiiul of the. 

 State. He was kept in a farmhouse -.eveni.1 hours, 

 and officers on the outside wen: (i<lrin-<i from' 

 making any attempt to rescue hi in |M<MU-<- of 

 threats made to kill him. The convicts finally 

 left the house, using the sheriff and a farmer and 

 his wife as shields, and made good their escape. 

 Captures were made at various points, but of the. 

 27 that broke away, 9 escaped. 



Legal Decisions. In the case of the State of 

 Kansas vs. Board of County Commissioners of 

 Wichita County (02 Kan., 494), the Supreme 

 Court held that " boards of county commissioners 

 are authorized to refund bonded indebtedness 

 which has been outstanding more than two years; 

 and where a board issues refunding bonds under 

 the refunding act, and recites on the face of the 

 refunding bonds that the debt refunded is in 

 county bonds which actually existed when the 

 act was passed, and which have been outstanding 

 more than two years, and that all prerequisite 

 facts existed, and all conditions precedent to the 

 issue of refunding bonds had been complied with, 

 and at the same time makes a full report to the 

 Auditor of State of the steps taken and the pro- 

 ceedings had in the matter of refunding, as the 

 refunding act requires, certifying that all acts 

 and conditions and things required to be done 

 precedent to the issue of the bonds had been 

 properly done and performed the defense that 

 the debt refunded was not bonded indebtedness 

 nor bonds which had been outstanding more than 

 two years is not available against a bona fide 

 holder; nor can the county escape liability on the 

 ground that the bonds issued exceeded in amount 

 the limit prescribed by the refunding act." 



The same court, in the case of The State of 

 Kansas vs. Robert Simons (61 Kan., 752), decided 

 that " the assent by a defendant upon trial on a 

 charge of felony to the discharge of one of the 

 jurors, with an agreement to submit to a verdict 

 by the remaining number, is insufficient to bind 

 him, and in such case, in the event of an adverse 

 verdict, he is entitled to a retrial notwithstanding 

 his agreement. When not enough jurors of the 

 regular panel to constitute a jury are in court, 

 and either party to a case called for trial requests 

 that the necessary additional number be drawn, 

 in the manner prescribed by chapter cxxi, Laws 

 of 1899, it becomes the duty of the judge to cause 

 the drawing to be made, and not to fill the panel 

 with talesmen from among the bystanders." 



The Kansas law of 1897, empowering the State 

 authorities to fix the charges of stock-yard com- 

 panies in November, was declared unconstitu- 

 tional by the Supreme Court of the United States 

 on the ground that it was class legislation, and 

 its enforcement would deprive the company of its 

 property without due process of law. The de- 

 cision reverses the United States Circuit Court. 



Legislative Session. The Legislature (Re- 

 publican in both branches) assembled on Jan. 8, 

 and remained in session until March 9. The ap- 

 propriations amounted to $4,476,297. compared 

 with $4,230,802 expended by the Legislature of 

 1899. 



A great deal of money was expended in pro- 

 viding for new buildings at the State institutions. 

 The University at Lawrence was given a new 

 museum building at a cost of $75,000. Provision 



