IOWA. 



499 



completed court-houses to issue bonds to raise funds 

 for their completion. 



Requiring foreign insurance companies operating in 

 the State to have a paid-up capital of $250,000, of 

 which $100,000 must be invested in stocks created 

 under the laws of the United States, making the Audi- 

 tor of State the attorney of the State on the State's 

 dealing with such companies, empowering him at any 

 time to examine their accounts, and defining the du- 

 ties of agents of said companies. 



Amending the act providing for the appraisement, 

 purchase, and conversion of toll-roads into free roads. 



IOWA. State Government. The following were 

 the State officers during the year: Governor, 

 Buren E. Sherman, Republican ; Lieutenant- 

 ' Governor, Orlando H. Manning ; Secretary of 

 State, Frank D. Jackson; Auditor, John L. 

 Brown, succeeded by Jonathan W. Oattell ; 

 Treasurer, Voltaire P. Twombly; Superin- 

 tendent of Public Instruction, John W. 

 Akers; Attorney-General, A. J. Baker; Ad- 

 jutant-General, William T. Alexander; Com- 

 missioner of Labor Statistics, E. K. Hutchins ; 

 State Mine Inspector, Park C. Wilson; Fish 

 Commissioner, A. W. Aldrich; State Veteri- 

 nary Surgeon, Milliken Stalker ; Railroad Com- 

 missioners, Peter A. Dey, James W. McDill, 

 and Lorenzo S. Coffin. Judiciary, Supreme 

 Court: Chief-Justice, Joseph M. Beck; Asso- 

 ciate Judges, Austin Adams, William H. See- 

 vers, Joseph R. Reed, and James H. Rothrock. 

 i On the 3d of March, Auditor Brown was sus- 

 pended from office by the Governor on charges 

 of non-compliance with the law, and Mr. Cat- 

 tell was appointed to fill the office temporarily. 

 On the 12th of May the Supreme Court pro- 

 i nounced the suspension legal, but a controversy 

 existed through the year. 



Prohibition. Early in July, one year from the 

 time when the prohibitory law went into effect, 

 the State Temperance Alliance sent a circular 

 to every township in the State, and at the end 

 of a month they had received replies from 343 

 townships in 85 of the 99 counties, from which 

 the following information was gained : Number 

 of saloons prior to July 4, 1884, 927; number 

 still open, 331 ; number of places having per- 

 mits engaged in the liquor-traffic, 588 ; town- 

 ships reporting majority in favor of enforcing 

 the law, 273 ; against enforcement, 45 ; doubt- 

 ful, 25. It is said that drunkenness, lawless- 

 ness, and consequently criminal expenses, have 

 diminished in the same ratio as the saloons. It 

 appears from the remarks accompanying the 

 reports that there are comparatively few places 

 ' where the law is openly violated ; but all sorts 

 of devices are resorted to in order to evade it, 

 , and sail liquor by stealth. Of those still en- 

 gaged in the sale of liquor, openly or clandes- 

 tinely, 356 were Democrats and 82 Republicans. 



On Dec. 16 a convention of the mayors of 



cities in the State was held at Des Moines. Its 



1, proceedings were contrary to the tenor of the 



' reports received by the Alliance. Mayor Davis, 



of Keokuk, in the course of remarks, said: 



A few years ago the people of the State of Iowa, at 

 i a popular election, declared by a large majority in 

 ; favor of prohibition. Two years ago the Legislature 



of this State enacted a prohibitory law which in ite 

 many terms and conditions is as stringent as able pens 

 in the hands of ready writers could draw it. That law 

 has been in force since the 4th day of July, 1884 

 eighteen months a sufficient time, it would seem, to 

 at least bear some fruit as a token of what the practi- 

 cal results will be. And what are the honest, practi- 

 cal results of that law ? The statistics prepared by 

 Senator Sutton show 1,806 licensed saloons in the 

 State of Iowa prior to July 4, 1884, and at the present 

 time over 2,200 unlicensed saloons. The report of 

 the United States Internal Kevenue Commissioner for 

 the year ending in June, 1885, shows there are in 

 this State 3,549 retail liquor-dealers, 100 brewers, and 

 216 wholesale dealers in malt liquors, making an aver- 

 age of about 38 dealers for each of the 99 counties. 



The convention adopted a memorial to the 

 Legislature, wherein it set forth the following 

 table as a proof of the uselessness of the law, 

 and asked that the municipal corporations 

 be reinvested with power to regulate the 

 trade : 



To this end an amendment of the prohibi- 

 tory law is asked, so that it shall not apply to 

 the larger cities. The license-fee contemplated 

 is not to be less than $500. On March 1Y the 

 Supreme Court rendered a decision in the case 

 of Littleton vs. Fritz, sustaining the constitu- 

 tionality of that feature of the prohibitory law 

 which enables any citizen to proceed by in- 

 junction for the abatement of a saloon as a 

 nuisance. In December the same court de- 

 cided that it was necessary for druggists to ob- 

 tain a special permit to sell liquor for purposes 

 .allowed by law. Many druggists held that 

 the provisions of the old pharmacy law still 

 applied, and that under it druggists regularly 

 licensed as such did not require any other per- 

 mit to be allowed to sell liquor for medicinal, 

 mechanical, or sacramental purposes. 



The Governor, in reference to this subject, 

 says : " For several months the law was gen- 

 erally complied with throughout the State, and 

 continued to be quite well observed until judi- 

 cial and other officers connived at, and even 

 openly encouraged, the Violation of the law. 

 In several instances appeals were taken and 



