Today's Old News is a little something I like to call "Part 2." To understand what story we're wrapping up today, newcomers could look up Part 1, aka last week's column, in which ...
We learned that in November 1916, factions tussled for power in (officially) bone-dry Argenta. One was led by Mayor J.P. Faucette, the other by City Clerk A.B. Gerlach, whose son James was municipal judge. But ...
The City Council tried to boot Municipal Judge James Gerlach on nine charges of public drunkenness, potty-mouthing and being a bully. They managed to agree on two charges, pronounced him impeached and elevated his court clerk, W.H. Ramsey. Ramsey had a magnificent beard. But ...
Argenta did not have an ordinance making public drunkenness an impeachable offense. A higher court restored Gerlach to his bench. Whereupon he made a show of piety in court, beginning each session with the Lord's Prayer, before finding pretexts to free citizens charged with bootlegging or buying liquor through the mail. But ...
The council brought new charges, impeached him again and again gave the bench to the hirsute Ramsey. But ...
Gerlach wasn't present for the whole hearing and that was grounds for appeal. Another ruling put him back on the bench. But ...
The state Supreme Court finally sided with the council, declaring Gerlach impeached. Faucette by this time wasn't mayor anymore, having gone west for his health, and Argenta had changed its name to North Little Rock. And by the way ...
Although far away in Los Angeles, Faucette couldn't resist needling Gerlach via sarcastic telegram, delivered collect, in the middle of the night. The former judge was "certainly entitled" to his "much needed and deserved vacation," Faucette wrote, among other veiled insults. He signed the telegram, "much love to you and father."
Oh, snap!
Whereupon Judge Gerlach announced that he would finally step down ... as soon as the high
court served him with its ruling, on paper. But then the municipal court docket book vanished. Overnight! Gerlach accused Ramsey of stealing it and had him arrested. Ramsey bailed himself out of jail immediately.
That brings us to today's Old News, which was published Feb. 15, 1918, on the front page of the Arkansas Gazette.
Three Judges Now Claim the Bench
"North Little Rock now has three claimants for the judgeship of the Municipal Court.
"The latest is Attorney W.D. Jackson of Little Rock, who was selected yesterday by members of the bar to serve as special judge until the scramble between Judge W.H. Ramsey and Judge James Gerlach is decided.
"Both Judge Gerlach and Judge Ramsey were on the scene early yesterday morning to open court. Judge Gerlach was seated in the swerving judge's chair. Judge Ramsey was seated in a straight chair nearby.
"As the clock struck 8 Judge Gerlach announced that he was ready to open court. Judge Ramsey followed him closely by announcing that he, too, was ready to open court.
"The day's court docket was before them. Judge Gerlach grabbed it. Judge Ramsey was a close second and grabbed the other end. Both arose, each holding one end of the docket and demanding of the other: 'Let go.'"
They were "hopelessly clinched," and so other officers of the court -- the lawyers -- summoned City Clerk Perry Machin and ordered him to hold an election on the spot to name one of them special judge.
Ramsey and Gerlach became spectators as Jackson discharged 38 people charged with disturbing the peace.
Ramsey announced that he didn't recognize Judge Jackson and that "his" court was adjourned until morning; but Jackson adjourned court until 3 o'clock in the afternoon.
Judge Gerlach remained seated with nothing to say. He left soon after the morning session.
Two Judges on the Job
Jackson and Ramsey stayed at City Hall, Ramsey in the judge's private office and Jackson hanging about.
Here's the Gazette again: "Shortly before 3 o'clock yesterday afternoon, Ramsey opened his court and discharged Louis Gershner, who had been arrested on a charge of resisting an officer. Then Judge Jackson informed Gershner that he had continued the trial until tomorrow afternoon.
"Gershner had no lawyer, but he needs one now to determine whether his discharge is legal or whether he must face the court again today."
Judge Ramsey a Defendant
"Judge Ramsey will not occupy the chair this morning because he must face a charge of conspiracy to commit a felony, grand larceny and violating section 1996 of Kirby's Digest, which charges the theft of public documents. His hearing will be before Judge W.E. Woodruff in the Little Rock Municipal Court at 10 o'clock this morning," the Gazette reported. (This was Woodruff III, grandson and son of historic Gazette editors.)
The same charges were brought against T.T. Beeler, North Little Rock Municipal Court clerk, and Herbert Stewart, a city hall janitor. Police Chief William Mara claimed that Stewart had confessed to taking the docket book after Beeler paid him $10 to throw the records in the river.
The Gazette reported, "It is said Stewart declared he removed the dockets from the courtroom, but hid them under the stairs in the basement of the city hall. Stewart is alleged to have said he did not have time to throw them in the river."
Ramsey was cleared, resumed his judgeship and freed Beeler, leaving the black janitor on the hook. But Stewart legged it to Chicago.
He returned in summer 1918, in time to face a new charge: arson -- along with North Little Rock's Mayor Dwight M. Pixley and one Lt. Paul Gabriel. The arson accusations were dropped. But I don't know what became of Stewart or his grand larceny indictment. In Gazette archives, his case is postponed and postponed until it vanishes from view.
What happened to James Gerlach? Cary Bradburn, author of On the Opposite Shore: The Making of North Little Rock (City of North Little Rock, 2004), tells us that Gerlach died "just short of his 53rd birthday in 1936 in Jacksonville, Fla." That explains why he was listed as a survivor with his brother Albert and two sisters in his father's obituary in December 1933 but not in his mother Lillie A. Gerlach's obituary in February 1945.
Next week: Good Book Display Ready at Library
ActiveStyle on 12/05/2016