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Bell Control
By: Lewis
Today, at the Mossflower Supreme Courthouse, history was made. The landmark case, Cluny vs. Redwall, a case argued long and hard by both the National Bell Association, and vermin bell control supporters, has finally come to an end. The trial lasted for three months before the Supreme Court finally reached its verdict. The charge of guilty, and a fine for Redwall of over three million acorns in compensation to the closest relatives of the late Cluny the Scourge has set a new precedent. The old precedent was set many hundreds of seasons ago, when Martin the Warrior bashed a stoat's brains out with a sleigh bell, and asked if anybody had a problem with it.
This ruling also encourages support of the recent bills introduced to the Mossflower Legislature. If made law, these proposals would make a required five-day waiting period for buying a bell, and restrict usage of bells to musical activities and/or self-defense. The vermin community, though, says this isn't enough. They want to roll this ruling right up through the Legislature with new bills, fashioned after bell control laws in Southsward.
"Do you know how many bell-related deaths there've been in Southsward in the last ten seasons? Three! That's as many as Mossflower has in a month," said Cartchaser Thickclaw, the attorney who represented Cluny's kin in the case. "Bell control has been a special issue of mine since I first got a look at the figures. Let me tell you, Mossflower is first in the world in bell-related deaths, accidental or otherwise."
When Thickclaw was asked about the recently filed Splittail vs. Churchmouse lawsuit, he refused to speak at length on the subject. "All I can say is that it's a tragedy that that fine young vermin was injured by the bell at St. Ninian's, and Thickclaw, Thickclaw, Bloodtongue and Cooper would look forward to having him as a client."
On the other side of the yards in front of the Courthouse, Nation Bell Association protesters stood with picket signs and small bells, as signs of defiance. Chief among them was Timothy Streamcutter, the radical anti-vermin leader of the group. Standing on a platform and delivering rousing speech after rousing speech, he almost brought the demonstration to a riot, but stopped when he was almost arrested by police forces nearby. When asked about the ruling, he was obviously not happy.
"The Mossflower Court wants us all dead! If we didn't have bells, do you know how quickly the vermin could overtake us? We need bells for protection! Bell control is just another word for surrender. Surrender to the vermin hordes. Bells don't kill rats! Mice kill rats, and good riddance!"