TO JUDGE MUELLER AND THE SHOW ME CENTER: BRAV~O!

The Show Me Center continues to bring a remarkable mix of entertainment to our town. Without this fine arena, nearly 4,000 people would not have been able to enjoy the Moody Blues Wednesday night -- It marks their only appearance in Missouri this year. Last night, the arena was home to world class rodeo competition. The coming weeks will bring singer Sawyer Brown, a star-studded ice skating show, and the Indian Alumni Shootout.

The Moody Blues were, well, dynamite -- bringing a rather placid audience to their feet by the end of the show. For long-time fans, the transformation may have been no surprise.

But what was surprising to many in the audience -- striking a sort of regional pride -- was the performance by the Paducah, Ky. Symphony. We had heard they were good -- and Wednesday night they proved it. Consummate professionals, they provided a superb musical backdrop to the rock and roll legends.

The 55-member symphony includes members throughout the region, including about a dozen musicians from Cape Girardeau.

They won over the hearts of symphonic connoisseurs as well as die-hard rock n' roll fans. After Wednesday night's performance, all may be more apt to attend the next symphonic performance -- especially if it features the Paducah Symphony. We encourage these talented musicians to return in the near future for a command performance. Bravo.

Marybelle Mueller -- associate circuit judge in Cape Girardeau County -- has decided not to seek re-election. Her decision was based on the fact she could not serve the full four-year term before reaching the mandatory judicial retirement age of 70.

Her current term lapses at year's end.

While we understand her reasons, we're sorry to learn of her impending retirement from the bench. Mueller has served our county well for more than two decades. She has a reputation for fairness and toughness -- key elements when dealing with family issues. Much of the casework in Division IV deals with probate and family matters. She also served as juvenile judge for a number of years.

Mueller has been a pioneer among women in the legal profession. In 1956, she became the first woman lawyer ever elected to a judicial post in Missouri. In 1955, she was appointed by then Gov. Phil Donnelly to fill a magistrate judge vacancy, and was re-elected in 1958. She then took off several years to raise her family of five, and was elected to her current post in 1974 and re-elected four times.

When she graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law in 1950, she was one of only two women in her class.

We salute Judge Mueller and her years on the bench. In the years ahead we hope that she considers service as a senior judge or by getting involved in mediation -- so that we can continue to benefit from her enumerable legal talents.

We praised Missouri Secretary of State Judith Moriarty when she discarded one of the dumbest of state election traditions: the endless lines of candidates (or their designates) waiting weeks on end to get their name first on the ballot. What a waste of time and energy.

Our only gripe was that her "no line" decree didn't go far enough.

And the lines on the first day of filing underscored that fact. By 5 p.m. on the Monday before filing, 155 prospective office-seekers had lined up to sign a list specifying the order they would start filing the next day. The line started, unofficially of course, the Friday before. Granted, the 77 hours the longest candidate waited was less than years past. But it was still a line.

We continue to feel that the only way to stamp out these lines permanently would be a lottery to determine ballot position. It would give all candidates a fair and civilized chance at the top spot.

This said, we also encourage candidates to concentrate on real issues rather than fretting about their place on the ballot. The people are growing weary with the nonsense.