Muncie Post-Democrat, Muncie, Delaware County, 23 February 1923 — Page 1

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THE ONLY DEMOCRATIC NEWSPAPER IN DELAWARE COUNTY THE MUNCIE POST - DEMOCRAT

VOL. 3 No. 5

MUNCIE, INDIANA, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 1923

SUBSCRIPTION PRICE $2.00 A YEAR IN ADVANCE

How One Working Man ani< His Family Have Been Hounded Almost To Death By the Ku Klux Klan

This is a plain, unvarnished tale of cruelty and oppression against a working man and his family. If ever a man has reason to tell the world what the ku klux klan really stands for, it is John Collins, laborer at the Broderick boiler works. One year ago iMr. Collins was foreman of a department at the Muncie Products and was the democratic member of the board of safety. His entire income from all sources was probably sixty dollars a week. Mr. Collins was known as a steady worker. He had been with the T. W. Warner people for fifteen years and he was regarded highly by his employers and fellow workmen. Pie was paying for a little home out on Seventh street and with his wife and four children was living a life of happy contentment. He had no bad habits, paid his debts, was truthful and honest and his prospects were- fine. But he had one great fault. He was born a Catholic. His wife and children are FTotestants and Mr. Collins himself was not a communicant at the Catholic ’church. His wife was and is a member of the Avondale Methodist church and Mr. Collins himself occasionally attended and was a contributor to the church

exchequer.

Upon assuming office Mayor Quick, looking around for some honest, responsible, laboring man to round out one of his boards, selected Mr. Collins as the minority member of the board of safety, the position being accepted by Mr. Collins after he had been assured by his employers that they were proud of the distinction conferred upon him, and that he would be permitted to take such time off from his factory duties as might be necessary in the prosecution of his duties as a city official. Life was Making on a pleasant tinge in the humble home on West Seventh street. Jack was getting on in the world and the little wife and the four children were proud of his advancement. Being the minority member of the board of safety, Mr. Collins was allowed but little latitude by the two rpnubliranft. wha .were then his fellow

She’ll O. K. Our Immigrants

members, Charlie" Fisher and Phil McAbee, but Mayor Quick regarded him as his chief mainstay, and so stated in many private conversations with intimate friends and advisers. Collins stood for principle above everything else and when McAbee and Fisher sought to serve the ku klux klan by a secret attempt to cause the removal from the police force of Captain John Moles and Detectives Jerry Curran and Albert Rees, Collins exposed the conspiracy and Mayor Quick removed McAbee from the board and appointed E. E. Rosenthal.to his place. The newly organized board met and with the full authority and concurrence of Mayor Quick, the removal of Chief of Police Van Benbow

was effected.

The klan then got busy and

■jt/TISS MURIEL. LYNCH lras| ]_V_| sailed for the Old World to' supervise emigration in the di-j rection of the United States at its: source. She will represent the| American Immigration Department in Asia Minor, Egypt and the Medi-| terranean countries generally. „ ■

family has spent a winter of poverty accentuated by '■the serious illness of his eldest son, who has been confined to the house for many weeks, dangerously ill, his sickness having been brought on largely by worryover the toubles of his father and

mother.

Two weeks ago the W T arner corporation gave Collins a job and after working a half day he was told by the superintendent ’that 'he would have to quit immediately. The workmen who belonged to the klan threatened to strike if Collins was retained and in consequence of this threat

Collins was fired.

Collins has now secured a labor-

er’s job at tKe

tory. He is making twenty dollars a week. He is blacklisted and prevented from doing the work he is capable of doing because ku klux klan

has so decreed it.

The klan has many ways of committing murder. At Mer Rouge the hooded criminals mercifully dealt out death to their two victims by merely committing physical murder. In the case Of Jack Collins the victim was not tortured by rack and knife as were the Mer Rouge victims. Instead, with (cold bjooded malice, the victim’s sources of income were deliberately closed to him by this unspeakable band of assassins and his prosecutors have gloated as he and his devoted family have unsuccessfully fought the wolf from

the door.

<£o f; ^ ~ - -—. t One Hundred Per Cent Americanism-What Is It? Beginning back in the presidential campaign of 1916 a brand of one hundred per X cent Americanism was born whose spokesmen advocated national isolation. t Senator James Eli Watson was one of these. We remember hearing him speak to a large crowd, in that campaign, from a platform in the court yard, on the south side

V of the court house in Muncie.

y Jim was applauded to the echo and nis words recorded in local daily newspapers the next day as these of a statesman when he ridiculed the thought of war with Germany. “We’re too far away from Germany for war to affect us, one way or another, in case of a declaration of hostilities,” reared Windy Jim to the admiring crowd. “The worst that could happen in case of war,” declared Jim, “would be us standing on the wateUs ^ edge on this side, and the Kaiser standing on the other side, making faces at each other.” ^ Jim Watson posed as a one hundred per cent American who didn’t believe in mixing X up with Germany or any other foreign power, either in a friendly way or in war. X Later on war was declared and if we remember rightly there was very little time y spent either by the Kaiser or Uncle Sam making faces at each other at long range, y With unheard of celerity President Wilson organized a tremendous army composed. *<? of the flower of the youth of America, and a; a critical time they were hurled into the European cockpit, and Germany went down to defeat. During the war we were told that there were certain requirements necessary to be ♦♦o regarded as one hundred per cent Americi.n, and the specifications were generally prepared by stay-at-home Americans who were making more money out of the war than they ever expected to make in their whole lives. The bovs in the trenches were too busy busting Germany wide open to give much X thought to fine spun theories of what constitutes Americanism and what does not. y They were told when they enlisted that the war was being prosecuted in order to y make the whole world free for democracy. They know that the detested national phrase ♦♦♦ of Germany, “Deutschland Uber Alles” and the spirit behind it, was the thing which

finally caused Germany’s downfall.

After the war the leaders of the false one hundred per cent American cult were strong enough to keep America out of the league of nations and to start an insidious propaganda in favor of “America First,” which might well be compared with the abominable boast of the Junkerthum of Germany, and its odious and boastful “DeutschlancLUber Alles,” which inflamed to hatred the minds of the whole universe. There should be such a thing as one hundred per cent Americanism, but the man or group of men who claim to be true hundred per cent Americans and hold others to be enemies to their country v/ho do not believe and act as they do, are not true Amer-

icans.

The real one hundred per cent American does not boast continually of his patrio-

tism.

The isolationist, who declares himself to be the only true American, is merely stupid, and demonstrates his lack of historical information, sacred and profane. If Americanism means what the isolat’onist declares it to mean, the true American has no call to heed the divine injunction “go ye unto the uttermost parts of the earth.” If the false one hundred per cent American cult is to be the standard, then why send money to suffering Armenia, supplies to starving Europe or famine stricken China, or missionaries to the heathen races of the world? If Americanism means contented iso'ation while the entire world goes to ruin,

then we want none of it in ours.

And finally, if the real Americanism of this country is going to stand much longer for the false assumptions of an “invisible empire” which claims a monopoly an Americanism, then will we begin to lose faith i od hope in American institutions. Muncie is. cursed by the presence of Giis organization, and has been compelled to y listell to its hyppcritical pretertsloris of o nc hunureu per ceni, MM L GmP y pelled t look to members of this organization for official management of the affiairs of

*1 the city and county. I

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through astounding- threats and va-( The editor of the Post Democrat rious forms of intimidation of an al-| has heard-from the lips of the inmost unbelievable character, Mayor, nocent worpan who has been made Quick was forced to remove the en- i to suffer, a, story of hardships which tire board of safety, including his ' even should melt the hearts of the staunch friend Jack Collins, and ap-, high priests of his cruel supergovernpoint a board selected by outsiders, inent which^is destined to ruin Mun-

whose very first act was to reinstate

Chief of Police Benbow and to remove Moles, Curran and Rees from

the force.

Mayor Quick was appealed to in the case of decency and loyalty to

cie unless Muncie ruins it.

We have seen her tears flow, the tears of a mother leaning over the couch of a son whose death did not seem far away and happily the baptism of those precious drops must

rne case or uecenuy aim iu.van,^ lw — ,— -t-- ,—, ^ : undo his unparalleled act of treach- ! have proved as the balm of Gilead

-■ - ' to the departing spirit, for the boy

is going to get well, so the doctors

say.

ery to those who had relied upon him. In a published statement Mayor

Quick gave Collins and Rosenthal a clean bill of health by stating that they had discharged Benbow after advising with him and that he, the mayor, believed that Benbow could not serve the people acceptably while taking orders from the klan. Notwithstanding this statement the mayor failed to reinstate the deposed officials and Benbow, the Iman |he publicly branded as unfit, (is still

chief of police.

Concurrently with these remarkable incidents things were happening at the factory where Jack Collins was working. The ku klux klan recognizes no law—moral, sacred or man-made. Collins, the working man, was marked for ruin and his family for starvation. Without notice he was discharged from the position he had held so long, the factory management impudently referring to his activities as a public official as the reason

for his dismissal.

Friends interceded for him and every effort was made to induce his employers to permit him to retain the position. It was explained to them that he had grown up in the work and that his lack of knowledge of mechanics other than the line with which he was thoroughly familiar would force him to accept work with small compensation. He was then given « laborer’s job j in the factory where h; had long | held a responsible and lucrative position, at wages amounting to about half what he had been receiving. Conditions became unbearable and he was even forced from this position and his eldest son, a boy of eighteen also lost his job after being subjected to insults from klansmen who

hated his father.

Then came long months of unemployment. The klan blacklist was at work continually and Jack Collins, marked for destruction, spent a ‘ his savings and with his devoted

Would to God that these priceless drops of woe, wrung from the heart of this helpless, martyred victim of man’s inhumanity to man, might forever be embalmed in the conscience of this community and that the tears of a woman in distress might restore sanity and justice in a community where injustice, oppression and evil

now reign supreme!

Law Sought To Hasten Returns From Election

Columbus, Feb. 22—A bill designed to speed up election returns so that complete unofficial state results may be announced by noon of the day following in the house of representatives by Sylver Spidel, of Dayton, chairman of the house elections committee. A duplicate bill is to be introduced in the senate by Senator Bender, of Cleveland, chairman of the senate elections committee. The law would require precinct elections officials to stay on the job until all votes are counted and report the result immediately by telephone or telegraph to the county election boards. County boards are required to remain in session until all precinct returns are in and report immediately the county returns to the secretary of state by telephone or telegraph. Under present laws, county officials are not required to report results of their county to the secretary of state until 10 days after election.

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Judge Dearth, a member of the ku klux klan, sits supreme in the court house, in a position of power, and the hundred percenters openly boast that they are able to punish enemies and reward friends through <Teir locally controlled courts. The crimes that have been committed in the name of patriotism are legion, and Unless some strong hand intervenes and tears the mask completely from the face of this insidious, sneaking organization in Muncie, no citizen who dares to lift his hand against its aggressions may consider himself safe -from persecution, or possibly assault and death. No true American could belong to an order which assumes to be greater than the government. In Muncie and Delaware county, the klan has set up a supergovernment, which boastfullv declares its control of stati and government officials, and that its dictum is the final word of authority. Men meeting furtively at night in the third floor of the Anthony block, wearing gown and mask, and actuated by malice, hatred and bigotry, conspire against enemies - of the klan and serve notice on public officials that these men shall be punished by boycott, loss of position, or framed up prosecution. Juries are selected at these criminal sessions of masked outlaws and verdicts are rendered in advance and sentences of social and business ostracism passed upon men and v/omen who fail to measure up to the Americanization standard of the ku klux klan. Real Americanism will eventually drive fake Americanism to the wall. The traitors in the saddle are riding to a swift and certain fall. It is inconceivable that a free city like Muncie will stand for this evil thing much longer.

t t Y Y Y f Y t Y $ Y t Y t f ❖ t Y Y Y f Y Y Y t t Y Y Y i Y Y Y Y Y Y Y f Y Y Y Y t t t t Y ❖ f Y Y t ❖ t f Y t Y ❖ ❖ ❖ I Y Y t ❖ t t Y Y ❖

Drug Contract for Childrens’ Home Let by Commissioners to Brother of Billy Williams

Coincident with the (removal of three members of the board of children’s guardians, and the appointment, by Judge Dearth, of three new members who belong to the Billy Williams political machine, the county commissioners, not to be outdone by his honor, the circuit judge, in favors to the big boss, awarded to Claude Williams, a brother, who runs a drug store in Selma, the contract for supplying drugs for the chil-

dren’s home.

The Post-Democrat made the statement that a plan is on foot to place the children’s home under political control, and that selfish politicians are desirous of causing the removal of Mrs. Martha Gamble, matron, and making the job a political plum, to be handed out to a favorite of the machine. The awarding the drug contract to Druggist Claude Williams, of Selma, a brother of the political boss, has caused considerable caustic comment in the county. The children’s home is located on the Yorktown pike at the southwest city limits, and the letting’ of the drug contract to a country store seven or eight miles away from the home, is viewed in the light of a rather expensive and inconvenient joke. Mrs. Gamble has under her care a great many small children of various ages and she is frequently required to purchase drugs and other supplies found only in drug stores, and in many instances it is important that the supplies be secured as quickly as possible. If some simple remedy is needed i now to relieve the distress of an ailing child, in a “hurry up” case, the matron must take a trip to Selma to procure the medicine. Driving to Selma or taking a street car for that metropolis of Liberty towni ship in order to get a bottle of castor j oil which could be secured at some j corner drug store near the home, 1 might be considered a rather far I fetched condition, but Brother Claude has the contract, and even the price 1 of a bottle of castor oil is worth

considering.

Holds Title as Champ Musher

The drug store at Selma was formerly operated by William Williams Sr., but he has retired from active business and turned it over- to his son Claude, a brother of Billy. Claude is on the Liberty township payroll drawing a monthly salary for driving one of the township school hacks, and. it is said, the store is kept closed during a part of .the time that the proprietor is transferring pupils. The three members of the board j of guardians whose time of office ! expired at the conclusion of former ■ Judge W. A. Thompson’s term of office are Mrs. Fred Rose, Dr. Clay Ball and Will White. Just before leaving the bench Judge Thompson appointed these three for another three year term, but upon assuming the bench, Judge Dearth demanded, and received, their resignations and appointed Mrs. Julia Nelson and Prof. Basil Reese of Muncie and Elmer Miller of Muncie. The three members whose terms of office have not yet expired are Mrs. E. B. Ball, Mrs. Ernest Meeks and John E. Green, well known Delaware county stock raiser. The terms of Mr. Green and Mrs. Meeks expire in May, and it will then be up to Judge Dearth either to reappoint them or others to takq their places. There is an insistent demand here that Judge Dearth make no further changes in the personnel of this highly important board. The people do not want Billy Williams to assume complete control of the chili dren’s home and use it for his own, his family and his friends political and financial advantage. I It is generally believed, now that the Post-Democrat has told the public the thing that is contemplated, that the people will not permit selfish politicians to make a poltical and financial football of the home that shelters the helpless childrun, who have become wards of the county. The three members who were so arbitrarily disposed of by Judge Dearth and who were replaced by favorites of the Williams political j machine, have served acceptably and faithfully for a number of years on the board of children’s guardians and have 'freely gl/en their time and -1-U 'r 7 /->v»^r ITA Uj r-1 ... J 4a model home. The Post-Democrat has heard of n<5 complaints made by the deposed members themselves conlcerning their removal, but the people of Delaware county who know the nature of the service rendered by them for years, without reward, and without thought of political advantage to themselves or their friends or dependents, are deeply incensed. They feel that there should be a limit to the vaulting ambitions of unscrupuj lous political gangsters.

HOLD INSTITUTE

Delegates of Many Organizations Meet in Washington

Petit Actress' Latest Plat

Trial Of Worlie Gortner, Klan Kleagle, Is Dn At Springfield

npms is Victoria White of the castj X of “The Clinging Vine,” New; York theatrical success. She' posed to show an attractive new hat and scarf—pussy willow and feltJ The big checks are quite the rage.

LITHTi AN IA A ND POL AN I) TO APPEAL TO LEAGUE London, Feb. 22—Both the Lithuanian and Polish governments ijn'formed the British government of their intention of appealing to the league of nations to settle the troubled situation in the Kovno district.

WHY HE DECLINED

Wichita, Kan., Feb. 22—J. B. Billard, formerly mayor of Topeka, has declined an invitation to run for his old office again on the ground that if he were elected he would have to raid the homes of his personal friends for hootch, and he does not like the prospect.

Worlie M. Cortner, the Muncie music dealer who (was arrested lard week at Springfield, Ohio, where he has been stationed as organizer, kleagle for the ku klux klan, is attracting nation wide attention. Attorneys from all over the country, employed by the klan, are in court representing Cortner, who is charged with riotous conspiracy and dictograph evidence, tending to prove the allegations of the state, has been introduced in evidence. Clarence E. Benadum, former prosecuting attoney of Delaware county, who, while in office here denied klUn membership when so charged by the Post-Democrat, is in Springfield, and as an announced member of the klan, is assisting in the defense. The feature of the Springfield incident is the strenuous denials of membership made by practically all whose name appeared on the klan membership roster which was confiscated by the Springfield police. One of the defense attorneys is Klansman Charles S. OrbisOn, of Indianapolis, a democrat who was appointed by former President Wilson as head of the prohibition enforcement department in Indiana, but who was removed and replaced by the present incumbent, Bert Morgan, after Orbison had lifeen laccused ;r>f scandalously misusing his office and distributing confiscated liquor among favored friends. The prosecution at Springfield has secured, it is said, the record of ! Cortner in Muncie, which, they say will be rather embarassing to the | order to which he belongs, and es-

pedally to the misguhUd element who profess to believe that all kiansmen are perfect.

Absconder Pays Back $3,600 With Interest 7 Years

4

San Francisco, Feb. 22—Every month for seven years an envelope has come to the San Francisco offices of the Pacific Gas and Electric Company containing $40 in paper money—nothing else. An attempt was made to trace its origin, but it failed. So it was put down as an office mystery and charged up to “miscellaneous receipts.” But now the mystery has been solved. This month’s envelope contained a note which said: “I have paid all I owe with interest.” It was signed by a man who years ago had disappeared with $3,600 of the company’s funds. He had paid it back and practically the same amount additional in interest.

Senate by vote of 62 to 6 adopts Norris resolution for constitutional amendment to advance inauguration date for President and meeting of newly elected Congress to January following elections.

T^VERY Feb. 22 sees the world’s P j championship dog team race over the snow at Ashton, Ida., in which Vmushers” from all over the northern United States, Canada and Alaska are entered. Hero is “Tud” Kent, who defends the title of champion.

Washington, Feb. 22—Representatives of social, political, military and women’s organizations from all parts of the country were here for the opening sessions of the institute of government. Speakers announced include Senator Wadsworth, of New York, Representative McFadden, of Pennsylvania, Representative Sumners of Texas, and Judge Ben Lindsay.

End Of The Skipworths In Sight In making a determined fight against the ku klux klan, and its controlled officers of the law in the city of Muncie, the editor of the Post-Democrat did not minimize the personal dangers attending such a course. It was first demonstrated that it was no corncob battle when a masked mob of kluxers attempted to murder the editor and his son on the night of March 24, last. The grand jury was in session at the time, but former prosecutor Benadum, now a klan organizer working in Ohio, made no effort to investigate the outrage, although it happened on a public street within two blocks of the courthouse. One of the masked kluxers was shot by the editor of the Post-Democrat and the eighteen year old son of the latter was murderously beaten over the head by the butt of a revolver and was shot at by one of the would-be assassins. The only official recognition that has ever been made that such a thing ever happened in Muncie was the subsequent arrest of George R. Dale, editor of the Post-Demo-crat, for carrying a pistol which he was authorized to carry by the chief of police, as protection against possible repetitions of an attempt to murder him. Klan members have openly threatened to “get” and to “frame” Dale, time and again, but we have about as much fear of this cowardly gang as we have of a flock of jackrabbits. When we get through with them their strangle hold on Delaware county will be broken, if God spares our life until the task is completed. And in the meantime we are expecting further demonstrations from their puny courts and klux dominated “law enforcement” agencies. The Post-Democrat refuses to regard any public official free from suspicion, from constable to judge, who belongs to this masked aggregation of night riding fools and knaves.

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