Muncie Post-Democrat, Muncie, Delaware County, 4 November 1926 — Page 1

THE POST-DEMOCRAT

VOLUME 6—NUMBER 41.

MUNCIE, INDIANA, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, U)2(i.

Price 5 Cents a Copy—$2.00 a Year

FRAUD!

Palpable frauds in Tuesday’s election will no doubt result in three or more contests. Sheriff MeAuley, elected on the face of the re! urns by 112 votes, may have to defend bis position in court. \V. D. Carter, defeated for tiustee of Centre township by George Hawkins by the narrow margin < f 235 votes, and Henry Banner, democratic candidate for trustee, defeated by George Pfeiffer by about live hundred votes, may also con-

test.

Hundreds of alleged false reg's-

that mote votes were recorded for sheriff than were cast, at that polling place. The combined vote of MeAuley and Humphries in the Eaton precinct avrs 515, which was approximately one hundred greater than the votes of any of the other

opposing candidates.

The election commissioners, investigating this apparent irregularity, Wednesday, found the voting machine standing in an Eaton s ore with the back part unlocked and open, exposing the mechanism. Taylor Gibson, republican trustee of Union township, admitted tha!

SOME STRANGE BED FELLOWS FOUND IN MUNCIE POLITICS

Gambler and Harlot. Jiid«e and Fine Lady Work for Harry Hoffman.

trations and a flood of absent vot- he had not locked the machine cr^’ ballots which were arbitrarily j when the polling place was abancounted in the face of protest and { doned by the board. He declared challenge by democratic workers, I that the keys did not fit and that ^ will form the principal basis of a | lie could not lock the machine, general contest, if it is deemed ad- j Clerk Mansfield had the ke;. s that vlsable to take action. j were returned to him by the inIn Precinct 36, Eaton, it is shown | (Continued to Page Four)

TWO REAL MEN

.and honor in the administration of public office, stands out in bold relief as the turmoil and smoke of political battle subsides. These two men are Jap Lineback, of Albany, chairman of the democratic county central committee, and Dr. Kollin H. Bunch, twice mayor of Muncle and the man who has the largest individual following of any citizen in

Mnneie.

Forming an organization in a party that has been whipped off the map in a long succession of defeats, is one of the most hopeless things on earth. Mr. Lineback cheerfully assumed the obligation and the' history of his six months battle to reconcile trivial differences within the party, his almost hopeless task of enlisting workers who believed the democrats had a chance, and the serious handicap imposed by lack of funds to pay actual expenses, would fill a large volume. But Jap stuck on the job. He believed in himself and he believed in the innate good sense of the voters of Delaware county. “We’re hound to win! we can’t lose,’’ .was Jap’s favorite expression when the clouds seemed to he the darkest. Until almost the closing hours of the campaign misunderstandings as to matters of policies prevented a perfect union in the party. Jap Lineback is a big man; big mentally and physically. “Let’s all get together and put this thing over,” said Jap. The spirit of give and take met. with instant response. Never before in the history of the democrat party was there such a gathering together of all the elements of the democratic party. The battle lines were hurled against the trained troops of the republican machine. The captain sat smiling in his offices on election day, awaiting the result that he knew was to come. There were others, scores, hundreds, wdio deserve praise, hut let’s all give due credit to this man, whose unimpeachable honor, unflinchable courage and indomitable spirit mode possible the greatest victory for democracy in the history of Delaware county. The personal work of Roll Bunch was a feature of the campaign. The Southside of late years has had an unpleasant habit of going republican. Roll’s friends in that section are legion. They believe in him and would follow him into the fiery furnace at a signal. For some years he has refrained from active participation in local politics. But the issues this time stirred the blood of the old war horse. He plunged into the campaign with his usual impetuosity and the Southside fighters rallied to his call. These workers, (we^wish we could name them all) came swinging to the colors like true soldiers. “Weil follow you to hell and hack, Doctor Roll,” said they, and the fight was on. They fight clean, those Southside boys. There wasn’t a crooked move made. The enemy fought with the poison gas of packed election hoards, fraudulent absent voters . ballots-and with traitors hired away with the dirty money of the machine, but nothing could withstand the onslaught of that fierce attack. When the battle wms over Southside democracy stood on its own ground, w'rested from the Hessians.in the grandest fight in the history of that historic battle ground. Th& people of Delaware county should do hothago to UoH Bunch for the part that he. took in redeeming ipeta-. wave Crmfify from misrule, graft and all arovm.d skwldug-' £eiy. V - • -

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Those who voted for Harry MeMcAuley, under the impression that he is strong for well known law and cider, should have stood at the polls in the famous sixteen h, or rcdlight, precinct last Tuesday and sized up the workers ordered there to look after his candidatorial interests. Bob Graves, a. colored gentlemar: of police rt nown, lately returned from a long visit in*Mich‘gan Ci y was one of Harry’s chief lieutenants and Pete Bar low and Vein (Plug) Walhurn Avere there with the bells. Pete seemed to be .in charge as a sort of a master of ceremonies and It was obserxed that of the numerous colored gents and ladies w r ho | visited the polls, few entered until ; after they had had an earnest conversation with the excellent Peter, i Tluit.Ptte delivered the goods caixits wat'nctiiV wasn.;. “TWiion tHte-' votes w r ere counted MeAuley AV'as sixty to the good, although the pie-, cinet went slightly democratic on the rest of the ticket. Ladies and gentlemen of the sporting fraternity and the furtive | individuals engaged in the w r hite ! mule and wood alcohol trade laid off for the day and were dilige \’y active in behalf of the sheriff. These persons declare unanimously that they voted and worked for Harry because they liked him and are sorry for him for the things Judge Dearth said he was going to do to him and didn't. ‘‘Harry never done nothin' for me, y'understand,” said they, “but he is a good, guy and don’t do us no harm, even if he don’t do us no good.” Judge Dearth xvas also at the polls bright and early putting in his best licks for the sheriff whom he caused to be impeached because of Avhat the judge termed his inefficiency and his failure to perform his duty as an officer. Birds of a feather usually flock together, but the judge worked at the polls la classic Riverside while his political pals, Pete and Bob, looked after the denizens of the underworld AVho foregather in the redlight district. It’s a far cry from the redlight to Riverside but one had its judge and the other its gamblers, harlots and bootleggers, all working together for a common cause, the reelection of a sheriff whom the judge himself a few short weeks ago, declared publicly should be thrown out of office for his misdeeds. These political workers of Harry’s carefully considered geographical lines in choosing locations for missionary Avork in behalf of their candidate. Wouldn’t it have been funny if they had changed locations. Judge Dearth passing out perfumed cards for Harry at the redlight polls and j Pete and Bob cutting up their campaign capers at the Riverside voting place? It will be conceded that if this arrangement had been made Harry w^ould have got few r votes, if any, In either precinct, yet many voters in both, without stopping to wonder why judge and bootlegger had enlisted under the same political banner, toddled, in and voted for the man they w'eve both supporting. Politics make strgnge bedfellows, as the fellow' said when he picked a bedbug out of his ear, hut speaking of strangeness, the strangest thing w'e happen to know of is the length of time it takes to educate the average Muncie A-oter up to a point that he even knows is alive,. . • / Sooner or later they come to, and discover what slippery and hypocritical politicians are doing to them. They vote blindly and -without looking, for years, and then when they do wake up, sixty percent. of them redeem themselves h? thereafter staying away from the polls altogether. It never seems to occur to this class that they might atone for a misspent life by taking time to use their expensive political education as a guide to cast an intelligent vote for once in their livns.

Not Tottering, But Wrecked!

Does anyone in Delaware county now doubt that the Post-Democrat knows how to make an intelligent fight? For years we have waged unremitting war against graft, inefficiency in office and political oppression. We have carefully explained that the chief source of the power of the republican machine is its ownership, in fee simple, of the bodies, souls and britches of the county commissioners. Without being told about it the average citizen has little conceptic i of the powers of the commissioners’

court.

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build up his pc itical machine and continued control of the commiss oners has made his machine self-per-

petuating.

Until the Post-Democrat explained, the people had a hazy idea that a county commsisioner was nothing in their young lives. We made a blue print and gave weekly lessons. As a result the people discovered that county commissioners meant more to them than United States senators, or even presidents. We even had to supply the information to city dwellers that the commissioners had anything to do with them. They thought that the commissioners had something to do with the farmers who live outside of

the city.

Their ideas of the duties and performances of county commissioners were decidedly hazy. When they learned that the commissioners could build up a road boss machine that could be used for a political organization and that the road bosses made mighty fine jury fodder when the machine wants to ram an enemy or protect a favorite bootlegger, they grew interested. When it was shown that the gravel trust relied upon the commissioners to help them steal the people’s money, they sat up and took notice. They were taught that the commissioners are empowered to name election inspectors, which gives the Billy Williams machine complete control of the election machinery of the county. The commissioners named as superintendent of the county infirmary Sherman Shroyer, who votes every inmate for the machine by absent voters’ ballots, allows graft to flourish and allows helpless, diseased inmates to be eaten alive by worms. To the surprise of the good people, they learned by

(Oontimieff to Pag'e Four)

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BILLY Ik Boss Loses His Playhouse

Great Democratic Victory In Delaware County Ends Machine Republican Control—Truitt and Jackson Snowed Under; Democrats Carry Eleven Townships and Elect Six Township Trustees. The Billy Williams machine is smashed! The democrats won hand; down in Tuesday’s election, Udefeatinjg Commissioners John Truitt and Andrew Jackson and sweeping Joseph Mann and Lewis TL Acker, aUmocrats. into control of the county board of commissioners by large majorities. In addition fo this major victory for democracy in this normally overwhelming republican county, the democrats obtained control of the county board of education by electjing six of the twelve township trustees with whom two of the republican-elect trustees will co-operate in all matters jot policy. Eleven of the twelve townships went democratic for I he county commissioners and sheriff and a feature wa« he return of the Southside to the democratic fold after five years of wandering in the republican wilderness. In a runaway, neck and neck race, John Humphries, dem-K-ratic candidate for sheriff, was nosed out by Sheriff McAuley, on the face of the returns, by the narrow margin of 112 votes. Palpable frauds, involving many times the few votes representing McAuley’s majority, will result in a conlost which should seat Humphiies.

The othor democratic candidates or county offices Avere all defeated hy small majorities, as compared with lepObPcan majorities of former years. Merritt Hea h, who was ‘looted recorder over Harry Dowllrtg, received the loAvest vote of the Avinn uft candidates on the republican ticket. That he won at all was due to the fact Unit the independent republican voters lost •sight of everything else in their determination to defeat Truitt and

iaeksou.

Carter May Contest

years ago of A-otin# as it darn pleases, re-elected Henry Long trustee amt gave large majorities to the democratc candidates for

commissioner and sheriff.

Perry township, normally ten to one republican, but nevertheless known to the whole world as the mothei of revolt, joined the Boston tea party, tossed puny label to tha wind and gave Bob Acker, its favorite son, a clean cut majority of 195 over commissioner John Truitt. expressed its preference for Joe

Mann in a majority of 15t» anil

W. Il.Tartci'7lci,7o7ni7'running; «‘ v 111 “ John Humphries a great xm;against George Hawkins for trus-; j or 'D' of \otes oxer Sherifl Me-

lee of Centre township, lost by 235 Aulev.

votes, hut this result may he jehahged in the event that Carter

; epufasts the election/

Hamilton township went democratic for sheriff and commissioner, hut a few double crossing denro-

George Pfeiffer, republican, ruu-jerats spilled the beaus and caused lulng for his third term as assessor; the defeat of Elmer Williamson, Of Centre township, won over Hen- democratic candidate for trustee. A jry Banner, democrat, ou the face J desperate assault on machine reof the returns by about five hun* 1 publicanism^ in Niles township won dred. In case the democratic claim ’ as far as the sheriff’s and comm Is*

jol* wholesale election fraud is substantiated, it is possible that Bunner, the democratic candidate xvill

(be .seated.

The big surprise came lit the result of the voting in the South-side

sioners’ race was concerned, but fell ten votes 'short of electing a

democratic trustee.

Mont Rudy of Yorrtown, who butted the machine off the track last spring and grabbed off the re-

jpreetnets. Contrary to the expee.ta-j 1)Uh j ic;an nomination for trustee,

itiohs of the republican machine, the Southside, which has wandered in the republican wilderness since he Roll Bunch landslide in 1917, returned to the fold and rolled up a substantial democratic majority. For the first time in history such

was elected over his democratic opponent. Ervin Thornburg of Peny township, republican Insurgent, xvas also reelected trustee.

Will Control Board.

The six democrats elected, with the aid of the two anti-machine re-

republican strongholds as the Re publican trustees, will be in eom-

verside, Normal City and other strong republican Northside precincts, cast, their majorities for the

same candidates. Revolt in the Air.

The spirit of revolt was in the ilr. Determined men and women went to the polls in every precinct of Delaware county, not as democrats and republicans, but us a citizenry banded together for the purpose of destroying a vicious politi-

cal oligarchy.

Surprises came, one after anoth-

• set

plete control of the county board of education, for the first time since Billy Williams grabbed off leadership of his party and made his brother-in-law, Lee Baird, county

superintendent of schools.

Claude Ball was defeated for congress, but performed the remarkable feat of cutting down Vestal’s Delaware county majority to less than twelve hundred. Watson and Robinson carried the county by about 1,100 votes, a strange contrast to the usuhl five to seven

or. Monroe township, never demo-; thousand accorded congressional cratie before in its history, elected UU(1 senatorial candidates in Dela-

a democrat, John R. Kirkbam, for! vvare county.

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'rustee, and gate majorities for Mann, Acker and Humphries. Union township, which shelters the town of Eaton, always rock ribbefi republican, swung into line and Sleeted a democratic trustee, J. M. Osenbaugh and repudiated Truitt, Jackson and MeAuley. Cy Stafford, machine republican trustee of Delaware township, went down in defeat to Samuel Michaels and the majority vote of Albany and Delaware township went to the democratic candidates for sheriff and

commissioner.

Salem township, another mysterbijs stranger, also introduces itself for the first time in many years, as a. democratic stronghold, electing Marker Sunderland, democrat, for tnislee and joining .hands with its sister tOAvnsbtp; ‘ Mt. Pleasant, in handing Truitt- Jackson and MeAtjley the black spot.

On They Came.

Harrison toxx-nship, xvbiGb rex r oltad'two years ago. went democratic Tbfcut two to one, naming Perry NVqsklngton^owuShlp, which acquired the habit four

The big race xx'as, of course, the battle for control of the commissioners’ court. Everything else seemed to be lost s'ght of in the campaign. Recognizing that the reelection of the commissioners meant continued control by Billy Williams and Hairy Hoffman, and that their defeat meant oblivion and political extinction for the machine, all hands manned the pumps and did the best dayks xvork they

ever did in their lives.

There was nothing indecisive about the result. The protest was so emphatic that a tabulation of the votes showed that Mann had beaten Jackspn by 1,131 votes, while Acker lead Truitt, the apostle of sugar',

cured gravel, by 1,298. The people Listened.

The readers of the Post-Demo-crat, heeding its advice to defeat Truitt and- Jackson, responded nobly and our request that llieyvote against Supreme Justice Julius Travis, the “truth is no defense” judge, was respected to the extent that Travis in 'Delaware

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