Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 10, Number 180, Decatur, Adams County, 29 July 1912 — Page 1

Volume X. Number 180.

■ A GOOD RECORD I Made bv the Decatur Public ■ Library in Its Six Years' Existence. I HAS 2.348 BORROWERS I Enrolled—Enters Upon a Most Prosperous EraSome Statistics. , i ■ — —. ;l ,‘s The Decatur library closed its sixth i B year, July 20th. its most prosperous ■ year and entered upon an even more ■ prom.sing period. The annual report ■ has just been compiled by Miss An- ■ nette Moses, who has served as librar- ■ lan during the entire period of the ■ library's existence, anil gives a num- ■ her of interesting facts relative to the library and its growth There are now enrolled, 2,348 bor■Dowers—that is persons entitled to take books from the library, having ■ complied with the requirements. Dur- ■ Ing the past year. 263 were added to ■ the list, over 225 of the year before, ■ -showing added interest. The she'ves ■ of the library have been stocked with ■the bast books possible, and there are B-now 5,122 books on the shelves. Os ■ this number 422 were added during ■ the year, including an encyclopedia of ■ 15 volumes, history, travel, biography, ■ ■music, art and fiction The circulation of books during the ■ year was exceedingly great--16,793. ■ The juvenile readers, which number ■ 7,904. nearly equal the adult readers, which have reached the 8,889 mark. ■The previous year had a circulation of ■15,446, making a gain this year of !,- ®347. I The month of April had the banner | E circulation*, when 1,851 hooks were | SStak.-n out. while February 10th. will S' go down on the records as having the fej greatest circulation of any one day- •- that of 135 books The circulation by months was—July. 1911, 1124: August, ’ 1141: September, 1230: October, 1009: November, 995; December, 12.60; January. 1363; February, 1786. March, 1780; April, 1851; May, 1774: June, 1397 A feature of the Decatur library, | especially noted, a fact commented | upon much by visitors from other cit- ( les. is the unusual excellence of its, reading table supplies. For the six ( years of the library, the periodicals fjwpra given by the citizens of Decatur,. but during the coming year, the maga- . finer will be paid for from the appro-, received by tax, no soliciting been done as heretofore. j There are, however, some who wish to | voluntarily contribute, and among them are Mrs. John Niblick and M.; Kirsch, who have made their subscrip-1 tions permanent. The board appre- ( ■L elates greatly, the generosity of those, | who gave periodicals for the reading. ■ rooms. j The magazine list for the coining | year includes I twenty-seven of the lead ng periodicals, with several news■kpei's. The magazines include Cosnaoixtlitan. Good Housekeeping, The World Today. Woman's Home Compinion. Harper’s Monthly, American Magazine, Mechanics’ Monthly, Outtao . National Geographic, Etude, Modern Priscilla, Every?jfedy's. Delineator. Review of Reviews, | ■ptury, Current Literature, Ladies’ , ■me Journal, Saturday Evening Post, Popular Mechanics, Popular Electricity, Youth's Companion, St. Nicholas, Ape: lean Boy, Children’s Magazine, ■Jjttie Folks. Readers Guide to Period lcr-1 Literature. ■Special mention should be made of gift books received during the year from Mrs. Victoria Hill, E. E. Rice, Miss Laura Alban and the Shakespeare club. WThe rental fiction shelf, which isekpt Well supplied with the latest fiction is well patronized Money collected from the lenta! shelf, deiinqent fines and new cards, amounted to $51.50, while the assembly room on the lower flt.or. which was used for one of the primary <’ departments of the school, yielded an annual rental of $175, and will be used again for the name purpose the com Ing year. ;• .The reading circle books, numbering twenty, are purchased yearly by the school and library boards, to be used •y .by the teachers during the school term, and at the close of the year, they are placed in circulation. Aciiange in the official staff was made When Mis. Elizabeth Morrison, who rtwnovpd to Mexico, resigned, as presi dent, and was succeeded September 29th by Mrs. John Niblick. Other membew of the, board are: Vice president,

DECATUR DAILY DEMOCRAT

' ,ls - E. J Bailey; secretary, H. B. Heller: treasurer, E. X. Ehlnger; Mrs, ■ D Lewton, M. Kirsch and T. C. Oorbett. Miss Annette Moses, the librarian, who serves the patrons in a most efficient and corteous manner has an able assistant in Miss Nellie Blackburn. 1 lie Horary is open on all days except legal holidays. On Sunday the hours are from 1 to 6 p. m. During the summer vacation of schools, the schedule is 1 to 5 and 6:30 to 9. All other months of the year, the schedule is as follows: 12 m. to sp. m.; 6p. m. to 9 p. m. A cordial invitation is extended to the people of the city and all strangers to make use of the reading rooms and advantages afforded In periodicals andbooks. The number of patrons and visitors was very large during the past year and each one coming to the library will be made very welcome. A LIVE ALLIGATOR Shot in St. Mary’s River at Fort Wayne Sunday Morning by Negroes. A REAL SENSATION Is Caused—Where Did it Come from?—Circus or ' Washed up by Waters? The shooting of a seven-foot, 130pound alligator in the St. Mary’s river at Fort Wayne, a short distance from the junction of this river with the St. Joseph, caused much excitement in that city and at all points along this j river. The animal was shot by Fred I Huber of Wagner street and with him, was his brother, Julius Huber. With I the help of several other men the monster was hoisted into a wagon and driven to the Peter A. Moran ice house, where it was dressed and frozen. ’ Says the Fort Wayne JournalGazette: ‘ The alligator was first seen in this vicinity on last Satrday afternoon by a negro who was in a boat, fishI ing. He had a ‘bite’ on his line at the ’ time, and a few of his companions 1 and other sight-seers wewre standing on the bank, watching him ‘play’ with his line, when they were suddenly as- ' founded by the fisherman dropping his ! pole which he had in his hand, and with a ‘Lawdy, Lawdy,’ grab for the I oars and make for the shore as quickly as he could. When he reached ths | bank he was assisted, trembling, from the boat. It was some time before he could speak, but when he did he de- ! clared that he had seen an alligator. I The bystandtrs thought he was joking, and told him so, but when he in- ( sisted that he was right they left him in disgust. But he was sure that he i knew what he had seen, and so he , telephoned to the police and told them of his discotery. But, they, too, thought he was havivng some sort of a delirium and thought nothing more about it. . “Saturday night, shortly before 6 o’clock, Oscar Huber, of 536 Wagner street, heard about the negro having seen the reptile and went to the river to see what he could find. He stayed in the neighborhood of the Columbia street bridge for half an hour before he was finally rewarded and then he saw but the upper part of the alligator’s head as he raised it out of the water. Going home, he acquainted his two brothers, Julius and Fred, of his discovery, with the remark that he wished he could have caught it.. ‘Sunday morning at 10 o’clock Fred and Julius left their homes for the river, Fred with his rifle and Julius with a good, stout rope. They had no sooner reached the bank of the river than Julius spied the reptile, its forefeet on a log and its head barely out of the water. “‘There it is! shouted he excitedly. ‘Quick, Fred; shoot it!’ “Fred raised his gun, took" deliberate aim, and fired. The result was more than they had hoped. “With a last gap the alligator disappeared, and then reappeared, and the two men ran into the water up to to their waists, tied a rope around its jaws, after Fred bad taken another shot at the reptile to be sure it was dead, and then they pulled it to the bank. “Much discussion as to where the alligator came from has been heard since it was - shot, and many theories have been advanced. Some believe it is an escaped alligator from (Continued on Page 2)

Decatur, Indiana. Monday Evning, July 29, 1912

A GREAT CHANCE Boys of Indiana Will be Given Chance to Judge the Stock at State Fair. ENTER THE CONTEST And Secure Scholarship in Purdue University Agricultural School. The third annual live stock and grain judging contest for Indiana boys between the ages of sixteen and twenty years, who have not regularly attended any school of agricultural, will be held in the coliseum, state fair grounds, Indianapolis, Ind. The boys will be givetvclasses o' th? very best stock at the state fair to judge. They get right i n to the big ring and pass their opinion upon the very choicest stock in the United States. Is this not a great opportunity for the boys of Indiana? Should they not flock into this contest in great numbers, simply for the edu ■‘timil value su h an opportunity presents" Why should they stay on the outside, where thev can hare but a long distance glance at the animals being judged, when the state board of agriculture says that for Tuesday forenoon, they will open the gates to all the boys of the state who will come into the stockjudikng arena of the coliseum More than that, the state board will give to the winners in this contest, scholarships in Purdue university School of Agriculture, amounting to a total of $250: First, $100; second, $75; third, SSO; fourth, $25. Full information regarding same may be obtained from the state fair premium list, which may be obtained by writing Mr. 1 Charles Downing, secretary Indiana state fair, Indianapolis, Ind. Boys may be prepared for this contest by studying Purdue Circular 29, Live Stock Judging for Beginners, which will be sent upon request to Supt. GJ. Christie, Lafayette, Ind. o ... . GIVEN A TRANSFER i B Mel Butler, Rural Mail Carrier, and Clyde Rice, City Carrier ' I J GIVEN AN EXCHANGE Os Routes Upon Their Ap-plication-Will be Effective August First. i Mel B'itler, of this city, mail car- , rier co Rural Route five, and Clyde M. Rice, city mail carrier, have been ; granted a transfer, each taking the • route of the other, and will enter ; upon their new routes August first. • The transfer was made upon their I own application to headquarters, and . the granting of their request is one ■ that affords them mutual satisfaction, s Mr. Butler is one of the oldest rural ■ carriers in the service, entering upon i the work at the time of the establishi ment of the free rural mail delivery i service here about ten years ago. Mr. - Rice began duty three years ago last April first. Both have given entire satisfaction to their patrons at ail i times, and are well liked along their i routes. Both have been receiving the i same salaries and hence the matter of - the transfer will make no change in the pecuniary line, the points of desire lying simply with each as to the preference of the city and rural carriage. GRANTED A PENSION. Os $36 Per Month for Blindness—B. Winans, Youngest Soldier. Benjamin Winans of Pleasant Mills, has been granted a pension of $36 per month, through Hon. -J. A. M. Adair.. Mr. Winans'* disability is blindness. Comrade Winans is the youngest soldier in Adams county, and served tn Company M, Fourth Pennsylvania cavalry. Robert Blackbum was his attorney. — O. Mr. and Mrs. Louis Mesing returned to Fort Wayne after, a visit here.

WIN FROM MONROE. Shamrocks Defeat Fast Monroe Team by Score of 11 to 9. Fully five hundred people witnessed the Monroe vs. Decatur base ball game Sunday and one of the fastest games ever pulled off on the local diamond was played. The locals were there again with their big mits, taking the enemy into camp as they anticipated. Next Sunday they have secured tho Monroeville salaried team, and had to guarantee the sum of SSO to get them to come, they being fast and always securing dates with none other than cities promising good and classy ball. Bart France will be the umpire of next Sunday’s game and his services are sure to give satisfaction from this point oX'lew. . The game of Sunday by innings was as follows: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9—-R H E Monroe ...0 0092106 0— 9 8 5 Decatur ..3 0402011 *—ll 16 11 Batteries, .Buffenbarger and Coffee, Decatur; Smelser and Teeter, Monroe. Two-base hits- Johnson, Ford, Stevens, Ellis, Baxter, McMillen; threebase hits, Johnson, 2; Struck out by Buffenbarger, 5; by Smelser, 3; base on balls, off Buffenbarger, 1, off Smelser, 1; hit batsman, Johns 2; Coffee; stolen bases. Johns. McMillen, 2; Coffee, Buffenbargegr, Harbestock, Emry. o ARE COMING WELL. All Voters Agree That Soldiers' Monument Should be Established. Joshua Parrish and Thomas Mallonee. two of the committee appointed by the G. A. R. to solicit names for the petition for a soldiers' monment, began W'ork bright and early this morning and by 1000 had the name of every voter they asked, except one each. They are quite confident of se-, curing enough names to make the ■ matter an assured one. Not all the 1 , committees have been appointed for all the townships, aiid towns in the county, but the matter will be attendi ed to at once, and all will get busy as soon as possible.. The petitions will - be presented to the county commisj sioners at the September session ask- . ing that an appropriation of SIO,OOO be granted for the erection of a monument for the soldiers of Adams coun-1 [ o SACRED SONG SERVICE. At Evangelical Church Sunday Evening a Pleasing Event. The sacred song service Sunday evening at the Evangelical church was largely attended. For fifty minutes the singers entertained and edified an appreciative audience, which was I pleased and complimented the program.. An offering, for missions, of eight dollars and fifty cents was given. There was one recitation.. The ■ song service was under the auspices I of the Young People’s Alliance, which will send its delegate to the state convention next week, to be held at Oakwood park, Syracuse, Ind. - — 0 —■. —— A NEW DESK. ! The mayor’s court room was fur- > ther enhanced today by the addition • of a new sixty-dollar desk, which was put in by the Meyer, Scherer & Beav- ■ J era establishment shortly before court I convened on the Coots case.. The k : desk was made to order and contains ' a spacious cupboard on one side in I tended for the dockets and other pubt j lie records and on the other side a . stack of drawers.. The desk is six ■ feet long and three feet wide, and is made throughout of quarter-sawed ■ oak, and presents a fine appearance. s <3 ■ I RECEIVED THE CALL. ■ Rev. Meyer Will Lay Matter Before His Congregation. i ■ Rev. Wehmeyer of this city has res, ceived word from the Rev. George ■ Meyer of Cape Giradeau, Mo., acknowledging receipt of the call extended to him to become pastor of the Lutheran church at Schum, Ohio, succeeding the Rev. Hoile, recently re- . signed.. Rev. Meyer stated that he would lay the matter before his congregation. TAKES NEW POSITION. Miss Dora Schuitz has accepted the i position in the alteration department . of suits and cloaks at the Fullenkamp store and will enter up on her new work in two weeks. Miss Schultz,, who is a most able seamstress, and highly efficient, has conducted a dressmakt ing shop here for some time, and is . recognized as a leader In her line.

IN MOTHER EARTH Were Croatian Companion Friends Laid to Rest Sunday Afternoon. THE FUNERAL RITES Were Conducted from St. Mary’s Church—Largely Attended by Friends. A sad and unusal occurrence was witnessed Sunday afternoon, from the St. Mary’s church, when the two Croation beet workers, Steve Skeya and his companion, Frank Yednor, who endeavored to rescue him, at the cost of his own life, while bathing on Friday afternoon, Were laid to rest, and attended by a concourse of friends and interested parties that well filled the church.. The many companions gathered at the Yager Bros. & Reinking morgue shortly before 3 o'clock, and at (he appointed time marcbced in procession, following the two hearses to the church. Brother workmen served as pall bearers. The blessing and funeral rites were conducted, ,no mass being celebrated in the afternoon, Father Wilken officiating Father Wilken stated that he believed that it was needless for him to say anything, as his talk would not be understood in the Creation language, and therefore spoke in general, saying that it was the greatest act of charity that could have been performed for one to lay down his life for a friend. He also asked the other members to hold true to their religion and to comply with the rules by attending mass on.every ! Sunday and holidays, .although they i are unable to. understand the English language, it would not excuse them from their religious duties, and that he would be willing at and time to obtain a priest who could administer to their wants and speak their language. The Croa- | tian custom to following the remains to the cemetery was observed and ' prayers were offered in their own . I tongue for the deceased brethren. THE BULL MOOSERS Met in Convention This Morning—Delegates to State Convention. I — ' — FOURTEEN CHOSEN 1 About Forty Attend Session Resolutions Endorse Beveridge for Governor. About forty voters answered thS ■ Moose call made by L. A. Graham, i the recently appointed county chair- ; man, by gathering at the office of Graham & Walters at 10 o'clock this :' morning for the purpose of selecting : delegates to the first state convention > of the progressive party, ,to be held at Indianapolis on Thursday of this ■ week. If there were any democrats present they were very few and not very conspicuous, for we failed to locate any. Mr. Graham called the meeting to order and C. H. Schafer of the Ward Fence company was chosen as chairman of the meeting and C. D. Teeple as the secretary. A resolution, endorsing Albert J. Beveridge for governor, was adopted, as was another condemning Mr. Taft for his failure to carry out progressive principles and endorsing Theodore Roosevelt for the presidency. Then came the selection of delegates, the call providing that one be chosen for each five hundred votes cast at the last election. This gave Adams county fourteen delegates and It was decided that one should be chosen from each township and two from Decatur Those honored were as follows: Milton Scheuler, Preble township; S. B. Fordyce, Root; W. S. Welty, Union; John Cowan, St. ■ Mary's; O. V. Graham, Washington; W. A. Rundell and Ed Lyons, Decatur; i J. Stoutenberry, Kirkland; Ferdinand Yake, French; John Hilty, Monroe; i Alfred Ayres, Blue Creek; Isaac Tee- . pie, Jefferson; O. O. Judy, Wabash; Alodph Ensley, Hartford. No permanent organization was af(Continued on Page 2)

FOR NORTHERN MICHIGAN. Mr. Waring Goes North for Annual Outing in Wilds of Michigan. L. C. Waring, of the Waring Glove company, left this afternoon for Fort Wayne, where he will conclude arrangements for his annual trip to the northern peninsula of Michigan. Accompanied by Judge O’Rourke he will leave Tuesday for Curtis, Mich., for a six weeks' stay in the wilds of that primitive country. They will be joined later by Charles Weatherhogg and Ross McCullough of Fort Wayne and probably by others who enjoy the fine air, the good fishing and the other delights enjoyed by those fortunate enough to visit that section. Mr. Waring has been going to Curtis for years and this year promises to be as enjoyable as all the others have been. POLICECOURTNEWS / John T. Coots Was Brought Up on Sensational Charge Saturday Evening. TRIAL ON THURSDAY Before Jury - Drunk Drew a j Dollar and Costs Before ’Squire. John T. Coots, a well known man . about town, was arrested about seven o’clock Saturday night on a warrant charging him with indecent exposure ; of his person, sworn out by Alice Har-: mon and served by Marshal Peterson. Coots was taken up and gave bond for fifty dollars for his appearance in court thia uiornitig. This moriiiiig he appeared with Peterson and Moran as his attorneys and the first move the cetendant made was the presentation of an affidavit asking for a change of venue out of the township. This was overruled by the court and the action was soon followed by the presentation of another petition calling for a change of judges. Tne court sustained the i 1 motion and after several efforts the court prevailed upon A. P. Beatty to act as special judge in the case. Prosecutor Parrish appeared for the state. A motion for a continuance was made by the defendant and the case was set over for hearing on August Ist at 9 o'clock in the morning. Tho state sprung a surprise in asking for a jury trial and the Marshal will take the venire some time between this and the day set and serve the jurors. The defendant is alleged to have made the indecent exposures while in his room standing before the open window, and . the case when tried will probably j provev sensational in the extreme, j Lawrence Cavanaugh was brought up I before Squire Stone on a charge of i plain drunk and having no funds and ’. ?utei.‘fng a plea of guilty drew a dollar ■ and costs and went to jail to lay it ■ out. s Luther Fulk was brought up this 1 afternoon on a dougle charge, the 1 first being security of the peace and I the second one for carrying concealed ’ weapons. He is being tried before ’Squire Stone as we go to press. Patrick Fitzgerald was taken up ■ Saturday night by Policeman Melchi > and was brought up before ’Squire I Stone this afternoon on a plain drunk • charge, to which he pleaded guiltyy,- > and drew a dollar and costs, which ■ he says he will lay out. o HAD OPERATION. > I Friday morning of last week, Miss 1 Clara Marbaugh, who lives with her i father, Henry Marbaugh, on the latt ter's farm, south of Pleasant Mills, unl derwent an operation for an abscess ’ at the Lutheran hospital in Fort ! Wayne. Miss Marbaugh, who is ! twenty years old, has been ailing for > some time, but had only been seri- > ous for a week or more past. She ■ was taken to the hospital on Thursday and ihe operation followed the day after. Saturday she was recovering nicely and it is thought that, no further complications will set in, and that she will be able to return home In the course of a couple of weeks. o All the ladies of the Presbyterian church are requested by the president to meet at the church parlors Friday , afternoon at 2 o’clock. |

Price, Two Cents.

THE GENEVA BANK Story of Its Founding and Career as Told by Mrs. Gene Stratton-Porter. WELL KNOWN WRITER Denies Many Statements That Were Published and Substantiates Others. In the Sunday morning edition of the Indianapolis News, appeared a very interesting story of several col- ] umns, written by Gene Stratton Por- , ter, giving in detail the happenings of the Geneva bank, which has been so talked about since the tragic death of Will Hale. Mrs. Porter begins by referring to certain articles which appeared in the News, at the time of the suicide, explains why she is answering and then proceeds; “In the beginning Mr. Porter had no intention of starting a bank. In his position as the leading druggist of the village he made many friends and he was so loved and trusted by the people that they brought him their money to keep and invest for j them, numbers of them refusing even to take his note or any receipt for sums they left with him. Often he held thousands of dollars in this manner. There is one man on the books of the bank today who refuses to carry a passbook or to keep any record of what he deposits. I am most happy to state that no man of them ever ■ failed to gel back his money iu full i when he wanted it. When such ' sums accrued that Mr. Porter felt unequal io handling them alone, he erected a building and organized a bank. “Twelve years ago W. B. Hale, son of ex-State Senator Silas Hale, vice president of the bank, was placed by vote of the stockholders in charge of the books. Mr. Hale had taken a course in bookkeeping and came highly recommended by other banks for which he had worked; besides being a man whose entire family all of us knew and esteemed. j “Ever since its foundation, Mr. Porter has stood at its wicket and with scrupulous care transacted the counter work of the bank. Even in the stress of this hour no man has arisen to east the slightest reflection on his accuracy and honor. After an exhausting day of this work, if his rec- . ords balanced with those of the man in charge of the books, he felt that the day’s work was done, and came home in the evening, often so tired he lay down for a time before dinner, , The bank was his child. He brought tt into life. He loved lhe work, and . he loved nuspv>«k«b|x his friends who I brougtH him their earnings io handle 1 for them. He gladly would have died 1 any death rather than to have betrayed their trust.’ To keep faith 1 with his customers was the greatest I . . j object of his life." ’-j | Then telling about the business-like settlement of the bank, Mrs. Porter ■ praises in warm terms, the stockholdI ers and directors, and says! “It is not true that the state auditor placed the affairs of Hie bank in the , hands of the president and delegated to him power to select the new bookkeeper. What happened was that he | told Mr, Briggs that he must see to it ! that there was a new set of books, a competent bookkeeper, and a helper to make the transfers, installed at ■ once. He said precisely the same thing to Mr. Porter. He repeated it -to every stockholder and director of the bank. To me he said: ‘You have too much invested here to take any further risks. You must, see to it that a capable man goes on the new books, and that he has good help in the work of transferring the accounts.' But that did not mean that I was to select and employ these men. That will be the work of the directors at their next meeting.’’ The story is concluded with the following: “Billy had not an ounce of bad blood in his veins. His trouble dates back to a time about eight years ago when his first wife, a beautiful and much-loved woman, became ill from overwork during the sickness and death of her mother, grieving over her loss and trouble with her relatives. She attempted suicide by taking Paris green. As a result her throat and stomach were so drawn that she was unable to take solid food and the wines and fancy grocerties were ordered for her by her phy(Continiied on Page 2)