Decatur Democrat, Volume 51, Number 33, Decatur, Adams County, 13 August 1908 — Page 2

Mr and Mrs. A. Iholts, of east Arch street, her sister, Mrs. W. H. McGinnett, of Geneva, and Will I. Dolby, left Monday for Tippecanoe Lake for a couple of weeks stay. Mr. Dolby expects to join her husband later. Mrs. Iholts is erecting a summer cottage at the above resort. —Portland Sun. The Adams county board of finance examined and approved the report of each depository of the public funds of Adams county. The report is interesting and for the six months is as follows: January, Bank of Geneva $21.00 Peoples’ State Bank 25.02 First National Bank 20.38 Bank of Berne 16.03 Old Adams County 8ank77.37 $159.80 February. Bank of Berne $21.20 Peoples’ State Bank 14.71 Bank of Geneva 20.13 First National Bank 30.94 Old Adams County 8ank40.90 $127.88 March. Old Adams County Bankslß.B6 Bank of Berne 21.52 Bank of Geneva 23.42 Peoples’ State Bank 15.77 First National Bank 44.93 $154.50 April. Bank of Geneva $31.71 Peoples’ State Bank 20.27 Bank of Berne 22.88 Old Adams County 8ank66.13 First National Bank 57.11 $198.10 May. Old Adams County Bankslls.o6 Bank of Berne 37.58 First National Bank 95.08 Bank of Geneva 41.87 Peoples’ State Bank 33.50 $323.09 June. Peoples’ State Bank $ 39.01 Bank of Berne 37.50 Old Adams County Bankll2.Bo First National Bank 55.53 Bank of Geneva 36.78 $281.62 Total. January $159.80 February 127.88 March 154.50 April 198.10 May 323.09 June 281.62 Total six months $1,244.99 Before adjournment the board of commissioners appointed John Bucher superintendent of the Bucher macadam road. Postmaster Frisinger is in receipt of a circular from the fifth division of the United States railway mail service by authority of an order from Washington that ever obscene, lewd or lascivious book, pamphlet, picture, paper. Letter, writing, print or other publication of an indecent character and every article or thing designated to be intended for harmful use, and every written or printed card, letter, circular, book, advertisement or notice of any kind giving information where or how or of whom or by what means any such wrongful article may be obtained, are declared to be unmailable matter, and the postoffice is ordered to refuse admission to the mails of such articles. The circular provides a fine for any one attempting to mail such matter. The meaning placed on the word indecent by the postal department is anything of a character attending to incite arson, murder or assassination. Newspapers or any publication carrying advertisements of the things as set forth above are also denied admission to the mails, and includes secret remedies, preventatives, etc. Janitor T. H. Ernst of the court house has been commissioned by the board of commissioners to raise the old covered bridge at the end of Monroe street, some six inches. As it now stands the floor is six inches lower than the street on one side, and the road on the other side. When it rains the water stands in the bridge making it not only inconvenient, but dangerous. The commissioners think and rightly too. that by raising this bridge and otherwise making it more durable, that it can be saved for 'several years service. Much clamoring has been going on for a new iron structure, but it would mean several thousand dollars in this instance, and it is altogether probable that the repairs to be undertaken will make the old bridge sound and good for several years to come. There is much travel over this bridge and especially during the Great Northern Indiana Fair many thousands of persons pass over it. It has stodd the test for a long time and with the repair mentioned is good for some time yet. Mr. Ernst is getting together the necessary equipment and work will likely begin at an early date ___ 1

The members of the Shamrock base ball club are requested to be present tonight at the meeting. Special business will be transacted and the manager desires that all the members be present. PERMISSION IN ALLEN COUNTV Because of the fact that induction from the heavy voltage wires greatly Impairs the service on its lines, the Citizens' Telephone company, of Decatur, this morning petitioned the A'len county commissioners to give it a new route for its poles and wires so as to take its line away from the vicinity of the Fort Wayne & Springfield electric road, which they now parallel. The company asked for a route along the Winchester road through Poe to the limits of Fort Wayne. Permission for the change was granted—Fort W’ayne News. Although no news whatever of the perfection of the re-organization of the Dieterich gas syndicate has been received here as yet, the name of the new merger company which grew out of the sale of the old properties has been learned through an advertisement in the Wall Street Journal, says the Fort Wayne News of last evening. It is the Indiana Consolidated Gas company and the advertisement referred to. which is carried by Toby & Lamarch, brokers. New York, announces that the new concern is the successor to the following companies: Fort Wayn e Gas company, Lafayette Gas company, Logansport & Wabash Valley Gas company, Indiana Natural and Illuminating Gas company, and Ohio & Indiana Gas company. The advertisement indicates that the firm is ready to deal in securities of the new company.

It is believed here that the delay occasioned in working out the details as to re-organization is due to a change of plans necessary where the minority ndholdors s ere admitted to the re-organization scheme. The ■delay, however, is tn no manner affect<rg the improvement of the properties. It has come again. For about th® fifth or sixth time Malinda Fronefield seeks a divorce from William Fronefield. They were married the last time on April 15th, of last year and lived together until Tuesday. Mrs. Fronefield re-iterates her former statements of how her husband has abused her, and adds that for three weeks past he has spent his time almost entirely, day and night in saloons, that a few days ago he threw a flat iron at her, that he has cursed her, failed to provide and done nothing but make debts for her. She asks a divorce and SSOO alimony. Attorney L. C. DeVoss filed the complaint. A complaint for a restraining order to prevent Mr. Fronefield from molesting her or in any way interfering with her in the planting of crops or using violence against her, was attached to the complaint. Acting upon the latter in the absence of Judge Merryman, a temporary restraining order was issued against the defendant by Judge J. F. LaFollette cf Portland. Brown & Summers, the Monroe real estate dealers, have sold forty acres of land in Monroe township belonging to W’illiam Townsend to Benjamin F. Bowers, of Henry county. Through Brown & Summers the Monroe real estate dealers, Fred Scheiman now owns forty-six acres more of Monroe towmship realty, a short distance northeast of Monroe. They have also sold to Samuel Simison, of Berne, a house and lot on Mercer avenue in this city. Mrs. Charles Smith, whose pending divorce suit will be heard at the coming term of court, had a revolver confiscated by Sheriff Lipkey Saturday because she became so interested in illustrated postal cards. She was in a local drug store taking in the pictures and with her was a lady friend. Between them they carried a yellow leather handbag, but when they left •the purse was still on the counter. The proprietor noticed the bag, and picked it up to lay it away, but opened it to see if he could identify the owner from some of the contents. The first thing he pulled out was a revolver, .32-caiibre, and loaded in all six chambers. Holding the bag at arm's length he handed it over to Sheriff Lipkey who chanced to be in the store at one of the soda tables, and for a few moments it was thought that a mystery was on tap. Mrs. Smith, however, turned up in a few minutes and wanted the bag. She was frank enough to confess that she bad the gun loaded up for her husband, a gas office employe, and that if she could get the drop first she would make use of it. She made the statement that he had threatened to kill her and the children and she* was prepared for him. In spite of the pleas for the revolver Sheriff Lipkey kept it and will hold it until the divorce suit is over, as one case at a time is enough on the docket. The carrying of a revolver in a handbag would probably come under the head of concealed weapons but this charge will not be pushed, as the cannon is in safe keeping.—Bluffton Banner.

Mrs. Anthony Overman and daughter Anna, who are visiting here from Covington, Ky.. spent the day at Fort Wayne yesterday and returned last evening. Berne, Ind., August 5. —"Uncle" Nate Hawkina. »he republican candidate for congress, was here not long ago using his same tactics trying to belittle Congressman Adair’s record. About the first real set back the tax title shark received was when he undertook to have his famous Sulloway letter published in the Berne Witness —the only paper published here. While the Witness editor is a republican, yet he soon informed “Uncle" Nate that its columns were not open for such articles as the Suloway letter. At this stage of the game doubtless “Uncle” Nate became a little bit on the leary order with a dark brown taste in his mouth and concluded he hud better look for different pasture and true he might for ike votes that he will get in Berne and Adams county this fall will be so scarce that it will be no trouble to count them. The people of Adams county irrespective of political affiliations, are satisfied with Congressman Adair and the record he made in congress and they are going to show’ it by placing Adams county in the Adair column by no less than 2,000 on November 3rd. While we have time and again told of the sums of money paid annually by various factories and other institutions, there is one concern we have overloked along this line and a goi'l one, too —the postoffice. The sum paid in salaries here by the government each year is no small one. In all, over $21,000 is distributed each year by Uncle Sam to his Decatur employes. Included in this list are three city mail carriers, each of whom are drawing the maximum salary for an office of the second class, or SI,OOO per year. There are twelve rural carriers, ten of whom receive S9OO and two $864, their salary being determined by the length of route. In the local office are four clerks, two of whom receive S6OO, one SBOO and one S9OO, the maximum This makes a total for the clerks of $2,900; for the city carriers $3,000; for the rural carriers $10,728. The postmaster receives a salary of $2, 400 and his assistant $1,200, making a total of $20,2.8 paid each year to regular employes. In addition to this sum, $450 is paid each year for substitute rural carriers during the 15 days’ vacation allowed each man with pay. For the delivery of special delivery packages, the sum of 8 cents each is collected and goes to the person making the delivery. This will total perhaps SIOO per year. The department allows the office S9O per year for a substitute clerk. Substitute city carriers cost each year $144, making the total salary budget of the office average for each year the sum of $21,012. Another city carrier is needed, as the entire city is not covered at present, and this request will likely be granted within a year.which will increase in salaries and the rent will soon make the government expends here nearly $25,000 annually. South Bend, Ind.. Aug 6. —A special to the Tribune from Goshen says: Practically acting upon the suggestion of District Attorney Jos. B. Healing, of Indianapolis, who was here to represent the government, United States Circuit Judge Francis E. Baker last evening issued a temporary restraining order in the petitions of six Indiana distillers to prevent United States revenue collectors from carrying out the provisions of a department order issued last spring and made operative July Ist, w’hereby all products of distilleries heretofore labelled “spirits” are to hereafter be labelled “alcohol.” The restraining order and possibility of permanent injunction are of immense importance to the distilling interests of the state, for the enforcement of the department order has practically caused them to shut down, incidentally depriving the government of $2,000,000 per month revenue, it being estimated that th,e six distilleries of the state pay an annual revenue of something like $25,000,000.

An important transaction in busines smatters tcok place Tuesday when the barber shop, located just east of the Erie railroad depot in the south part of the city, which was formerly owned and operated by S. J. Melchi, was disposed of to Mr. Clayton Stevens. Mr. Melchi has conducted his place of business for the past eight or nine months, and while so has enjoyed a liberal patronage, and maje many friends among the people. He ig undecided as to his future, but his many friends predict that what future business he will engage in he will merit success. Mr. Stevens, the new owner, needs no introduction to the public. For some time past he has bartered at the shop of Barney Wertzberger near the Holthouse livery stable and is thoroughly versed in this line. His former home was in Union township, but within a very short time he with his family will remove to this cty and make their future home.

Mesdames Pauline Eicklebarger and Charles Keinrick chaiged cars here today enroute to Rochester, lnJ..where they will visit friends for several days. Frank Holloway, who has been a reporter on the Banner for the past two years, acting as city editor for j the past year, severed his connection with the paper this afternoon and after a sojourn of a few days at Tippecanoe lake, will leave for Little Rock, Ark., where he will take a position on the Gazette, cf that city. Holloway makes the fourth reporter that has gone from the Banner office to the Gazette, C. D. Hessler being the first,, followed by Bruce Kiger, Cliff Lipkey and now Holloway. All of the boys have made good in Arkansas city, and there is no doubt but what Frank will do as well. Tomorrow morning Harry Tribolet who is known by everybody in Wells county, as a capable newspaper man, will take charge of the city editorship of the Banner. —Bluffton Banner. o Jacob Fuelling, a fanner who resides some distance south of the city, lost his watch yesterday either on a Decatur trolley car or after reaching the city. It was an old-fashioned silver watch, with an open face and key wind and somwhat battered, but it was an old friend, and Mr. Fuelling wants it back. Some years ago. Mr. Fuelling battered the case by swinging a plow handle against it, but it repaid the rough treatment by saving its owner from serious injury this spring. A horse kicked Mr. Fuelling but its hoof struck the watch, greatly lessening the force cf the kick and probably saving the farmer's life. “I wouldn’t lose that watch for anything,” said Mr. Fuelling to Patrolman Golden, to whom he told his story. —Fort Wayne News. The coming fair promises to be the best in the history of the association and in order to make it so the assistance of every one is needed. The business men will take an active part in the fair this year and will exhibit their various articles at the booths in the art hall. Many premiums will be offered this year and the races also will be an important figure in the event. Everybody help and make this year’s fair a hummer. Miss Anna Leever of Schum, Ohio, passed through the city today enroute to Bluffton, where she will make a short visit with friends and relatives. Hadji, the educated Arabian horse, is a perfect specimen of the desert horse. He was imported in 1902 by Carl Hagenbach- the largest animal importer in the world. He was trained and js owned by Frank Loyal, formerly animal trainer with the Hagenbach shows. Hadji reads, counts, adds, subtracts, multiplies, tells time of day by a watch borrowed from the audience and he will tell the exact value of any bill or coin U. S. money. Hadji is the youngest and handsomest horse on the stage tcday. This horse will do the trick at the Pictorium during the remainder of the week. Excitement was at high tension on north Third street last evening when the little ten-year-old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ben Middleton was found lying on a board platform directly west of the Webber building suffering intense pain, claiming that she was struck a terrific blow on her blow while playing in the vicinity of the laundry. A number of the residents in the vicinity of the Webber building who saw the child in agony hastened to the scene and administered what aid they could, after being told that the little girl had been struck by a playmate and was suffering. Her head was bathed and she was given a drink of water which had its effect, and in afew moments she was taken to her home. When first seen, the little girl was leaning against the brick building, holding her head. A large crowd gathered in a few minutes and a rigid examination was made of the child’s head, which showed no marks which would indicate violence. Word from the Middleton home today is t; the effect that the child is fully recovered. County Auditor O. D. Garrett this morning announced the appointment of John Shoemaker, son of Bruce Shoemaker, living one mile west of Bluffton, to succeed Charles Frantz, as deputy auditor. Mr. Shoemaker will come into the office next wek to familiarize himself with the work and by the time of Mr. Frantz’s retirement September I—will1 —will be in a position to take charge of the portion of the business of the office allotted to the deputy.- Bluffton Banner. Within a very short time Attorneys Thomas R. Wickwire, of Ashley, and Elmer Leonard, of Fort Wayne, will file numerous damage suits against the Wabash railroad company for Ashley property owners who allege a breach of contract on the part of the company in inducing them to buy lots and build houses when Ashley was in its infancy upon its promise of building and maintaining its shops, and making Ashley a division point. A suit of similar nature was filed several months ago. but as yet Lt has never come to trial.

THE IRISH AND THE GERMANS FRATERNIZE Sham Prosperity and Campaign Lies. REPUBLICANS BECOME DESPERATE Indianapolis. Aug. 10—It may not be known generally that a pact exists between the Ancient Order of Hibernians and the German-American National Alliance to stand by each other in the struggle for personal liberty, and in other matters of common Interest. Therefore when the Hibernians had their convention in this city last week an invitation was extended to the Ger-man-American Alliance to send a delegation to the great banquet in Tomlinson Hall. The Invitation was accepted and Mr. Joseph Keller, the second vice president of the Alliance, residing in thia city, represented his organization. When Matthew Cummings arose to introduce Mr. Keller he said it was one of the happiest moments of his life to have the representative of the great German organization at his side and to be able to introduce him. thereby showing the friendship between the Irishmen and the Germans In our country. Mr. Keller was received with cheers. Among other things he said: “Regarding the attitude our alliance has taken toward the prohibition question, 1 wish to state that we regret extremely that our position on the principle of personal liberty is frequently misconstrued and intentionally distorted; we only demand that the principle of the civil parity of all the citizens of a free state be completely observed. We admit the right of the state in the interest of security and morality to exercise strict control over certain trades, but the principle of personal liberty should not be thereby violated. Right and true temperance will not be found in sumptuary legislation, but in regulative licenses and reasonable restriction. Human nature is engaged at eternal warfare with prohibition and human freedom will not endure iL Prohibition is unrellgious and it is unAmerican. and as Cardinal Gibbons well says: ’Morality should be taught in the homes and in the churches; it cannot be Inculcated by restrictive laws.'” Mr. Keller received a perfect ovation at the close of hie speech, and thus the bond of friendship between the two nationalities was sealed. The Republicans seem to become desperate. The writing on the wall foretells their defeat. They have entered into a campaign of deceit. Following the example of the Chicago Tribune, the Star and the News of this city make desperate attempts to make people believe that good times are beginning to return. But the workingmen of Indianapolis know better. The number of the unemployed has not decreased. Baid a retail merchant recently: “I have many customers working in the Big Four shops. Formerly the monthly checks which I cashed for them were for amounts from S9O to $l2O. For many months I have hardly cashed a check for more than S4O or so.” The “Economist,” the best informed publication on economic conditions, has this to say about the deceitful attempts of the Republican press to give a glowing picture of the near future: “The completion of the program of the two principal parties for the campaign of the present year has been made the occasion of an effort by certain Republican newspapers to present the condition of business in the United States in a highly favorable light and to predict good things for the future. “The Chicago Tribune had eight columns of such matter last Sunday, and from various quarters come many utterances of the same sort. But In the statement of actual facts the showing is not a good one. “The brightness is mainly in opinion and prediction. There is nothing in these artcles that can take the place in the mind of the rational man of the statistics of bank clearing®, the output of iron, the earnings of railroads or any of the well-known tests. “There is no ground for the highly sanguine predictions for the future and still less for the highly colored descriptions of present activity. However strong the desire of politicians may be that the country shall appear prosperous in the next few months, let no man deceive himself—business is moderate and will remain so throughout 1908 without doubt.” The artificial boom that the Republican papers are seeking to create and that will undoubtedly plunge industry into still greater collapse during the coming winter is further discredited by the Iron Age. It says: "Industrial news in the daily press is being received with growing suspicion. Beyond the usual inaccuracies and beyond possibly praiseworthy exaggeration to create confidence, there is now strong evidence of deliberate tainting for stock jobbing or political purposes.” It is an equally desperate game on the part of the Republican papers to couple the brewers onto the Demo-1 cratio party. The trick is old, but U oannot affect intelligent men who think aad observe for themselves. Ths stories told in a Republican z.-wspaper of this city, and repeated by others, are pure invention®, not a wort of truth In them. The statements are ■o vague aad general and so full o 4 malice that the mark of untruth il dlsooveseble by the naked eye. ▲ deep gloom has settled on the Bir •

publicans. A prominent lawyer ,a former superior court judge and a lifelong Republican, said to the writer: i“I am afraid the Republicans are doomed. The situation seems to me to be the same as In 1874, produced by the Baxter law. and as in 1882, produced by the prohibition amendment Both times the extreme temp-rance policy of the Republicans brought them defeat: Relative to how prohibition is prohibiting in Oklahoma Cil(y. it is estimated that instead of eighty-one saloons that paid a revenue of something like $75,000 to the city .there are now about 300 dealers in liquor here who pay no licenses, and by private means liquor is consumed by booze fighters and tipplers now by the pint instead of by the ordinary drink, and there is more Intemperance or intoxication abounding than ever before in the history of the city. The foregoing estimation is made by one of our oldest anil most substantial citizens. — Oklahoma State Labor News. The newly elected city council of Mansfield. La., recently doubled the rate of taxation, levying 10 mills in stead of 5 mills, as heretofore. This was rendered necessary because of the loss of the whisky license when the community decided to install prohibition. The town was in debt for the electric light plant, and the Bank of DeSoto, which held the notes, had placed the paper in the hands of an attorney for collection. Had not prompt measures been taken the municipal plant would have been sold The tax rate is now higher than ever before, and there is considerable complaint from property holders. “I have never been able to convince myself that what we call total abstinence is essential to morality. The moderate and occasional use of alcoholic liquors is not to be condemned. In countries like France and Italy, where the people as a rule drink wine, no serious harm results from the practice.” —Cardinal Gibbons. The Silo Habit. In some of the farming districts of Kansas and lowa, where local sentiment had pronounced so strongly against any traffic in intoxicating liquors that they could only be brought in at the risk of subjecting the Importer to prosecution and persecution it was noticed that drunkenness of a particularly violent and Insanity-pro-ducing kind was largely on the increase among farm laborers. Ultimately the explanation was found in the fact that the craving for stimulants. which was denied a more reasonable gratification, had led to the tapping of the vegetable juices of ensilage from the silos in which an alochollc fermentation was produced in the vegetable masses. These juices contained poisonous qualities capable of causing a peculiarly maddening and destructive form of intoxication. "For one young man,” says the New York Times of Oct. 12, 1902, “wh< would have defied public opinion by over-indulgence in liquor obtainable by purchase, many were destroyed in mind and body by acquiring the unspeakable habit of drinking fermented poisons from the silos. Granted that the alternative presented a choice of evils, it can scarcely be questioned that woll-conducted saloons would have done less harm than was created by their suppression.” According to reports made public in Charlotte, N. C.. the drug stores of that city filled 39,645 whisky prescriptions in the year 1907. These called for 36,011 quarts and 210 dozen bottles of beer. This, in brief, is the amount of the whisky business done in Charlotte in a single year by the doctors who wrote “scripts” and the druc stores that filled them. There are fourteen drug stores in Charlotte that pay an annual liquor license of SIOO each, or a total of $1,400. Averaging the cost of whisky at $1.25 a quart, or $5 a gallon, the grand total is $43,760 that the drug stores received for whis ky alone in the year. For writing 39.645 prescriptions the physicians re celved an average price of 50 cents for each prescription, which brought them in the neighborhood of $20,000 for their trouble. Prohibition has been in effect in Charlotte for about three years with what effect is shown by these figures. Assistant Adjutant General Charles Shukers of Kansas was sent to Par sons to see what he could dig up in the way of evidence to show that the policemen there have been guilty of grafting off of druggists. The suspicion that something of this kind has been going on grew out of the trial of a jointist down there. When he was placed on the stand the jointist made the charge that the policemen of Parsons wer collecting money from the druggists, and that as a result the druggists were being allowed to oper ate without being molested. The joint Ist said he could produce the evidence to prove his charge. In the recent primary elections in Tennessee, prohibition received a severe set-back. The majority of the people voted for Malcomb R. Patter son for the governorship and against E. W. Carmack. The former stood for local opton, the latter for prohibi tion. The Anti-Saloon League of the 1 state indorsed Carmack, and likewise the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union. The churches made a strong fight for him. — Local option is a democratic mea* ■re, county option la autocratic.