Decatur Democrat, Volume 56, Number 23, Decatur, Adams County, 8 June 1911 — Page 6

Wednesday night John Joseph and Dallas Hunsicker left here for Indianapolis and Chicago, where they are buying stock with which to open up a wholesale fruit and vegetable supply house In this city. They have rent- , ed the business room In the Studebaker building Just south of the interurban station and are having it especially arranged for their use, the stock which they are buying being expected to arrive the first of next week. They will handle all kinds of green vegetables and fruits and have made special arrangements for getting quick delivery at the same prices which the merchants will have to pay outsiders for their stock. They will ship goods to all surrounding towns and will at all times carry a large stock with which to till orders. The business men here have seen the need of such a business and have promised their support to the proprietors as they will secure fresher goods at the same list price as they can get them in any other town with the advantage that they will not have to wait for it. The store will be open for business about the first of next week or as soon as several car loads of stock arrive. ■ - o GOING TO SEE THE ELEPHANTS. I Barnum * Bailey Show Will Exhibit in Huntington Thursday, June 8. Decatur will be well represented in Huntington on circus day. Indications are that the town will turn out by the thousands, attracted by the wonderful new circus which the Barnum & Bailey people are putting forth this season. The show has an entire new equipment, costing the management $3,200,000. One-third of this was spent on the parade which is reported as the most elaborate street I spectacle ever devised. It is three miles in length. The great menagerie of this circus is creating nothing short of a sensation in towns it visits. Il contains the most remarkable collection of rare beasts of any zoological displayin the world, and many specimens which are not duplicated in any other zoo, in America or Europe. The chief attraction here is a year-old giraffe, the only one ever born in this country. In fact it is the only giraffe, not full grown, ever seen outside the dephthe of the African jungle. Matured giraffes are scarce enough but this youngster Is worth its weight in gold. The performance !■ the main tent is presented by 400 of the world s greatest artists, gathered from no less than thirty-twx> nations. The acts they are offering are novel and not at all like the acts that have been seen in America in the past. Fifty downs furnish the comedy and in this respect the show is the laughing success of the age. And there are thrills without number from the start to the finish. The performance of Charles, the First, a chimpanzee bicycle rider and roller skater, is a most sensational surprize. The specialties of John Ducander’s bell-ringing horses. Winston's riding seals, a brass band of elephants, the Konyot family of German riders, the Fonelli family of Italian acrobats, the Les Deko family of French equilibrists and the SiegristSilboe family of aerlalists are of tbe first European rank. Barnum & Bailey carry 1,286 people, 700 horses, 40 elephants, 30 camels, 1000 other wild animals, dynamo plants, barber shops, tailoring establishments, bath parlors, laundries, blacksmith shops, dentists, doctors, a lawyer and a private police force. The many tents cover fourteen acres of ground. This show will exhibit at Huntington on next Thursday, Junei Bth, at afternon and evening performances. o Elizabeth and Ben P. Riee vs. Henry H. Hart et ai., partition; proof of publication of notice to non-residents filed. Default of all defendants. Suggested that defendant Joseph Bremerkamp is under guardianship as an habitual drunkard, and John C. Moran was appointed guardian ad litem for the defendant, Bremerkamp. Rule to answer; answer filed by guardian ad litem. Th’e transcript in the case of Lu-' cinda J. Branyan et al. vs. Aseal Brookover et al., was received in the J Adams circiut court on change of venue from the Allen superior court, the case going there from Huntington. Real estate transfers: Martin H. Reppert to William Kreutzman, 80 acres, Preble tp., $7600; administrator’s deed given by Charles S .Niblick, adm., to Daniel M. Niblick, lot 94, Decatur, $5630.65. The Blue Creek ditch trial was adjourned today noon until tomorrow morning. The evidence of the remonstrators has been concluded and that of the petitioners will begin tozaarrovft ■

A marriage license was issued thia afternoon to Harvey C. Tinkham. born September 23, 1886, farmer, son of Lorenzo and Hannah Tinkham. to wed Vernota Hakes, born O- tobei ,28, 1897, daughter of Joseph W, and Irene Hakes. Berne, Ind., June I—(Speciall—(Special to Daily Democrat) —The beautiful r> w banking house for the People's State bank of this place has finally been I finished and will be occupied ly t..< j bank this week. About two years ago the Peoples State bank corporation bought me old Allison-Morrow brick building in the northeast corner of Main and Jefferson streets, diagonally across the main public square in town from the Bank of Berne. The following spring work was begun on the acquired property after tearing down an old frame building to the alley in the rear. The New Banking House. The old brick structure was completely overhauled from basement to roof, being veneered on the Jefferson street side with vitrified glazed brick in white and grown, and finished in Bedford sandstone. The part of the building that attracts most attention is the front, which was reared in the architectural style of the Greek temple, of sandstone and glass, consisting of four massive sandstone columns and capped with an artistic galvanized iron cornice to match, and overtopped with the American eagle perched on a globe and spreading his wings. Over the entrance in the corner is reared a beautiful circular jetty, supported by a gray granite column, and sheltering a pretty alcove on the second floor and a.big clock with face toward the street, to serve the people. The whole building Is the most imposing business structure in Berne I from an architectural point of view and no doubt its equal is found in fewtowns of the size of Berne. The Banking Rooms. The bank will occupy the front sixty feet of length of the building (the entire length of the building Is 126 feet, the longest business house in town). The banking room proper, with its accessory compartments, takes up forty feet, and the vaults, vestibule and director's room the remaining twenty feet. The banking room is finished and furnished in mahogany and marble, the latter flanking the customers' compartment, the walnscoat consisting of white "English vein Italian," and the base-board in "Swanton Green" marble. The vault is encased in a wall of solid reinforced concrete, 20 inches in thickness, built up from basement, and is equipped with the most modern safety vault doors. The vault ha£ two compartments, one for the ' use of customers to deposit their val- ' nahla papers, and the other, the bankI ing vault proper, containing the bur-glar-proof manganese steel safe. The rear half of the ground floor of the building is occupied by the Central Grocery of Heller & Smith, and the shoe shop of John F. Mazelin. Tbe front apartment on the second floor will serve as a dental parlor for Dr. Harry Neuenschwander, and the rest of the second floor is occupied by Dr. D. D. Jones and Architect Abe Boegly. The entire building is equipped with an up-to-date steam heating plant, waterworks (both rain and drinking water), lavatories and toilet closets: in short, the building has all the equipments and conveniences of a modern city building, and it would be difficult to find a banking establishi ment in a town of its size that would surpass it The entire structure, including its equipment and original purchase price, amounts to about $16,000, and considering the appearance as well as the conveniences of the building, it is certainly a marvel at that price. The Bank. The People’s State Bank is one of the thriving financial institutions ot 1 Adams county. With its capital stock of $50,000, and a surplus of $7,750, it is founded on the solid foundation of resources amounting to a quarter of a million dollars. It was founded ■ and org: ( ’ed February 2, 1903, and opened for business in the present quarters on April 2, 1903, with a capital stock of $40,000. This was raised in 1906 to $50,000, since which time the bank has enjoyed a steady and healthy growth. Rudolph Schug has been Its cashier from the beginning. Other prominent business men identified with the bank from its inception are: Julius C. Schug, E. D. , Engeler, J. P. Habegger and C. A. Dugan, the latter from Decatur. The present members of the official family of the bank are: Julius Schug, pres- ! ident; Albert Neuenschwander, a member of the Berne Hardware company, vice president; Rudolph Schug. cashier; E. D. Engeler, manager of the store of E. D. Engeler & Co., assistant cashier; directors: J. P. Habegger, manager of the Berne Manu-

facturing' Co.; C. A. Dugan, cashier of the First National Bank of Deca tur; Amos Neuhauser, manager of the People’s store; Fred Bentz has since a number of years been teller of the bank. The bank, in its r«w ai.d comfortable quarters, will ivriaiu.y keep on growing as it has giown lit the past, as it is amply shown that It is well worthy of the confidence and patronage the public Lus shoeu it in the j ...*i <nu t <->n >« aisuie lof a con..otroti uv -iid jusi t- iare of the iu tliv future. The selection of a county superintendent of the schools of Adams county, to serve for a period of four years, is the chief duty of the township trustees to be attended to as the law provides at their meeting to be held in this city next Monday morning. There are three candidates for the position: L. E. Opliger, the present superintendent; Edwarrr S. Christen, principal of the west ward school in this city, and Albert Sellemeyer, principal of the Peterson schools. All three are competent and each man has a wide circle of friends and acquaintances. While the contest has been on for some time there has not been as bitter a contest as many would have us believe. Some six or eight weeks ago, at a meeting of the trustees held at Berne, a resolution endorsing Mr. Opliger for another term was adopted, but the candidates have nevertheless kept up the campaign and the question will be settled at the annual meeting Monday. The trustees include ten democrats and two republicans, all of the candidates are democrats and the democratic organization has taken no part so far as is known. County auditor Michaud will preside over the meeting and in case of a tie vote will begin balloting with the rest, this being provided under a new law passed by the last legislature. The matter Is a very important one and everybody Is agreed that it is one in which personality, honesty, qualification and experience of the candidates should be the thing considered. In other words the interest of the schools should be first and foremost. ■ ■ —o — The trial of William Fleetwood was held Thursday, being sent to the mayor’s court by 'Squire Stone, before whom it was filed on a change of venue last month. Fleetwood is charged with malicious trespass, and it is alleged that he entered upon his father's land and tore down forty rods of wire fence which had been erected tbe day before by his father and brother, Sherman, who farms the father’s farm. Having some family disputes as to the line dividing the farms both claimed a strip of ground lying between the two places and the attempt of the father to fence it in was thwarted the day after, when Fleetwood and his wife tore it down. Directly after that Sherman Fleetwood came to town and swore out tbe affidavit. The problem the court is called upon to solve is one of ownership and all the old surveys are being used as evidence and the trial will probably continue all day as tnere are several witnesses yet to be heard. Prosecutor Parrish is appearing for the state and for the defendant appear Heller, Sutton & Heller. The case is being fought to a finish and as some of the original cornerstones have been removed by some one the case will present a complex problem to solve. The land in question is less than an acre in extent and for years an old rail fence stood on the line in /luestion but at the erection of a new wire fence hostilities broke out anew and the fence was destroyed, and the case brought to court for settlement. A motion to quash the affidavit was sustained and the case was dismissed late this afternoon. O--" EYE REMOVED. J. F. Hocker of Fort Wayne Loses Sight of One Eye. Charles F. Hocker returned today from Fort Wayne, where he visited with his brother, J. F. Hocker, who has been sick for some time. His illness is somewhat of a peculiar one. Eleven years ago, while using a gun I and discharging same, a portion of the cartridge and powder flew backwards and located in his right eye. The Injured member was quite sore at the time, but seemed to heal, and at times it would become infected, and ' \ nothing could be done that would effect a cure. It has been giving Mr. i Hocker much trouble and upon the ad- ■ vice of the physician it was deemed best that the eye be removed, because it had become in such condi- ' tion that the other eye would soon become affected. On last Monday he submitted to the operation and Mr. i I Hocker, who returned this morning, •' stated that his brother was resting ■ quite well. Arthur and Carey Comer, two • young men of Pleasant Mills, who for ■ the past three years have been in the

employe of Vncle Sam as infantry- < men returned home, the former W ed- ' nesday and Carey Thursday from, the Philippines, where they have been stationed for more than a year. They . enlisted at Fort Wayne, going to Columbus, Ohio, where they were put In training and then sent to the northern part of Wyoming, where they were placed on guard duty. After a stay of fourteen months at this place the .boys were transferred to San Fran .cisco, remaining there for several months and then were sent to the Philippine Islands, where they have since seen service. All during the service they have been together and belonged to the 19th Infantry, Company K. Having served their enlisted time they were permittted to return home on a vacation, and should they wish to return can do so within three months at continued pay. At present they are undecided concerning their return, and if they can secure suitable occupations will remain here. ■ ■ ■-o — Four sensational affidavits were filed this morning by Prosecutor Par rish in 'Squire Stone's court and the necessary warrants issued to cause the arrest of the parties charged. One affidavit called for the arrest of Margaret Jones alleging assault and battery. The other three were against Warren Jones on tne same charge, each covering a different occurrence. It is alleged that during the past year Jones has succeeded in inducing his mother to deed him 160 acres of land which she owned in return for her support the rest of her life, and when he secured the deed at different times maltheated her. The old lady is very Infirm and crippled and it will be impossible for her to be brought to court but her deposition will be taken Some time ago Jones’ mother com plained to the sheriff and he undertook an investigation, which warranted him in having the affidavits filed. The warrants were placed in the hands of Deputy Sheriff Merica, who was appointed special constable for the occasion and he left this morning to make the attests. The two parties were brought in about 2 o'clock and Arraigned, they employing David Smith as their attorney and the case was continued until Saturday afternoon at 1 o'clock wqhen it will be heard in 'Squire Stone s court. o TRAMPS LEAVE THEIR SIGNS. No doubt you have noticed, at some time or other, curious looking marks or signs with chalk, on fences, barns or other outbuildings in the vicinity of residences, says an exchange. These signs become more evident with the approach of spring. They may seem very insignificant to you but they are vitally important to some member of the nomadic tribe known as the hobo. They are also significant to the members of the police force, though for a different reason. The marks consist of lines and circles carefully drawn but nevertheless full of meaning, and serve as a sort of block signal for the hoboes. A knight of the highway indicates by these signs whether or not there is a chance for a hand-out and where. The warning is given if there is a waiting wood pile and if the hobo is greeted by a disagreeable dog a jagged sign appears not unlike the youthful conception of Teddy's teeth. Os course a house of this sort is given a wide berth. Cross bars indicate that some one is liable to land in the lock-up and a town with such signs is usually shunned. If you would know what the hobo thinks of you, look for the “high signs” which are beginning to appear c The mayor called the attention of the police to several slot machines which had been shipped into the city recently from an Ohio town to several business men here. As it was against the city ordinance to own or operate a slot machine in which there exists an element of chance, and the machines being so constructed as to play a chance, they are therefore illegal, and today Marshal Peterson made the rounds and notified the parties having the machines that they would not be allowed to operate them and in most cases they were relegated at once to the scrap heap. Some of the business men complained that they would lose money on account of having to pay express and othe" charges, but that is a problem that does not concern the law, and the loss will have to be borne by the men. The operation of the machine is that you play five cents and in return you are supposed to get five cents' worth of chewing gum with the added advantage that you may, if you are lucky, gain any amount up to one dollar in trade. The manufacturer claims that the vending of the gum relieves the machine from operating as a chance, as the player is supposed to receive full value for his money. The mayor takes the view that the machine is a chance because many j will play the machine for large sums, securing a large supply of gum, in or-

der to have a rt>M>ce of winning » dollar in trade. He therefore barred tbe use of the Quite a surprised Mr. and Mrs. , Thomas Stoneburner apring when , they returned Wednesday evening < from wennafivllle and stated to their i friends that they had been wedded t that morning and had come to th s < dty to make their home. The bride i was Mies Erica Pontius, a charm ng and beautiful young lady of that city. < She is popular in society, and the as- 1 sections of the young lady were won , while Mr. Stoneburner followed his I trade of barbering there for three 1 v-ears. The groom left here on Mon- < dav evening, where arrangements for i the wedding were completed, and then 1 left for Albion. Ind., where the wed- < ding ceremony was performed by the I R ev Newcomb at the Methodist parsonage. the hour being 10:30 o'clock. < Immediately following the service the happy couple returned to the home I of her parents, Mr. and Mrs. P. A. 1 Pontius, where a wedding dinner was < served in their honor. Mr. Stone- ‘ burner at present holds a half inter- < est in the barber shop with Forest Elzey, is very popular, and the best wishes of all his friends Is being extended from the many friends of the couple. After a sickness of only thirty ' hours, Daniel Hunte’., one of the county's oldest pioneer citizens and also one of the oldest veterans of the civil war in the northern part of the state, died at bis home on East Mar- - ket street at twenty minutes until one o’clock Wednesday. Mr. Hunter expired just forty minutes after the dawn of his eighty-seventh birthday. He maae ms nome with his two sons. Richard and John. On last Friday they had moved into the rooms in the rear of the offices of J. H. C. Smith and Mr. Hunter had greatly enjoyed the prospect of being where he could meet people and see the passersby on the streets. They had formerly resided on the west side, so far away from the business section that it was next to impossible for him to come "up town.” On last Friday he was able to walk to a doctor’s office and hoped to be on the streets a little every day. He was taken sick on Monday morning with uraemic poisoning Owing to the weakened condition of his Bystem, due to his advanced age, his decline was rapid and death came peacefully at an early hour this morning. Daniel Hunter was bora in Wayne county, Ohio, on May 31, 1824, the son of David and Martha Hunter. On July 17, 1845, he was married to Miss Elizabeth Reed, at his old home In Ohio. Two years later, in 1847, he and his wife came to this county to reside. For a time he worked as a fanner. In the early sixties, when President Lincoln isued his call for volunteers, he answered the summons and became a member of Cap tain Peter Studebaker’s command. Company B of the 101st Indiana volunteer Infantry. He saw plenty of active service and acquitted himself in a most honorable manner. It is of pitiful significance that while the other aged veterans were yesterday paying homage to their honored dead, one of the deans from among their number lay dying. At the close of the war Mr. Hunter, returned to Wells eounty and again resumed his occupation as a farmer. Thirty-nine years ago the first of last March he and his wife moved to Bluffton. He had made hie home here ever since. His wife passed away last October. Mr. Hunter was the last of his generation, all of the others of a family of ten children having preceded him in death. He was the father of eight children, of whom four, the following, survive: Richard and John of this city and Mrs. John Wisehaupt and Mrs. Eli Crist of Decatur. The following children are deceased: Mrs. Catherine Krill, Frederick R. Hunter. Ell Reed Hunter and Daniel W. Hunter. There are eleven grandchildren and thirteen great grandchildren. | Thursday the remains will be removed to the residence of his granddaughter, Mrs. J. M. Park, on West South street. The funeral services will be conducted at the Park reei- 1 dence at ten o'clock Friday by Rev. Clark Crawford. The remains will be interred in Fairview cemetery. Com-! rades of the decedent from the 101st Indiana will be pall bearers at the funeral.—Bluffton News. o— Just one year ago Wednesday the Rev. Charles Ehle of Bronson, Mich., came to this city and took charge of the pastorate of the Decatur Baptist church. The anniversary meeting held Wednesday evening in the church, the first one since the re-dec-1 orating of the building, at which time the annual reports of the superintendents of the, various depart-' I ments, show the past year to have been one of unparalledel prosperity' and success in the history of the local

church. At the time Rev. Ebl* came to this city tbe membership consisted of thirty-one resident member*, the number now being fifty-one—-nearly double the number a year ago. At that time the Sunday Bchool had an enrollment of thirty five with an average attendance of twenty-two; the enrollment aow is over one hun dred, with an average attendance of sixty-five. All these figures show in "cold facta” the great growth of the church during the pastorate of the Rev Ehle, but it does not tell in even a little measure of the growth in sph Itual and material departments. When Rev. Ehle assumed charge here, th. congregation pledged enough inonej to nearly cover th® pastor’s salary, but there was not enough pledged t 0 cover the current expenses, such a« for fuel, etc. The report of the of fleer of this department, Wednesday evening, however, showed the pai tor's salary paid in fv'l for the yea' , and the current expenses also, wit a small balance in the treasury. The eve of the new year, moreover, show s an advance over that of the last year, as the congregation has pledged enough in advance to cover the pastor's salary and the current ex penses also for the ensuing year. The financial reports of the Sunday school, the aid society, and all the departments as made Wednesday night, show them clear of debt and with a balance on hand. The noteworthy part of the financial side is that the money was contributed by each men ber according to the scriptural plan "according as the Lord hath prospered thee" —none of the money being rais ed by giving church socials or other such methods. Besides raising the necessary funds for the carrying on of the regular church work —what may be deemed “the necessaries” —they also provided enough for "luxuries.” that is the re decorating of the church, the meeting Wednesday evening being held there for the first. The work of redecora' ing Included the repapering of the church, the varnishing of the interior and the provision of other things of beauty and comfort, and the building now presents one of the most handsome appearances in the city. The colors are softly harmonizing tints of cream, olive green and light green The dark green begins at the base with a handsome dado, shading into the paneling above in a lighte tint of green, this in turn giving way to the warm cream tints of the ceiling, producing an effect of rare richness and beauty. The rich stained windows, with their Inset frames, have been outlined with sparkling gilL and the pulpit background Is a paper of a novel pattern, giving the appearance of leading into a columned, marble-floored alcove. The seats and interior woodwork of the entire church have been revarnished, and a rail and curtain have ben pro'ided lor the choir platform. The entire cost of the Improvements was pledged in advance, all bills are now paid, with a balance left over. For a time prior to February. 191". the congregation had such little interest in the affairs, that the church was closed for a while and no Sunday school even was held during that time. Evangelist Rickard was then sent here and a revival conducted, during which time it was decided to call a pastor, and that his service he:e was most successful is an undoubted fact Just one year ago Wednesday evening Mrs. Ehle and children joined the husband here, a reception being held that evening at tbe J. L. Moser home. INSPECTION TRIP Made by Railroad Officials Over th* Clover Leaf. A special train, carrying members of the Indiana Railway Commission, and several of the officials of the Clover Leaf, stopped off in the city ye«I terday for an hour or so, on their trip of inspection from Toledo to Frankfort A Mr. Scott, also a mem- ; ber of the Indiana commission, came here Wednesday evening and joined the other officials on their trip westward An inspection of the yards, tracks and various buildings waß made to ascertain whether or not the I company was keeping up to tbe required mark regarding the law. While here the subject of a new depot was brought up. The company had decided to build, and then dropped the I matter, and stated they would repaint and otherwise remodel the old one. Now the decision has been changed and a new depot bobs up again, and Mr. Thompson, the agent, stated that he really believed the company din > !l ' tend to erect a new one In the ' p! ' near future. No report regarding i,p trip was given out. The officials of the Clover Leaf accompanying the commission were F. Clemens, superintendent; 'an [l< ’ lan, superintendent of railway <* n i tracks; J. B. Kelley, superintendent 'of bridges; Fred Davey, roadmastef •