Democratic Sentinel, Volume 8, Number 30, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 August 1884 — A SCHOOL FUND SWINDLE [ARTICLE]

A SCHOOL FUND SWINDLE

[From the LiiPorte Argu of TliursCay. Auguoi 7, 1884]

How the Republican Candidate for Governor Absorbed Common School Funds. A Full History of the Transaction Presented to the Voters of Indiana. WHAT THE RECORDS SAY. The following history of a common school fund loan made by Major v m. H. Calkins, the Republican candi-. date for Governor of Indiana, is presented to the voters of the State for their personal consideration, believing it to be a matter of great importance to them at this time. The accuracy of the statement made will not be seriously questioned, and they can not be set aside by special pleading or by the common remark that “the history is a campaign lie.” To prevent all cavil, the dates and pages of the records are given so that the complete official history of this transaction may be easily verified. Those who doubt may Investigate for themselves, and they will find that we “set down naught in malice” but that the official records are stronger than we make them appear: In the fall of 1874 Wm. H. Calkins made application to the Auditor of LaPorte county for |a loan of S3OO from the the common school fund of State, offering as securty a mortgage ou a piece of land located in Johnson township, some eighteen miles from the city of LaPorte. The record shows that H. o. Brown, D. L. Brown and I. D. Phelps, all residents of the city of LaPorte and close personal and political friends of Calkins, were appointed appraisers. It also shows that these appraisers reported under oath that the land was “worth S7OO, in specie, at the common

selling rate in the county.” On this report the monev was loaned to Calkins, he giving his note due in five years, with interest payable at the rate of eight per cent per annum m advance, and executing a mortgage on the land as security. The full record of this transaction will be found on page 480, Vol. 2, School Fund Mortgage Record in the Recorder’s office of LaPorte county. The interest that was due for the next year was paid, but on the following year it was defaulted, and Calkins was notified that he was in default to the school fund and a speedy settlement was requested. No settlement was made, although it was repeatedly urged by the authorities. Under the terms of the mortgage, the entire amount became due on failure to pay the interest on the 28th day of October. The interest not being paid according to the contract, and no satisfaction being given to the officials, on * the following March the Auditor offered the land for sale. It was duly advertised in the papers and notices of the sale losted in the township, but /here were no buyers and the auditor took the property fir the State, as the law directsUnder the statute the Audi tor then had the land reappraised to enable him to reimburse the loss to the school fund by a private sale of the property. Three well-known and disinterested freeholders of the township where the land is situated, Messrs. B. F. Place, George Henry and Patrick Flaherty, were appointed to appraise the property. Their report made under oath says: f ‘Having made a personal examination of the premises, do upon our oath say that the same is of the value of two hundred dollars, at the common selling rate in .this county.” The complete record of this reappraisement and offer of sale -may be found on Commissioners’ Record “I,” pages 41 and 96. The report of the second appraisers opened the eyes ot the authorities to the fact that the < ommon School Fund, instead of having a piece of land worth, as they supposed, seven hundred dollars, in reality, had some comparatively worthless Kankakee swamp. On the 18tli day of June, 1877, the land was offered for sale for S2OO, the appraised value, on five years’ time for the whole amount; but there were no takers, it has since remained continuously in the market but no purchaser can be found at that price, and the land still remains the property of the State, it represents all that i he State has for the originel r3OO school fund loan and the interest accumulated thereon for nearly eight years. Time and again during the proceedings noted above the county officials urged upon Calkins the necessity for the settlement of this matter, but they were always put off with various excuses and liberal - promises, and it still stands unsettled. Under the law, the Commissioners have been obliged from year to year to appropriate money collected from the people by taxat.Sn to make good to the school fund the interest due on vvm. H. Calkins’ note and mortgage. See Commissioners’ Record “J,” page 544, in the County Auditor s office. The defaulted interest, as will be seen by the reader, amounts to nearly two hundred dollars, and the cost of the proceedings up to this time makes the total amount due ov«r SSOO. To summarize the above facts, so that they maj be easily understood by the people of Jndiana, we will say: Ten years ago next fall wm. H. Calk ins secured a loan from the Common School Fund on land that is practically a worthless swamp. With the assistance of inti-

mate personal and party friends, who probably never saw the land, he obtained money from the school furid to full twice the amount of the value of the swamp. He has failed to pay the interest .on the debt, and for eight years the taxpayers have been obliged to pay it for him. He has failed to pay this honest debt to the school fund although repeatedly urged to do so. He is a lawyer and knows that the money cannot be collected on his note by suit until the land is sold, and he has the best of reasons for believing that the land cannot be sold at the appraised value, which is only two-thirds of the amount he received from the school fund. He knows that the people who have been paying the taxes have for nearly eight years heen paying the interest that was due from him to the school fund, is this an honest transaction, or is it a swindle on the school fund, that should be. sacred to every citizen of Indiana! s such a man worthy to be made Chief Executive of the State? is he the right kind of a man to guard the interests of the children of the State, and to look after the welfare of the taxpayers? We leave the voters to answer these timely questions at the ballot box in November.