Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 259, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 31 October 1910 — The Censure Passed By the Republican on the Commissioners. [ARTICLE]

The Censure Passed By the Republican on the Commissioners.

The Democrat thinks it shows an inconsistency in the Republican bypointing out some criticism made by this paper about the commissioners of Jasper county last March. The article stated that the commissioners had failed to do their duty when they accepted bridges without a more careful investigation than was given the Milroy township bridge built by Bader. The bridges were then accepted by the commissioners on their personal inspection. They were not engineers and none of them could probably tell with a casual inspection whether or not the bridge was just what it should be and the bridge and probably others, judged by the later investigation by experts proved to be inferior. Probably the commissioners did all that any set of commissioners might have done but they failed to detect the" shortage and could not escape censure. They did not expect to do so and each of them realized that they had erred In not having the bridges inspected by engineers. They decided to do that in the future and to act on the engineer’s report. They are not experts and there is no reason >why expert’s plans should he approved by any person except qualified engineers and that is why they no longer make personal inspection of the work. is no inconsistency in the position taken by the Republican. If any reader found. that he was being defrauded, as the commissioners found that they they had. been, the probabilities are that they would plan to avoid-those results in the future. They now. act on the report of er gineers and do the right thing by j doing. The challenge of the Democrat that we show nny article as severe In censuring the commissioners published in that paper as in our own, will be accepted, but there is this difference. The Republican had the courage to mention the people censured and to censure them to the extent of their fault. The Democrat by inuendo sought to create suspicion and distrust. The files of the Democrat do not show a charge against the commissioners, but the constant doubt of “men higher up” is flaunted before readers to create a suspicion of wrong doing. There is one thing on which the Democrat and the Republican agree and that is that the Winamac E-idge Co. should be sued to compel it to repay to Jasper county every cent that the county has lost by reason of changes in the specifications. We believe every taxpayer in Jasper county will agree that the bridges should be made whqje or the county reimbursed to the extent of the shortage. You or I would demand this in private business and it ; should be demanded now of the Winamac Bridge Co. Men’s 50c heavy wool fleeced shirts and drawers, 39c. . .

ROWLES & PARKER.

Calling cards at the Republican.