Jasper County Democrat, Volume 1, Number 22, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 September 1898 — DEMOCRATIC TOWNSHIP CONVENTIONS. [ARTICLE]

DEMOCRATIC TOWNSHIP CONVENTIONS.

The Democratic voters of the several Townships of Jasper County, Indiana, and all others who expect to affilliate with them, will meet in mass convention at places herin designated on Tuesday, Sept. 20, 1898, At 2 o’clock p. m., and nominate township candidates to be voted for at the November election, as follows: Three justices of the peace and three constables in each township except Marion, which is , entitled to five each, and Carpenter ■ and Wheatfield four each. The places of meeting is as follows: Hanging Grove, McCuyaburg Gillam Center school house Milroy Center school house Union Wild Lily school house Walker ~ Hershman school house Keener DeMotte school house Marion City Hall Jordan Egypt school house Carpenter Remington Town Hall Newton Sayler school house Kankakee Dunnville school house Wheatfield Wheatfield school house Barkley Cozy Palace school house D. W. Shields, Chairman. J. P. Walters, Sec. People are sometimes forced to believe a man is either a fool or a knave, when, in fact, they dislike to believe either. The Journal figures out such an excellent showing for the county farm for the year ending May 31, 1898—after selling off a lot of stock and produce that wasn’t sold —we should like to have its statistical! (10 years in office) try his hand on he receipts and expenditures for the year previous, ending May 31, 1897.

The middle-of-the-road populists met in Cincinnati this week and reorganized the people’s party, renewed its former declaration of principles and nominated a national ticket two years and two months in advance of the date of the election. Wharton Barker of Philadelphia, was nominated for president, and Ignatius Donnelly of St. Paul, for vice-president.

The auditor’s annual report for the year ending May 31, 1897, gives the total expenditures for maintenence of poor farm in Jasper county at $3,367.95. The report shows no receipts, but in the report to the State Bureau of Statistics the total receipts for the year are given at $911.75. Thus we find that the expenditures for that year exceeded the receipts by $2,456.20. Will the Journal please tell us whether or not there were any unsold products from the farm which should be included (?) as receipts for 1897?

The Democrat does not believe that it is a duty it owes any officer or individual, when finding that an unlawful act has been committed, to seek out that party, get his explanation, accept it as gospel truth and say nothing about it. Personally we have nothing whatever against Auditor Murray or any other county officer, but we submitthat to blindly accept his explanation of the mutilation of Record No. 10 requires lots of. faith in the honor and integrity of the auditor and the county commissioners, the only parties who really know whether the pages destroyed contained anything of importance or not. If there is a 16-year-old school boy in Jasper County who doesn’t know better than to recklessly slash four pages from a public record, without reference to what those pages contained, or even if they were blank, we should like very much to see him. With all due respect to Mr. Murray we wish to add that had I this record been so 1 mutilated by a democratic official —no matter what explanation was given—every republican paper and every republican in the county would have put up a tremendous howl and demanded that the matter be placed before the grand jury at once. We don’t KNOW that any intentional wrong was committed, but wb do know that the pages have been cut from the record, that the only parties who know anything about what, if anything the pages contained, are the auditor and commissioners, all interested parties. We also, know according to ourunderstanding of the law, tha* (he removal of those pages war lawful act.

Under the head of “A Most Unjustifiable Attack,” the Republican devotes nearly two columns in palliation of the mutilation of Commissioners’ Record No. 10. For the benefit of th 4 Republican we copy the following sections from the Revised Statutes of 1894 in regard to the sacredness of county records, etc: Section 3014. Whoever steals, takes, and carries away the whole or ANY part of any record, record-book, or order-book authorized to be made by any law of this state, or belonging or pertaining to any court of record, justice of the peace, or any state, county, township, or municipal office or officer, or any other public record, document; or proceeding of any court of record, justice of the peace, state, county, township, or municipal office or officer; or any paper, pleading, exhibit, or other writing filed within or by any such court of record, justice of the peace, office or officer, is guilty of felony, without reference to the value of the same, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned in the state prison not more than fourteen years nor less than six manths, fined not exceeding one thousand dollars and disfranchised and rendered incapable of holding any office of trust or profit far any determinate period. Section 3013. Whoever, being an officer or his deputy, having the custody of any record, book, document, paper, or proceeding specified in the foregoing station, steals, or fraudulently takes away, secretes, withdraws, or destroys any such record, BOOK, document, paper, or proceeding filed or deposited with him, upon conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned in the state prison not more than fourteen years nor less than two years, fined not exceeding one thousand dollars and disfranchised and rendered incapable of holding any office of trust or profit for any determinate period. Section aoi6. Whoever maliciously, mischievously, or fraudulently alters, defaces, injures, mutilates, or destroys the whole or any part of any record authorized to be made by any law of this state, belonging or pertaining to any court of record, justice of the peace, or any state, county, township, or municipal office or officer; or any other public record so authorized; or any paper, pleading, exhibit, or other writing filed with, in, or by any such court, office, or officer, shall be imprisoned in the state prison not more than fourteen years nor less than six months, fined not exceeding one thousand dollars and disfranchised and rendered incapable of holding any office of trust or ptjyfit for any determinate period,