Jasper County Democrat, Volume 1, Number 35, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 December 1898 — DEMOCRATIC COMMITTEE MEETING. [ARTICLE]

DEMOCRATIC COMMITTEE MEETING.

The Democratic County Comswitipe will meet at J. W. Douthit 8 law office, in Rensselaer, on Saturday, December 10, 1898, at 2 o’clock p. m., for the transaction of important business. All democratic candidates at last election for county office requested to be present. D. W. Shields, Chm’n. J. Walters, Sec’y.

John Martindale's political career closed this week. For an office that always occupies the tail end of the ticket, John has extracted a good deal of “consolation*’ from the position entrusted to him.

“A democrat all our life, unpurchasable,” etc.—-The self-alleged democrat. There are some things which sound better when told by others than the interested jiarty. The democrats of Jasper county will require a few affidavits on the above score.

It will be rembered that “Honest Abe” ami his henchmen per sistetl in telling the people that the tearing up and relaying of the court house yard coping and walk's didn't cost the county one penny extra. Yet we proved by the reccords themselves that nearly one thousand dollars extra was paid, andean still prove the sact —unless the records have since been “doctored” to conform with the ring’s statements.

When Bn*. Marshall was trying to explain ami make light of the removal of those four pages from the commissioners’ record, a short time since, he referred to the docket of the Board to prove that there was nothing wrong. Now, as it suits his purpose better, he says the docket is simply a note book or memorandum, etc., and doesn't amount to much as a record of any proceedings, etc. Consistency is indeed a rare jewel in the Republican sanctum.

Bros. Clark and Marshall will pardon us for preferring to take official records for our information in regard to county affairs in preference to any statement those gentlemen might make. In regard to the rent of rooms for election purposes in precincts No. 2 and 4, of Marion tp., we know that the record was changed (after our pubblication of same) in Mr. Eger's case to conform with the statement published by Marshall and Clark. Is It not just possible that the bill of Mr. Thompson's was also changed to conform with their statement?

The railroad companies own 212,715,000 acres of land in the United States, which amounts nearly to the combined acreage of lands in the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, lowa, Missouri and Kansas, that foots up to 216,511,-! acres. Foreigners who do live in this count own 65,(X Ifurpay o- >rn'a, 5,1U0,UU0;. Vanderbilt 1,000,000, Dittson. of Pl ui-lphia 4,000,000; the Standard Oil Company 1,000,000 — all of which land has been acquired since the civil war. Thirtyone thousand people < own more than one-half of all the wealth of the United States. With a Congress and President working for the interests of these few, how long does the reader think it will take these few to own the balance of America?

The next legislature will do the people of Indiana a great service if it provides for the proposed reforms in county and township management. The heaviest burdens imposed upon the taxpayers are those for local government, and much of the money expended might as well be poured into a rat hole for all the good it does. —Lebanon Pioneer.

And now it is announced that F. J. Meyers, late superintendent and absorber of the poor farm, will claim that the public property found on his premises was donated to him by merchants who sold goods to the county. This reminds us that a number of persons denounced Myers as an ass for not making that plea in the first place. He has probably caught on. —Indianapolis Sentinel.

The county commissioners have been in session all this week and have done but very little actual work. The docket was light, and yet not one-half the cases are disposed of. Everything so far done could easily have been disposed of in one or two days at most, but pleasant quarters and $3.50 per day is not to be sneezed at these times, even though it does take about 50 bushels of the farmers corn each day to foot the bill.

“Honest Abe’s” statement in the Republican that he (“Honest Abe”) changed the figures in Mr. Eger’s bill on the commissioners’ docket the Wednesday previous to our publication of same, is absolutely false. In dealing with people who correct “errors” of record by cutting out pages therof, etc. we are very careful to see that the “errors,” if any, are still “uncorrected” up to our press day, and Friday morning, at 11 o’clock, two days after “Honest Abe” says he changed this “4” to a “6,” the change had not been made, as we personally examined the docket and know what we are talking about, “Honest Abe’’ or the rest of the ring to the contrary notwithstanding.

The famous and reliable staff correspondent of the Chicago Record writes from New’ York that during the past year 2,551,455 persons received relief or assistance from the various charitable associations organized under the laws of the state of New York. This does not include the very large number of church organizations, which made no report to the state. This, Mr. Curtis says, is an enormous increase over former years. Still our republican friends tell us that the single gold standard, the Dingley law’ and republican management in general have produced great prosperity. The trouble with a republican prosperity always is that there is only enough of it to supply the trusts, combines and monopolies, and not enough to reach the common people. And the country is slowly finding it out.—Rochester Sentinel.

Indiana is turning out artists and musicians at such a rapid rate these days that the markets in these two particulars will soon be gorged. Every school child has taken hold of these subjects with an enthusiasm characteristic of a new convert whose earliest and most intense determination is to revolutionize the world. With crayon and paper, music and harp they proceed about their daily work with an equanimity U mind that is truly sublime. We ap- ! prove of this kind of education, ! however,-as it will have’ n i.n----f Si >otb the Of>* .t,y of : ti‘t. no v< arsas * painters and i -ians proceed with their daily toil of pounding sand under railroad ties, hauling fertilizer, bucking wood, and such ; odd jobs as may be had. They l will look back over the landscape of their memories with gladness to the days of these youth, when the “old man” sawed the wood, cleaned out the bam, milked the cow, made the fires and left their artists and musicians nothing to do but draw and sing—and incidentally spend

all the money they could get their hands on.

The tin plate combine just formed is the most extensive affair of the kind ever formed in this country, as it includes all the plants in the country, but sou two in Pennsylvania, one In West Virginia and one in Missouri. To avoid anti-trust laws the new concern is organized as a corporation under the New Jersey laws, with $20,000,000 preferred stock and $30,000,000 common stock. Of this sum the purchase of the plants represents $12,000,000 and the proposed working capital $6,000,000. The remainder is pure water. The preferred stock is to have 7 per cent, cumulative dividends, all over this, if any going to the common stock. To pay the dividends on preferred stock will therefore be required $1,200,000, and -to pay only 6 per cent, on the common stock will be required $1,740,000, or a total of $2,940,000. The promoters claim, however, that the common stock will earn more than the preferred, since the latter is limited to 7 per cent. Allowing, however, only 6 per cent, for the common stock it would require about 50 cents a box profit on 6,000,000 boxes a year to earn these dividends. This shows what tremendous earning capacity the promoters are basing estimates on, and the earning capacity is chiefly due to our tariff law, which taxes every home for the benefit of these infant promoters. —Indianapolis Sentinel.

This little matter of Thos. Thompson’s election expenses is causing the statistician (30 years in office) and his deputy no end of trouble. The statistician (30 years in office) and the Republican and the Journal and Mr. Thompson say §4.25 was paid for rent for T. Thompson’s office for election purposes. “Honest Abe’s’’ docket said it was §8.25, while “Honost Abe” in his unofficial capacity—which capacity happens occasionally—is reported as saying it was §6.00. We confess our inability to unravel this tangle, and suggest that a conference be held in the matter and have an understanding about it, then all could tell the same story. A conference w’as called at one time between some of these parties to this sad affair. Bro. Marshall and Bro. Clark, and possibly others, were present. Some affidavits were signed and mutual explanations made that at the time seemed to have a very pacific effect on Bro. Clark, since which time Bro. Clark has conformed as nearly as possible to Bro. Marshall’s view’s on all subjects. Bro. Clark, who at that time was worshipping false goths and affiliating with the “measly populists,” had been railing at Bro. Marshall and accused him of all manner of crimes of omission and commission, but at the time of the conference before mentioned the matters in dispute were amicably and mutually settled upon a basis which insured permanent peace and a mutual agreement on all questions at issue, and, judging from appearances, perfectly satisfactory—to Bro. Marshall. In the campaign just closed it (the self-alleged democrat) labored more especially for the success of the democratic state ticket, while The Democrat devoted its sole efforts to secure the success only of such officials as would have patronage to bestow. —The self-al-leged democrat The writer has always contended, even long before locating at Rensselaer, that this self-alleged ■democrat and his beastly sheet : had acted like a millstone around the neck of the democrt« y o! Jar per county for a great many yea - and that with a true and fearless representative of the party at the county seat, the county would soon be in the democratic column, where it properly belongs, and would so remain so long as that party truly and fearlessly represented the cause of the people. The Democrat labored zealously for the success of the whole democratic ticket—botl county, district and state—in th< late campaign, arid the result of

its honest and earnest efforts was apparent where its circulation was the largest—in Carpenter and Wheatfield townships—where phenominal gains were made in the entire ticket. Had its truths been placed before every voter in the county the results would have been even more sweeping, and not a solitary candidate on the republican district or county ticket would have carried the county, and even the majority on the state 'ticket would have been greatly reduced over that cf two years before. Admitting, for argument sake, that the self-alleged democrat's statement above is true, the fact that the republicans gained 51 on the state ticket throughout the county is not very complimentary to that fossilized individual nor his valetudinarian sheet

Now 1. the time to sahscribe for “The Democrat,” the only paprr that has the courage to publish court house afiairs as they really exist. All that is required to make Jasper couuty democratic in ipoo is to place “The Democ.at” in the hands of every man opposed to the court bouse ring. $i»oo a year in advance.

HUNTING WITHOUT A GUN. Kodak Fiend Sava His Instrument la Better Than a Rifle. Not long ago I attended a dinner given by the Campfire club, and there I found ranged around the table an array of veteran hunters. There were men there who had hunted the royal Bengal tiger in the jungles of India, men who had fought with rogue elephants, men who had followed the lions to their dens in Africa, men who had tracked the white bear to its lair in the far frozen north. There were gentlemen who hunted for pleasure, there were cowboys and scouts — “Wolf’ Thompson, the hunter, naturalist and artist; “Curio” Brown, the naturalist and collector, who drew first blood in the late war with the wild blaek men of Africa; “Yellowstone” Kelly, the American scout, frontiersman and Indian fighter, and many others equally well known in the forests or on the plains were seated at the big round table. That they all were the simon-pure real sportsmen could be seen at a glance, and yet, when the after-din-ner speeches were made, the sentiments which received the most enthusiastic applause were those which denounced the killing of man or beast. It could be readily seen that these men only used the gun when it was necessary to procure food or in selfdefense. I think that, without exception, they all indorsed the use of the camera for the hunt in placeof the murderous gun, as one of them remarked: “With a kodak every good shot is registered with the click of the shutter, and an album of good shots is a thing to be the proud possessor of.”—Harper’s Round Table.