Jasper County Democrat, Volume 2, Number 48, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 March 1900 — Page 4 Advertisements Column 2 [ADVERTISEMENT]

If Mr. Frick would tell us something about the size of Carnegie’s corruption fund during the armor plate contract days, the country would be grateful.. Why not establish a department of Exterior —one to have charge of Alaska, Arizona, Porto Rico, the District of Columbia and other territory “outside the Constitution.”? A great (?) victory for British arms has been attained in the South African war. Lord Roberts with 50,000 trained British troops and ship loads of artillery has, after ten days fighting, captured Gen. Cronje’s gallant band of less than 4,000 Boer soldiers! And now it developes that the conquered Boer soldiers will be exchanged for British prisoners of war of which the Boers held at last accounts 193 officers and 2,669 men. Representative Richardson, the democratic leader in the House has, by a new resolution, added the steel trust to the sugar trust, the paper trust, the tin trust, an the oil trust, the products of which previous resulutions authorize the Interstate Commerce Commission to prohibit the transportation of an Intersate Transportion lines whenever they have knowledge that the prices asked for the goods produce profit in excess of 4 per cent, on the actual capital invested in the trust which controls them.

The “middle-of-the-road” populists held a convention at Indianapolis last week and nominated A. G. Burkhart for governor, C. M. Walters for lieutenant governor, etc. By the way, this same identical C. M. Walters was in Rensselaer a few weeks ago for the purpose of re-organizing the middle-of-the-roaders, as he stated. He went to the editor of one of the republican papers here to get the names of populists whom it would be advisable for him to go and see! Strange, wasn’t -it? Why didn’t he go to some populist? J)o you see the point, middle-of4he-road-ers? Whose money pays Walters for “middle-of-the-road” work? Indianapolis has been named as the place and Sept. 5, as the time for holding the National Convention of the Association of Democratic Clubs, by the Executive Committee of the Association. At the same meeting the resignation of Hon. Chauncey F. Black, of Pa., as President of the Association, and of Representative Sibley, of Pa., as a member of the executive committee, were accepted. The new president will not be announced until April 13th, Jefferson Day, when the Association will give a big banquet in Washington. Gov. Benton McMillin, of Tenn., Chairman of the Executive Committee, will act as President until then.

The clique of real estate speculators, who are after a big wad of Uncle Sam’s money, in exchange for the south side of Pennsylvania Avenue, which notwithstanding its being a quagmire in which no solid foundation for a large building can be had without driving piles through thirty or forty feet of mud, they have been talking up as just the place to locate future public buildings, received an unexpected check when the Washington Centennial Committee came out strong for the projected Federal Avenue, from the Capitol to the proposed Memorial bridge to Arlington, over the Mall, upon which all future Federal buildings shall be located. The Mall is owned by the government and there would be no pickings in the erection of buildings by the government ujion its own ground.

Suits will be brought against ex-Treasurer Sterling R. Holt (gold bug democrat), and William II Schmidt, (republican) of Maron county, to recover over SIOB,OOO which the experts’ report shows that these gentlemen have illegally retained during their terms of office. These cases are in addition to those already having been brought against other county officials on like charges. In the latter cases the county attorney, (republican) seems to be very favorably inclined toward the thrifty officials, and has placed a peculiar construction on the law as laid down for the guidance of county officers which, in the county attorney's opinion, lets these two officials out. This construction, by tire way, is contrary to the statutes and to decision after decision of the supreme court, but this usually cuts no figure where an officer who is elected to enforce the laws wishes to let some of the big thieves escape. Others, however, have taken the matter up, and it is said that the suits will be brought in the name of an individual taxpayer.