Jasper County Democrat, Volume 3, Number 21, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 September 1900 — SHORTAGE $176,000. [ARTICLE]

SHORTAGE $176,000.

Experts In Shelby County Will Soon Make Beport of Steals Made From the County Treasury. Democrat readers are familiar with much of the official corruption in Shelby county through reports published in these columns. Shelby county, it will be remembered, has been as ‘‘reliably democratic” as Jasper county has been “reliably republican” for many years, and, as is nearly always the case where one political party has been in power for many years, where a nomination was equivalent to an election, by reason of a large majority in their favor, a strong political ring grew up about the court house which dictated to all public officers what they must do and what they must not do, while the ring and its friends fattened at the public crib. This thing finally became unbearable, and the honest democrats of the county went about to have an investigation of the dishonest democrats who held the offices. As a result one of the ex-treasurers and another ex-official are now serving the state at Michigan City, convicted by democratic juries while the editor of the “official apologist” of that county and several other ringsters are now under indictment and will be tried at the October term of court. The experts have been at work for several months. A Shelbyville dispatch, in Saturday’s papers, says of the investigation:

“The experts who have been working on the auditor’s and treasurer’s books since March 12 of this year have concluded their work, but of course refuse to give it out for publication. Two books had disappeared, one from the auditor’s ancTioneTrorfTthe" treasurer’soffice, wittr the outgoing officers. These books have been duplicated as nearly as possible, and the aggregate of shortage ascertained. It can be asserted on reliable authority that the total shortage, as shown by the experts’report, is (one hundred and seventy-six thousand dollars) §176,000. But the amounts short in the various funds will not be known until the report by the experts is made to the commissioners at their meeting on the first Monday in September. The experts are now busy preparing their report, specifying the amount of shortage in each fund. ‘‘The shortage mentioned will very probably be reduced to the extent of onethird or a little more, when credits are given for canceled warrants from June 1, 1898, to June 30, 1899. These warrants at the same time the books were taken. The stubsof these warrants are still on hand, but it will be necessary to summon every person in whose favor a warrant was issued to ascertain whether the warrants have been paid or not before crediting t'he shortgage. The stubs are nc evidence of payment, but of issue only. It is also claimed by some of the friends of the delinquent county officers that these warrants, could they be produced, would also show the payment of other indebtedness to the amount of #20,000 or more. The taxpayers are quietly waiting for the full and complete report of the experts, and feel satisfied that the present county commissioners made n » mistake in having the matter thoroughly investigated, and that they will leave nothing undone that will tend to bring all the guilty parties to justice. Indictments are now pending against George M, Ray, manager of the Democrat; Adam A. Girton, William Arabs and James L. Cherry, three of the commissioners, and E. T. Carson, the auditor, who were in office at the time the shortage was made. The treasurer, J. M. Wilson, is now serving time at the Michigan City Prison. A. T. Chueden and his brother, Herman Chueden, are also indicted and will be tried at the next term of court, which convenes the first Monday in October."

The American workingman wants a full dinner pail of course. But in the first place he knows that to get the full dinner pail he has got to put in the full day’s work and that he will owe the contents of the dinner pail to his own sweat and muscle, and to no plutocrat’s kind heart. In the second place he remembers that the negro slaves had “a full dinner pail.” Their masters saw to that. The negro was expected to bow and cringe before the man who filled his stomach, The workman today does not propose to trade his independence and the nation’s future for that “full stomach” which could not even keep the negro pacified.—Chicago American.