Jasper County Democrat, Volume 8, Number 18, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 July 1905 — LAW MEANS WHAT IT SAYS. [ARTICLE]

LAW MEANS WHAT IT SAYS.

County Officers Must Advertise in ths Two Leading Newspapers. Winamac, Ind., July 24. —In the injunction suit brought on behalf of the Winamac Republican against tbe auditor of Pulaski county, the plaintiff was granted a temporary restraining order, directed against Ellis Rees, county auditor. The decision is of interest to party newspapers in the State. The county auditor is Democratic in politics. He took exceptions to editorial criticism concerning the management of county affairs, and, as alleged, in order to punish C. W Riddick, editor of the republican, he withdrew tbe official printing from that newspaper. He then entered into an arrangement with a nonpartisan newspaper, published in the county, whereby, as still further alleged, that newspaper began supporting the Republican ticket, and publicatidns as required by law were transferred from the Republican to its columns. LAW PERMITS NO DISCRIMINATION. In upsetting this arrangement, the court held that tbe law requiring publications of county notices in two leading newspapers was not for the purpose of patronizing those two newspapers, but it was intended to secure the widest publicity possible of the county publications. No discretion was permitted to the county auditor to make publication save as plainly provided by law, in the two leading newspapers, representing the two dominant parties. In Jasper county the republican office-holders have generally taken tbe position that they could inter-

pret the law to suit and place this printing where it would “do the most good” to themselves. They have yet to learn that laws are made—in some instances, at least —to be obeyed. A paper entitled to this printing should not be made subservient to the officer whose duty it is to make the publications r if it hopes to receive it.