Jasper County Democrat, Volume 8, Number 28, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 October 1905 — CASE OF JUDGE BIKER [ARTICLE]

CASE OF JUDGE BIKER

“Higher education” is now getting in its work, and one cannot pick up a daily paper but there are from one to a dozen football accidents, many of them fatal. By the way, we wonder if Trustee Chapman has ever collected that over-draft of the Jasper County Republican Central Committee, that was exposed after the McCoy bank failed? Tbos. Purman has been sentenced to five years in the Ohio prison for stealing a bag of grain. He made a mistake in stealing the grain without first getting a membership in the Chicago Board of Trade. Having heard what a young man with a bogus check did to a New York banker, it is not surprising that Cassie Chadwick should feel a feverish desire to be set free again in this world of glorious opportunities. David B. Hill says that Judge Parker while managing the democratic state campaign in New York, “never passed his hat to Mr. McCall.’ r No “ordinary hat” would hold the size of contributions usually made by Mr. McCall. Mr. Folk’s stirring battle cry in' Missouri, “Thou shalt not steal,” has been appropriately adopted by the Philadelphia reformers in their present municipal campaign. Somehow it never gets outgrown, and its first use was somewhere in the mists of antiquity. “Money must be returned or the New York Life must get out of Missouri,” says the State Superintendent of Insurance of that state, in a oommuuic ttiou to the officials of that company. The cash contributed to certain campaignes will have to be replaced according to the pronunciamento of Folk’s appointee, in a scathring arraignment of 'McCall's company and the methods of the insuranoe magnates to help boom the politicians. Good for old “Mizzoo.”

And the Mutual Life Insurauee company of New York also contributed liberally to the republican corruption fund! Fifteen thousand dollars in 1896, $35,000 in 1900 and $40,000 in 1904. Ye gods! What do the democrats who are policy holders in these rascally insurance companies think of this? It savors of the McCoy dealings in this county, where funds of democrats were used to swell the republican campaign fund—democrats furnishing money to fight themselves! Our ex-Senator, E. H. Woloott of Wolcott, is, in a way, mixed up in the defalcation of ex-Auditor of State Davis E. Sherrick. The Hooeier Oil Co., of which Mr. Wolcott is president, director or something, gave Sherrick a note for fifteen thousand dollars for money received from him, and the note is endorsed by several gentlemen, including Mr. Wolcott Bnit waa threatened by] the attorney general unless the note was paid. Through the effort of of Mr.jWolcottfa payment of $4,000 haa been made on this note and a few days more time will be given on the balanoe. The note iff referred toby the Indianapolis papers as “the Wolobtt note.

It is said that them are 6,000,000 life insurance policy holders in this country. And most of them haven’t a word to say. It is estimated that it will take five years to try all the Milwaukee officials who have been indicted for grafting. At last reports, none of the officials had protested against the law’s delays. * The sheriff’s sale of the personal property of Frank Obenchain, defaulting treasurer of Cass oounty, on Saturday brought only $1,600.79. The appraised value was $24,572. The much exploited Mannington, W. Va., oil stock went to Judge John C. Nelson on a bid of $225 for the 1500 shares. This was the stock which it was said would sell for enough to pay the entire shortage of Obenchain, and it lacked only about $60,000 of doing so.

Why the Civil Service Commission Has Referred It to the Jurists. HE ADVISES POSTOFFCE CLERKS Am to the Matter of Campaign Contributions Fairbanks vs. Beveridge— Items. Indianapolis, Oct. 13. A dispatch from Washington gives a synopsis of the report of the civil service commission in the matter of the charge against Judge Baker, of this state, that he has been violating the civil service law. The dispatch says that the report of the commission says in part: “The civil service commission, through Commissioner Greene, conducted an examination in a charge of a violation of the civil service act, by the collection of illegal assessments at Goshen, Ind. Judge Advises a Clerk. “In the course of this investigation Guy C. Boulton, a clerk In the postoffice at Goshen, testified that he was sent during office hours in the fall of 1902 by Assistant Postmaster Alderman to visit Francis E. Baker, Judge of the United States circuit court of appeals for the Seventh circuit; that he was told by Judge Baker that it was to Ids interest to keep in power tlie servant of the party to which Boulton owed his appointment, and that even If witness was in the civil service his superior would give him trouble In case of a change of administration. Corroborated by Two Others. “lie also was told that Judge Baker l»aid liberally himself for political purposes, and that clerks in the service usually gave 5 per cent, of their salary, with other statements along the same line. In jiursuance of these suggestions from Judge Baker, Boulton afterward paid 5 per cent, of his salary, being S3O, to D. W. Neldlg, chairman of the Republican county committee. I.a Mar Croop, also a clerk in the Goshen i>oatoffice, and Martin Sehnur, another clerk, testified to being soliciting by Judge Baker to contribute S ]>cr cent, of their salary, and that the postmaster advanced them money to do so. Not Denied by the Judge. “This testimony was presented to Judge Baker, a ltd without going Into the details of conversation, the fact* stated by the above witnesses were admitted by him to be true."