Jasper County Democrat, Volume 9, Number 50, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 March 1907 — ATTEMPT TO OUST TRUSTEE HUSTON. [ARTICLE]

ATTEMPT TO OUST TRUSTEE HUSTON.

An attempt is beipg made to declare the office of township trustee in Milroy vacant and oust Trustee Huston, democrat, from office. A petition was gotten- up by interested parties and filed with the auditor last Friday, signed by some 35 of the probable 85 voters of said township, declaring said office vacant and asking that a trustee be appointed. Mr. Leatherman acted on the petition and appofbted Geo. L. Parks, republican, trustee, who went to Branson Clark’s, where Mr. Huston has been keeping his office of late, and through misrepresentation and threats of prosecution, it is said, got possession of the township books, but Mr. Huston still has the township funds in his possession, and while orders have been given the bank not to pay out any money on his checks, they will not pay out anything on Mr. Parks’ checks. Mr. Huston, it will be remembered, traded most of his Milroy land—he still has some 40 acres there —for a store building and stock of merchandise in Perrysburg, Miami county, and has gone there temporarially to look after same until he can sell or trade off said property. He has held his regular office days in his township and has personally looked after all matters of said township the same as if here all the time. The fact that the democrats have 7 of the 13 trustees and that a county superintendent is to be elected in June, shows the motive in getting a republican in place of Mr. Huston. The facts in the case are said to have been misrepresented to some of those who signed the petition, a few cf whom are democrats, and they do not like the way the matter stands. E. P. Honan and Geo. E. Hershman of this city and E. B. Sellers of Monticello have been retained in the case to represent Mr. Huston, and quo-warranto proceedings were filed yesterday to straighten the matter out. Later —The banks, after taking counsel in the matter, are honoring Mr. Huston’s checks and he is making his settlement with the school teachers and others having claims against the township in so far as it is possible to transact business without all of his regular township bookß. He naturally resents the attempt to throw him out of office without being heard in the matter at all and the taking of his books from his office, leaving him nothing to make a settlement with the advisory board, even had he wanted to get rid of the office, which he did not and had no intention of resigning, although it is alleged that such reports were circulated to secure signatures to the petition, which some of the siguers understood was merely to have Parks appointed if Huston resigned, and not to declare the office vacant.