Jasper County Democrat, Volume 12, Number 85, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 February 1910 — BUT WHY LIBEL THE OTHERS? [ARTICLE]

BUT WHY LIBEL THE OTHERS?

' If, as the Republican erroneously states, The Democrat editor had commenced personal attacks on the publishers of that paper, or has said anything about them in any way which is untrue, what excuse has It for libeling such men as exSheriff O’Connor, George Stembel, Harvey and Grant Davisson, C. A. Lefler, Marion I. Adams, Frank Welsh and Robert J. Yeoman, tne other eight directors of the Home Telephone Co., by charging them with attempted graft, in connection with the Republican’s efforts to defeat the granting of a franchise to said company? Each of these gentlemen have excellent grounds for both criminal and civil actions against the Republican owners, and it is not unlikely that some of the cases at least will be pressed, as a matter of fact “Babcock” had nothing whatever to do with the franchise in Rensselaer and was not even on the committee appointed by President Yeoman to look after the matter. Neither did he ever attempt to bribe City Attorney Williams or to dictate to him what the franchise ordinance should or should not contain, or say anything to him about it at all. All of which makes the wholly false charges of the Republican the more reprehensible.