Jasper County Democrat, Volume 18, Number 17, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 June 1915 — Page 1

Jasper County Democrat.

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Kain Caused Postponement of Auto Races Until Monday.

Rain fell practically every day or night last week, and Friday we got an all day’s rain which continued throughout the night and a part of Saturday, stain also fell Saturday night and the early part of Sunday forenoon.

As a result of the continued downfall of water, comparatively few tourists passed through Rensselaer for the Decoration Day races at Indianapolis, which were scheduled to take place Saturday. But several braved the ■water and mud and their machines and the occupants thereof, especially in the unprotected runabouts, were a sight to behold. A few motorcyclists also drove through, and they were spattered with mud from head to foot. Many more people from Rensselaer and vicinity had intended taking in the races than ever before, but the rain and the condition of the roads kept several from going. The rain was quite general, both iu Chicago and Indianapolis, and as a result the speedway management Friday forenoon decided to postpone the races until Monday at 10 o’clock because of the condition of the grounds and the roads leading thereto. Quite a number of the tourists who went to Indianapolis Thursday and Friday, gave up in disgust or their funds ran low perhaps in some instances, and quite a number returned home through Rensselaer Saturday afternoon, Sunday and Monday, perhaps nearly 100 cars in all. Delos Thompson and party started Friday afternoon in Mr. Thompson’s big Marmon car, but on reaching Lafayette learned of the postponement of the races and left the car there returning home on the Monon. They left here again Sunday afternoon for Lafayette and from there drove through to Indianapolis. Frank Hill, Jr., also left Friday afternoon in his Chevrolet car, accompanied by Jim Rhoades, Earl Hemphill and Harry Moore. Frank and Harry returned home Sunday, saying that it rained in Indianapolis most of the day and they thought it likely when they left the races would again be postponed. Jim Rhoades and Earl Hemphill went to Martinsville to visit the former’s father, C. W. Rhoades who is taking treatment there and expected to return home by train Sunday night. The weather clearing up, however, they staid over for the races, which were held Monday. Among others from Rensselaer attending the races, driving through via auto, were: Mrs. H. F. Parker and guest, Miss Clare Rife of Perry, lowa, with Hugh Kirk as chauffeur; Max Kepnem, “Frenchy” Deschand, G. H. McLain, C. E. Garver, Art Battleday, Harve Hemphill, Dr. Turfler, Delos Thompson, wife and daughter, Lois, Mrs. Ora T. Ross and guest, Mrs. Lawrence, of Ann Arbor, Mich., Harry Milner, Amil Hanley, William G. Richardson, Jake Moore, O. K. Rainier, Dr. C. E. Johnson, E. L. Fidler, Andrew Gangloff, Jr., C. P. Fate and Firman Thompson. A few of the above went via rail, but most of them drove through.

Weather Interferred With Memorial Day Exercises.

j The bad condition of the roads and the rain Sunday morning interfered considerably with the Memorial Day exercises and also with the crowd in attendance, although there was a very good turn-out considering this fact. The speaking was held at the Christian church and the address by Attorney George A. Williams was highly spoken of by those who were fortunate enough to hear it. The graves of the departed comrades were decorated during the forenoon, and no exercises'* were held at the cemetery in the afternoon as intended. The procession was formed at the court house square and marched to the Christian church. There were thirty-four old soldiers in line, also members of several of the secret and fraternal orders. The exercises were all held at the church. After the speaking the Rensselaer band gave a patriotic and sacred concert from the court house steps, which was greatly enjoyed by a large number of people, the afternoon being quite pleasant and the sun shining for the first time in nearly a week.

Ice Cream Social. There will be an ice cream social at Egype school house Thursday eve ning. Everyone invited. —Advt.

COURT HOUSE NEWS IN BRIEF

Interesting Paragraphs From the Various Departments OF JASPER COUNTY CAPITOL The Legal News Epitomized—Together With Other Notes Gathered From the Several County Offices. Commissioners’ court will convene Monday for the regular June session. There were only four marriage licenses issued for the month of May, with six for the corresponding month of 1914, and twelve for the preceding month. County Treasurer Fell spent Monday in Remington and visited hik 8 farm at that place. He reports a very large croW’d out to the memorial exercises there.

O. G. Barrett, former county agent in Jasper county, has been employed in a like capacity since Feb. 1 in Steuben county, and his work is spoken of very highly there. John O’Connor is circulating a petition among the residents of his part of the city asking the county commissioners to raise the smoke stack at the heating plant and also to use a smokeless coal to overcome the smoke nuisance in that neighborhood. The annual commencement of the Jordan township public schools will be held at Mt. Hope church in that township on Friday evening, June 4, at 8 o’clock. There are four graduates: Jennie Sage, Edith Fenwick, Evelyn Michael and Mabel Ethel Blake. Prof. Lee L. Driver will deliver the address.

C. M. Sands lias been appointed administrator of the estate of the late Charles Fish, who died recently of heart disease at the home of Emmet Pullins in Barkley tp., where he was employed. In looking over his effects Mr. Sands found an old bank book showing a balance of $53 to Fish’s credit in the First National Bank of Lisbon, N. D. Mr. Fish left enough property to pay his funeral expenses. Mr. Sands is seeking to locate a sister of decedent, Mary Fish, who left Jasper county some thirtyone years ago.

Promotor O. L. Brown of the socalled proposed Lafayette & Northwestern Railroad, has succeeded in his action brought in the White circuit court, in having the charter of the old Indiana Northwestern Trac tion Co., (Purtelle’s corporation) annulled, and that company has now gone the way of many of its predecessors. It is said that Brown will now endeavor to have a subsidy election called in Marion township and Rensselaer, on the old petition filed here for the April meeting of the county commissioners.

At a special meeting of the Newton county council last week, an appropriation of $3,500 was made , to pay Newton county’s share of a joint bridge over the Iroquois river on the county line between Jasper and Newton, made necessary by the dredging of the river, but $3,500 asked for for five new bridges in north Newton was turned down, as it was shown that it would be necessary to borrow money or to issue bonds if the appropriation was made, the county fund having been practically exhausted for this year by the drain:, made upon it.

The contested will case of Reginia Burris vs. George H. Gifford, executor of the estate of the late B. J. Gifford, which was to come up in the Newton circuit court yesterday, having been taken to that county from Jasper by the defense, was sent to Benton county Monday on a change of venue asked for by the plaintiff, and will probably not come up until the fall term of court there. About two score of witnesses had been summoned from this county to go to Kentland yesterday, but Sheriff McColly notified most of them Monday afternoon of the change and told

THE TWICE-A-WEEK

RENSSELAER, JASPER COUNTY, INDIANA, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 2, 1915

them that it would l/e unnecessary Jor them to go over. John P. Ryan of Gillam tp., was one of those not notified, and he came down yesterday expecting to haVe to go on over. He learned of the change of venue after reaching Rensselaer.

Advertising and Finance Committees Named—Plan Inspection Tour. A meeting was held at Lafayette Friday afternoon to further plans for boosting the air line route from Chicago to Indianapolis. E. P. Honan attended from Rensselaer, and W. L. Wood from Parr. A Lafayette paper says of the meeting: At the late afternoon session ol the boosters of the Chicago-Indian-apolis air line route yesterday a number of important actions were taken, including the decision to perpetuate the air line route and the appointment of advertising and finance committees. Newton county will be asked to name three commissioners to become a part of the Air Line association and the county will be asked to interest inself in the route. Representative Wood, of Jasper and White counties, was named a committee of one to extend the invitation. It was also decided to retain the marker of the route, “D. A.,” w r hich stands for “Dustless Air Line.’’ It is proposed to oil the entire route. On June 19 the various county commissioners, county road superintendents and township trustees along the line of the air line highway will be asked to make a trip over the entire road from Chicago to Indianapolis. As soon as possible the highway will be oiled. The advertising committee as appointed yesterday follows: Fred Coulter, Frankfort, chairman; Erwin Brown, Lebanon; Stewart Uhl, Wolcott; C. G. Spitler, Rensselaer; D. M. Boyle, Lafayette; Fred Ruff, Crown Point; Roscoe Woo/ls, Hammond, and G. H. Hillis, Fair Oaks. Among other plans suggested for the advertising of the highway was the publishing of a pamphlet and trip slips which give a log of the road in either direction. Ed P. Honan of Rensselaer, is Chairman of the new finance committee. The other members are as follows: Virgil Buntin, Lebanon; T. A. Ryan, Frankfort; Carroll Woods, Hammond; Charles Jones, Wolcott; Dr. C. M. Rice, Roselawn; George D. Franklin was named treasurer of the organization.

Lee M. E. Church to Have a New Piano.

A committee from the Lee M. E. church composed of Joseph Stewart, Mesdanies J. H. Culp, O. E. Noland, D. A. Jacks, W. L. Stiers, Alvin Clark and Miss Lural Anderson, were in Renselaer yesterday morning to see our piano dealers regarding the purchase of a new piano for their church. On invitation of Mr. Stewart, who didn’t want to be the only homely man among so .many good looking women, J. H. Culp was brought along for ballast. The committee also drove to Monticello the same afternoon to see what they could do there, as they went to get the best they can for their money.

Rev. Fr. Krull Preaches Consecration Sermon.

Rev. V. H. Krull, C. PP. S., of Collegeville, was at Ft. Wayne Sunday where he delivered the consecration sermons at St. Mary’s Catholic church Sunday morning, one in English and one in German. A large number of the clergy from other pbints were present, including Rev. Alexander Linnenman, C. PP. S., of St. Joseph College. Rt. Rev. Bishop Herman J. Alerding conducted the venerable rite of consecration, local and visiting priests assisting. Father Krull also preached the evening sermon at the closing of the May devotions at St. Peter’s cnurch Sunday evening.

Little Child Mangled by Hogs.

The slightly more than year old baby of Mr. and Mrs. Peter Baier, living northeast of town, had one of its fingers completely chewed off and its arm badly bitten and lacerated by a hog last week. The baby was in the barnlot, and had stuck its arm through the fence into the hog lot with the above result. Medical attention was immediately Summoned and the injury dressed, but from the nature of the injury it will undoubt-t edly prove to be a very sore and painful one, and it is fortunate that the little one was found as soon at it was.—Remington Press.

Attention Rensselaer High School , Alumni. The Rensselaer High School Alumni banquet will be aeld at the armory on the evening of June 4, 1915, at 6:30 o’clock. Tickets can be procured from Carl Duvall, treasurer, at Duvall’s clothing store. Please procure them as soon as possible.^—Advt.

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Robert Vohdersimth Buried at Kentland Yesterday.

Mr. and Mrs. C. P. Wright and sons, Don and Zern and his wife and little daughter, and W. J. Wright, attended the funeral yesterday at Kentland of Robert Vondersmith of Grant Park, 111., whose remains were brought back to his former home for burial. Mr. Vondersmith conducted a restaurant at Grant Park, and died suddenly of heart trouble in his place of business Saturday morning, only his youngest son, Allen, being with him at the time. Mr. Vondersmith was 66 years of age and leaves a wife and three sons, Archie, Ross and Allen. His aged mother, Mrs. E. B. Vondersmith of Bluffton, who is visiting here at present with her daughter, Mrs. C. P. Wright, was unable to attend the funeral;

Commencement Week Program.

Last night the Senior Class Play, “The Naked Truth,’’ was repeated at Ellis theater, and tonight the Juniors Reception will be held at the Armory. Tomorrow night the commencement proper will be held at the high school auditorium. The alumni banquet Friday night at the Armory will close the functions, and Rensselaer's’ls graduating class of 41 students will have been started out on the road to fame and fortune in the most approved manner. The Democrat hopes they may each be successful in winning both.

Another Old Settler of Newton County.

Mrs. W. F. Corbin of Brook, who has resided in Newton county for 79 years, writes the following interesting letter to the Morocco Courier: I was born in Fountain county, November 15, 1835. In the spring of 1836 I moved with my parents to Newton county, Indiana. We settled just north of the Iroquois river in a one-room cabin which my father had built on a previous trip. This cabin was of rough logs and the one room did service as a kitchen. dining room and bedroom until later when a more elaborate addition of hewn logs was built. We children attended school about three months in the year across the river in what is now the White neighborhood. There were no roads and we followed what we called an old Indian trail crossing the river to and from school in a canoe when there was no ice to cross on.

Our school house, like all other buildings of the time, was built of logs with rough puncheon floors. Our desks were “benches made of slabs in a circle around the fire place which was in one end of the room. One higher bench answered the purpose of all pupils when they wished to write. ' There were no church buildings, but services were hejd around in the different homes. My father broke up some prairie raising principally corn and flax. We made our clothing from flax and wool from our sheep. In corn planting time, father harrowed out the fields, we girls dropped the corn and the boys covered it by the use of hoes. Later we moved some distance north from the timber but I lived within two miles of our first location until the fall of ’93, since which time I have lived in Brook.

Dance at Virgie Saturday Night, June 5.

There will be a dance at Reed’s Hall at Virgie, Saturday night, June 5. This is the first dance there for this season and a large crowd is expected. Everybody come and enjoy youi-self. The music will be furnished by the Neirgarten Orchestra of Remington.—JOHN REED, Prop.

GENERAL AND STATE NEWS

Telegraphic Reports From Maoy Parts of the Country. ' ... ' • , •• .-i • .. • , • SHORT BITS OF THE UNUSUAL Happenings in the Nearby Cities and Towns—Matters of Minor Mention From Many Places. ■'*; •** * * * * * * * « * VONBERNSTORFF TO SEE * + PRESIDENT WILSON TODAY * * First \ isit of German Ambassador * * With President Since Exchange * of Notes May Mean Rift * in Relations. * * Washington, May 31. —Presi- * * dent Wilson has granted a ro- * * quest of Count Vonßernstorff. * * the German ambassador, for an * * interview at the White House * * Wednesday afternoon. It is un- * * derstood that the ambassador de- * * sires to discuss discussions pend- * * ing between his country and the * * United States.... ♦

* Announcement of the arrange- * * ment for the ambassador’s visit* ♦was made at the White House* * late today. It will be the first • * time Count Bernstorff has seen * * the President since the negotia- * * tions over violations of American * * rights in the Avar zone began.' * * Persons who have been in close * * touch with the situation believe • * that the visit indicates a rift in * * relations between the United * * States and Germany. * * President Wilson intends to so * * shape the course of the United * * States government in tfie 'inter- * * national crisis which has arisen * .* as to leave no doubt abroad of * * the country’s purpose not only to * * speak, but If necessary to act, * * for the cause of humanity. * * The tense situation produced * * by the receipt of an unyielding * * reply from Germany to the re- * * quest of the United States for re- * * paratiqn for the 100 American * * lives lost in the sinking of the * * Lusitania and guarantees against * * the destruction of American lives * * or property in the future over- * shadowed the Mexican problem, as • * well as all other governmental * * activities today. * * Tomorrow the President will * * lay before the cabinet both ques- * * tions. The effect of the warning * *to Mexico, the President hopes, * * >vill be the coalition within the * * next few weeks of the best ele- * * ments in the southern republic* * to form a provisional government * *to Avhich the United States and * * other countries can accord early * * recognition. *

GERMAN REPLY DISAPPOINTING

United States to Stand by Submarine Demands—Wilson to Insist On Every Point of His Protest. Germany’s reply to the American note growing out of the sinking of the Lusitania, reached Washington Sunday night and was made public in the newspapers the following day. The reply is unsatisfactory and disappointing and it is believed that President Wilson will frankly tell the German government so.

Germany justifies the sinking of the Lusitania, saying that the liner carried guns mounted and concealed below decks. It withholds final decision of the demands of the United States in Conection with the sinking of the Lusitania until the receipt, of an answer from this government" to the German reply to the charge that the Lusitania carried guns. It is understood that the boat was thoroughly examined just before it sailed by officers of this government and no guns were on the ship.

In its reply the German government declares that it is not its intention to submit neutral in the war zone, which are guilty of no hostile acts, to attacks by submarine or aeroplane; that it is investigating the circumstances in conection with the attacks on the American steamers Cushing and Gulflight, and that in all cases where neutral vessels, through, no fault of their own, have been damaged, Germany will pay indemnification. The reply urges that in the case of

Vol. XVIII,'No. 17

* KOI It CARS BREAK RECORDS *

* DejPalnm Wins 500 Mile Antonio- * * bile Rare in 5 Hours, * * Minutes. * * Indianapolis, June I. —Break- • * ing all records for 500 miles, ♦ * Ralph DePalma in a Mercedes, * * won the fifth annual Speedway * * automobile classic in the remark- ♦ ♦able time of 5:33, an average of * * 59.54 miles an hour. Dario Resta, * *in a Peugeot, finished second, * * with Stutz cars driven by Gil An- * * derson and Earl Cooper, respect- * * ively, third and fourth. All of * * these ears smashed the marks * * which were made by Rene * * Thomas, winner of the 1914 con- * * test, who finished in 5: 03, for an * * average of 82.47 miles an hour. * * The driving of DePalma was * sensational. He had the courage, * 1 stamina and ability and he sent * * his high-powered racer careening * * over the brick surface at a speed * * which left most, of his competi- * * tors far in the rear. * * Fifty thousand people witness- ♦ * ed the race, w r bich is said to have * * been the best ever held on the ♦ * Indianapolis speedway. There ♦ * were no accidents of any kind. ♦

the Lusitania, which Germany alleges was armed and carried large stores of war munitions, it was “acting in justified self-defense in seeking with all the means of warfare at its disposition to protect the lives of its soldiers by destroying ammunition intended for the enemy.” The German government recalls the proposals submitted by the United States government to Berlin and London, designed to end the submarine warfare and the shutting out of food supplies from Germany, which, it declares, failed of their purpose because of the refusal of the British government to agree to them.

Press dispatches giving the text of the reply came during Sunday evening and were sent to the White House. The official text from Ambessador Gerard arrived just before midnight and was placed before the Monday.

From a previous knowledge of President Wilson’s position, it is generally predicted that a prompt answer would be sent to Berlin, perhaps within 24 to 48 hours. This is expected to give the American government’s understanding of the facts —that the Lusitania was unarmed and carried no concealed guns; that she sailed from the United States a peaceful merchantman, and that under all rules of international law and humanity the vessel should have been visited and searched and her passengers transferred to a place of safety whether she carried ammunition or not.

American law does not prohibit ammunition from being carried on passenger ships, it will be asserted, but only self-exploding material, and liners in the past have been permitted to carry arms and ammunition by special ruling of the state department on the meaning of federal statutes.

Germany’s failure even to discuss the reparation demanded by the American note, and evasion of the request that guarantees be given that American vessels and lives be not endangered in the future, are the main points, however, which the United States government, it is generally believed, would advert in the second note. The expressions of regret and offers of reparation for unintentional attacks on neutral ships are expected to have little weight in determining the nature of the response of the United States.

Farmers in Flood Regions to Replant Corn Fields.

Petersburg, Ind., May 81.—Farmers in the Patoka river bottoms, who lost their entire corn crops in the recent overflow, are making arrangements to replant their fields as soon as the ground is dry enough. The cloudy weather prevented much of the corn from cooking after the water receded and the damage is not as large as first estimated. The loss in the White river bottoms is small compared to the immense acreage. Both rivers are receding and farmers believe that the danger is past.

Wall Paper Cleaned. 1 am prepared to clean your Wall paper, whether you live in town or the country. Satisfaction guaranteed. Phone 437.—W. A. DAVENPORT.