Pike County Democrat, Volume 28, Number 17, Petersburg, Pike County, 3 September 1897 — Page 1

ffljc pike Comitn democrat. VOL. XXVIII. PETERSBURG, IND.. FRIDAY. SEPTEMBER 3. 1897. NO. 17

NATURAL GAS PUNT Work Commenced on the Plant Monday Morning. Will Take About Six Weeks to Pipe the Town. A Large Foree of Mm Employed Aloi.tr ^lie Line*. Vrlrr.burg ( illirH. W til 111. Joy (.rintr.l fuel. Monday morning the work of putting in the natural gas plant for the Petersburg mining ana Manufacturing as*Nation was Wgun. Tlie first lick with the pick on the trenches was struck at the Jumbo c«* well ami the large force of men liegan extending tin* work a.ong to the foot of Walnut strett, where will l«e located the regulator houu. From there the line extends up Main to Fifth street, where it branches out to either Mile to the alleys and thence through the alleys parallel with Main street. The sublines will branch out to all the streets of the towii. The mains are first laid along the route • i;J t'.tt*d tight.y, the trem-h is due, ami then the line tested to see that there is no leak ace of gas. I* iher* >hoiild lv a leakage it is at once calked up wuh lead and in de perfect. The line is then placed in

the trench and dirt replaced. It requires a great deal of expert work to put in a natural gas plant, as every joint of pipe must fit perfectly tight. Mr. E. T. Warner, the natural gas expert, is superintending the work of putting in the plant. He thoroughly understands the work having had a number of years experience in building natural gas plants. Monday morning about thirtT five men were at work digging trenches and putting the tubing together, and Tuesday the force was increased, and by next week there will be about seventy-five men employed. Little was it .thought a year ago that the citizens of Petersburg would ever enjoy natural gas as a fuel, but a company was organised for the purpose of testing this locality and on March 30th last ♦.heir efforts proved successful and the company was honored with having the highest pressure gas well in-Indiana or for that matter in the I’nited States. The well was named Jcrubo and has a rock pressure of 583 pounds to the squary inch and volume enough to supply two or three towns the size of Petersburg. Every citizen of this city should be proud of the efforts and success of the company that has been so successful in developing natural ga>-at this }»oint and are now spending several thousand dollars putting in the natural gas plant. The gentlemen had the nerve to back the enterprise when it needed money to test the locality for natural gas. The conqtany is eonij*osed of the following directors and officers; A. II. Taylor, president; S. J. Haines, vice president; tij .1 N.» ):<>,>, treasurer; J. E. Schurz, seere-' tary; Jabez Woolley, Sr., general snperintendeiit; C. F. Boon shot, II. R. Snyder, T. K. Fleming, G. T. Frank, and J. E. Woolley. Itucklen's Arnica Salve. The l*o>? salve in thg world for cuts, bruise.-, sores, ulcers, salt rheum, fever s T»-s, tetter, chipped hands, chilblains, ' !y cures piles or no pay require)!. It is guaranteed *•» give perfect satisfaction or nioiiev refunded. Price 25 cents per. bo*. For sale by J. it. Adams & Son.

< i i I>i»l you ever set* the Mrs. Jane Hopkins' Suits for Boys, have them ui all colors ami kinds for ► We * i i i

poll ar)d Rioter ^ear They are stoutly made, |*rfeel fit til* tr. Pant> hkte elastic Vfti4 waist Hands, double scat »r*1 knee, hold-fast buttons and arc warranted ijot to rip. *>6EE THE PRICE8<? The Jane Hopkins Junior Suit, for ages 3 to 7, made in the latest •' style.. .... . #1 50 Child’s Double-Breasted Reefer Suit, for ages 5 to 8. in Blue Black and Brown Plaids.... .. I 75 Roy’s Ikmhle-Brefppcl Suits, for age- h to 15. all Woo) Novelty Plait I Cmiito .. ..... 2 48 Youth’s lbret*-pitve Suit, for ages 14 to Itt. all Wool Blue Gray Cheviot, well lined ..... ..... 8 98 MOTHERS^ We have a line of the Mrs. Jane llopkins make Knee Pants for Boy*, all fitted with elastic waist bands, double seat and knee: 25c buys a good pair, 5tk‘ a better pair..and 75c to $1.00 gets the best. The Jane Hopkins line includes Knee Pants forextra large boys. We have them in all the sixes. Remember to call for the Mrs. Jane Llopkins brand of Boy’s Suits and Knee Pants. Jane warrants them. Ybe St0r Cubing Heose' Clothiers and Furnishers. Petersburg, Ind. < ◄ ◄ i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i

OF INTEREST TO AIL. Some ofi&he Advantages of City and County. Some Suggestions as to Cycle Riding in the City. Reunion of the Corn Family at Augusta, Aagast21st. Many Other Itrui, of (icucral Inter* e*t to the Header. TOW \ tMI ( Ol >TY. Ha> Inj Ad«ntisf« to th« Maaufartartr and

Petersburg, the county sent of Pike, has a population of 2000 jieople, and might be properly called the “City of Homes,** as most of the residents own tbeir homes, whieh fact gin s a i>et mancncy to the town. The county buildings are well situated and make a splendid addition to the town. There are two large school buildings, one just being completed, thoroughly equipped to give a firstclass education. All the principal denominations have splendid church buildings which affords ail a choice as to where they shall worship. The city is not behind in point of progress. It has all the modern improvements, including a fine electric and incandescent nght plant, natural gas plant, which will be completed iu a few weeks, a splendid telephone exchange with long distance connection, and in the near future a -yst» m of water works will be put in. Two new railroads are now in prospect. The city i> moving ri-ht along and has a substantial and solid growth. Petersburg is one of the largest slopping points on the K. & I. railroad, and is situated midywy between the main line of the B. v\ U. S-VV. and Air Line railroads. By these systems of railroads the {temple of Pike county anti surrounding country are brought into close connection with the various resources of the county and an opjH>rtunity is given for shipping all surplus products. The mineral, timber and agricultural resources are simply wonderful. The present output from the coal mines in Pike county now in operalion alTortls more freightage for the railroads than three or four average agricultural counties of the state, lfc is estimated that on an average for the past few months more than 100 car loads of bituminous coal has been shipped daily from the various mines m this county. In addition to all this Pike' county is noted for her immense wheat, corn and clover seed crops, which never fail. And the evidence *»f this fact is that the farmers of this county have deposited within the last thirty days from the -ale of wheat and clover seed over #100,000 in the two banking institutions of this city. Within the coming year a number of! substantial improvements will be made and j with the development of the new natural) gas territory a new era will dawn upon , Petersburg and Pike county. The two! tiaiural gas companies will develop the) natural gas territory during the coining tear.

uovr DOIM.i: A WIIKEI.. There should b« x«mr Knl« for the 1‘ubiic la Vo ll|. Before bicycling will ever become a success a meeting mu*! be called for the purpose of allowing the wheelmen an<l the pedestrian to arrive at some understanding 1 am iu favor of a convention or something of that sort," said a prominent wheelman to a reporter. **As it is now, a rider eoam down the street and sees ahead of him at crossing a man or woman who is supposed to be eink*we«l with reasonable intelligence. This fwrson is in the act of crossing the street. | He looks up, sees the rider coining and stands still right in the middle of the street Of course he is mentally calculating his chances for g* It tug across safely. One can see the workings of his mind in the muscular contortions of his face. “In the meantime the rider is getting closer and closer and is In a study equally as profound as to what the person is going to do. The pedestrian takas a step for* ward, takes another glance up the street. - stops, starts back, makes an effort to reach the pavement, stops again, starts forward, stops— **0f couroe by this time the cyclist is

almost at a standstill and is also zigzagging from one side to the other, waiting and muttering. What he says depends upon whether he is a man or a woupm. The pedestrian seems to give up all possibility of escape, faces the rider, both arms extended, jumps from one foot to-the other, and the two collide. The cyclist is thrown to the ground, his wheel twisted, and he gets the blame. “And how easily all this can be avoided! I.et the pedestrian, instead of performing all these trying evolutions', merely-walk along as though there was nothing behind him, keep his course, and the cyclist will know what to do. He will turn his wheel to one side and glide past .with perfect ease and safety. “On the crossings let a man walk along as though there were not a bicycle in the State, and the wheelman will judge his course accordingly. He has control of his wheel and is as anxious not to collide as the other fellow. That’s all we want. We merely ask that people walk along about their business, and we shall not molest them. “In the ease of a horse which is not readily managed, the rider or driver maybe on the alert and skillful, and there may be a collision, but with a bicycle the rider has control, and if the pedes train will only go along and not get rattled then' will U> no collisions. This is what 1 want the people to know, and the only way, it seems, for them to learn this is to hold a convention or something.— Indianapolis Sentinel. The above is applicable to this city, and some action should be taken.

tom i tnn.i uf.imom A l.urge «f llir Corn Helailvea amt I'rirnda. Last Saturday at Maple Grove, near Augusta,'Pike county, the Coro family met j in annual reunion, with Dr. John Coleman of Union, president and superintendent, and William Corn secretary. They are the dcscendents of David, Amir, w, Edward ami William Corn, w ho came to Pike county from Kentucky in 1S4T: and from their -descendants the following families amt' their descendants were welt represented: | James, William. Rennet, Jac*k>ou, David, j Joseph, Edward, George, Andrew and John | Corn, Nancy Davis, Susan Brewster, Mary i lleacock. Fally three hundred of the! Corn family were there and a large crowd j of their friends. A bnuuttfuj dinner was | partaken of by all present and many has- j kets full of good things were gathered up. Notwithstanding the dust all present had an enjoyable time. The day was mostly j sjKUit in singing and declamations, quite a j number of the little young Corns declaimed j and acquitted themselves well. Little eight-year-old Maud Cook, daughter of L. C. Cook, rendered a declamation in which she showed marked ability and received the applause of all who heard her. Mrs. Emma Chandler also rendered a declamation. A ; valuable paper was read by W. 11. Scales. ! Short speeches were made by Dr. Coleman, i Widiiuu Corn D< Bruler and Calamity Cole and a general good time was had by all. The Corn families are numerous in Pike county, and are generally farmers as a class j and they are generally honest, industrious. | law-abiding citizens. May the Corn family j always have a good time at their annual i reunions, and may they go on fulfilling the command of the scriptures multiplyingaud replenishing the earth until their posterity become as numerous as the sands of the sea.—Oakland City Enterprise. POOH KtlLIKI I.EV1'. Mew Lilt t'.iaase* fleth-ds i*t . ai>lag Kaaiia for the Poor.

A new jaw changes methods of raising j funds for the poor which have been followed in this county since 1S12, <«ys the Bloom- ! ingtoh World. It requires the county and- j itor to make a report t«i the commissioners ; in September of each year of the amounts j drawn out of the treasury, ami the trusteemakes the levy which they base on tjiis re- j port. The law provides that if the tru-lces will not make the levy it is the duty «>f the! commissioners to do so. This met hod covers i for the county treasury the amount pai«l! out. While the expenditures are the same m the end. it relieves the county commissioners of making the levy as they formerly . did, and places the duty oil the trustees.^* The object of tin* law is to have each town-1 ship in a county pay for the care of its own poor. .HO.MIOE TEAt'HEKX. T waahip Ti antes B*» • Has Selected Teacher* for tie Tear. John M. Davis, trustee or Monroe township, lias selected the following teachers for the schools for the coming school year: Black No, 1, Lizzie McCain. biutoh No. 2. M. L. Met’In re. Mason No. <1, Joseph Johnson. Pieasantvillr No. 4, John W. Seales. Pleasant ville No. 4. J. K. Arnold. Dysons No. 5, W. B. Osl*orn. Prance No. H, M. P. McKinney. Parmer No. 7. Elijah li‘>ss. Ross No. S, John bhepard. Ballard No. 9, E. Gordon. Wilder No. 10, Willard Ashby. Lincoln No. 11. M. P. Reed. > Leach No. 12, J. P. Shrode. bimtown No. IS, J. L. Davis. Burden No. 14, Flora B. Davis. j

FOURTEEN QUESTIONS Propounded by Senator San^ ders Answered by Bryan. | Latter Day Contentions of the Gold Standard Advocates Refuted. A Document Worth Reading; amt for Future Reference. The Tree Cotnaire of Silver at lit to 1 Should be the Kano.

During the recent visit of Hon. William J. Bryan to Montana he was called upon by ex-United States Senator Sanders, says the Helena, (Mont.) Herald. As the ex-senator lett tie handed Mr. Bryan a list of questions, fourteen in all. bearing upon the silver question, and asked Mr. Bryan if he would furnish answers to the questions. The latter said he would. The fourteen questions and answers were as follows: Question 1. When it ts enacted that 412 1-2 grains of standard silver shall constitute a dollar,”tlo we thereby fix the value of silver, or merely lU'fiue the meaning of the word dollar? Answer. The present silver dollar contains 412 1-2 grains of standard silver. When the mints are open to the free and unlimited coinage of silver the government simply declares that that amount of silver, when coined, shall constitute a dollar, just as it now declares that 25 8-10 grains of standard gold, when coined, constitute a dollar. The purchasing power of the dollar, both under the gold standard and under bimetallism, depends upon the number of dollars. Under the gold standard the law declares that all of gold standard fineness may la* converted into money, and the primary money depends upon the amount of gold presented foe coinage. Under bimetallism tlie government declares that all gold and silver of standard fineness may be converted into money at a fixed ratio, and the amount of primary money depends upon the gold and silver presented for coinage. The government does not decide what the purchasing power of a dollar shall he, whether it be gold or silver, but the government can increase the purchasing power of i the dollar by limiting the power to gold alone, or it can lessen the purchasing power i of a dollar bv admitting silver to coinage j on equal terms with gold. The gold stand- ; art has increased the purchasing power of | gold by increasing the demand for it. Bimetallism will reduce the purchasing power ; of gold just to the extent that the gold j standard has increased it. Question 2. Is the commercial value of j the metal in a coin Qie measure of its value, and essential in determining its efficiency as money ?

Answer. ruder free hi»I unlimited coin- j ag»* there can be no material differmv' between the value of the metal ami the; coin, btCMite any one desiring the coin can pr> s«*nt the metal lor coinage without limit a Oil without charge, and any one desiring the metal can meit the coin, lit metallists couteml that free coinage will so increase the demand for silver as to raise the-bullion value to $1.29 an ounce, measured by gold. Hold and silver have been driven »|«rt by hostile legislation, which has increase*! the purchasing power of an ounce of gold on the one hand, and decreased the gold price of silver on the other. Bimetallism will increase the demand for silver and lessen the demand f**r gold, thus bringing the metals together ami making an ounce of silver, whether coined or uncoined, worth #1.29 in gold, and the silver dollar will then be e<piat to tlte gold dollar in this country, *.r anywhere else in the world. Question 3. If silver dollars containing varying quantities of silver were issued from t he mints as legal tender money, would they circulate contemporaneously as tuongy? Answer. If the holder of silver bullion was permitted to convert his bullion without limit and without charge into dollars differing tu size, but a legal lender lor the sameamouut.be would con vert his metal into dollars of the least size. If there were in circulation dollars of different weights, the heavier one would be recoined into the lighter dollars, or, if they were not recoined, would pass at a premium. In other words, two silver dollars of different weights would not circulate together under free and unlimited cuiuage. Question 4. Will coins of different com- (

tnercial value fulfill the same monetary function if the law calls them by the same name,and imposes ou them indiscriminately the same monetary errand? Answer. While it is true that two coins of the same denomination, but of different commercial value, will not circulate at par under free and unlimited coinage, it is also true that the commercial ratio will conform to the legal ratio wheuever the coinage demand is equal to the supply of the metals. The law can change the commercial value of a coin by increasing or decreasing the demand lor th^ metal of which the coin is made. It is not fair to say that the commercial ratio now existing between gold and silver bullion will remain the same when our mints are open to the free coinage ofjboth metals. The gold value of silver fell when the Indian mints were closed. It fell again- when it became apparent that the purchasing clause of the Sherman law would be repealed. The gold price of silver rose after the passage of the Sherman law, when it was thought that the government had created a demand sufficient to absorb all the surplus bullion. The whole theory of bimetallism ^sts upon the fact that gold and silver are produced in limited quantities —hence called precious metals—and that a monetary use* can be ereated for both sufficient to at»sorb at the ratio fixed by law all the goal and silver presented for coinage. Question S, Is it true that a metal commercially undervalued in a bimetallic system of coinage will be hoarded?

Answer. If either metal is commercially undervalued it will be at a premium under bimetallism. It may not be hoarded, be- | cause when one hoards money he loses the j interest upon it .'and it may not be exported : because it can |«tss at a premium at home. ' For instance, during the war gold and silver I were at a premium, and yet they were used ■in this country. From 1792 to 1834 gold was at a premium in the United States. From 1834 to 1850 silver was at a premium, and yet during all that period we hail both ! gold and silver m the country, and the I debtor iiad a right to pay his debts in either I coin. While he may not have exercised l the option often, the option was of ad van ti age. because it protected him against a ! corner in either metal. Questions. In what country does bimetallism in fact not exist in its monetary ! system, where coins of both metals circulate as money ? Answer. Gold and silver do not now circulate concurrently at a fixed ratio in any iimntry where free and unlimited coinage is given to both metals, the reason being that the bimetallic standard is not in force in any nation sufficiently important to furuish a use for ail the gold and silver presented for coinage. iBituetaliists contend that l he United StatW is great enough to do what a smaller nation cannot accomplish. Question 7. If the act of 1873, instead of dropping the coinage of the silver dollar, hail provided that 206 1-4 grains of standard silver should henceforth be coined without limit or seignorage, and be a legal tender for $1, would such coins have circulated^ money side by side with gold coins and beetv.w«»rth 100 cents in gold? Answer. To have constituted 206 1-4 grains of standard silver a dollar, the gold dollar remaining as it was, would have been to establish a ratio of 8 to 1. instead of 16 to 1. It would have been impossible to maintain the parity bet»ien gold and silver at that ratio because other nations afforded a more favorable ratio to gold. But when we establish the *-atio of 16 to 1 we give gold a more favorable ratio than now exists

in Kucoiwuii nations, and therefore there would U* no reason for gold leaving us. (juesltou 8. If the act of 1873 had provided ns suggested in question 7 would our siher nun* > ha\c l*-en woith twice as much, and would silver mining have been correspondingly more profitable? Answer While the establishment of the ratio of 8 b* 1, suggested in question 7, would not have maintained the parity between gold and silver, it would have contiuued the detoaud for silver as money, and to that extent it would have protected the silver miners from the loss which hostile legislation* has entailed upon them. Question a. Would the silver dollar permit of yet further impairment' as to its weight and fineness, ami yet efficiently fulfill the errand and function of a dollar? Answer. Congress has a right to coin money and regulate the value thereof, and this power was exercised in the begiuning when the ratio of 15 to 1 was established. It was agaiu exercised in 1834 when the gold dollar was reduced in size and the ratio changed to 16 to 1. There is no desire upon the part of bimetallists to lessen the weight of the silver dollar, or to change the ratio now existing betweeu gold and silver coins. Bimetali»ts simply desire to restore a system which ohee existed, and to give back to silver the coinage privileges once enjoyed by it. but now monopolized by gold. (Question 10. Could our gold and silTer coins be corresjiondingly reduced in weight and fineness simultaneously and their existing value and efficiency as money be maintained by statute? Coutinued on eighth page.