Rensselaer Republican, Volume 22, Number 9, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 November 1889 — Indiana Sues Uncle Sam. [ARTICLE]

Indiana Sues Uncle Sam.

The President has issued his Thanksgiving Day proclamation. The last Thursday in November is designated, as a matter of course. The new states seem to be twins after all, instead of quadruplets. The two Dakotas made their final entry into the Union together, last Saturday, by proclamation of the President. Montana Washington have not yet been formally admitted, but a joint proclamation for their benefit will probably be issued in a few days. The final count in Montana gives the Republicans the Legislature by a majority of seven on joint ballot, ensuring the election of two Bepublican United States Senators. The Democrats have nothing but the Governor there now, tend won’t get anything by the next general election. All the new states are reliably Republican. Amen! In the elections of Tuesday the Democrats appear to have rather had the “bulge,” although not nearly to the extent of many previous “off-year” elections. Massachusetts and Nebraska gave the usual Republican majorities. Yir-i ginia. New York and New Jersey are Democratic. Ohio and lowa are in doubt. In Massachusetts the Australian voting, system was tried, for the first time, and is reported to have worked admirably. The wholly false story was latepublished and gloated over by Democratic, Prohibition and Mugwump papers that Yice-Presideut Morton had taken out a license for a saloon in his new apartment house, at Washington. There was not the shadow of truth in the story, and yesterday was published an authoritative denial, over the name of Mr. Morton’s private secretary, who states that Mr. Motton never so much as entertained the idea of permitting any portion ot the building to be used as a bar. Will any of the Democratic or Prohibition papers notice Mr. Morton’s denial in any way? We think not. To correct their slanders of political opponents is not at all in their line. nanHaoßaaißißi The selection of a location for the world’s fair of 1892 will be one of the most important matters before the coming Congress, and is likely to provoke a great amount of argument. The question ought, however, to be settled quickly, from the facts that there is now far too little time for preparing for the fair and Congress therefoie should not further curtail that time by an unnecessarily prolonged discussion of the question of location. A further good reason why the matter should be settled promptly is that a movement is on foot in Spain to have a world’s fair in 1892, which, if carried out, would prove a very serious detriment to the project in this country. An early action by Congress, sothorizing a world’s fair in this

country, would have the effect of forestalling the Spanish project and probably cause its abandonment. It is scarcely probable that the | alleged movement to make a new- ! county, of which Monon is to be be the county seat, is meant to be taken seriously, but merely as a little bit of bluff upon the part of the frisky editor of the Monon Times. The county seat maggot is not an infrequent occurence in the heads of ambitious communities, however, and it is possible that the Mononites are really afflicted in that way. If such is the case the sooner their minds are disabused of the vain dream, the bet- : tar for them. There can bo but few things more difficult than the forming of a new county in the state of Indiana, under the laws ttiow Tn foTce. One of the greatest ot these difficulties is the constitui tional provision forbidding the teritorial extent of existing counties to be reduced below four hundred square miles in extent. Under this provision, Pulaski comity' could spare to a new county only thirty square miles. White county could spare just one hundred. Jasper county, although 170 square miles in excess of the constitutional limit, is so situated that not over fifty square miles could possibly be hoped for to attach to the new county of Monon. All of this together, would, if it could be secured, give the new county only 180 square miles of territory, and a very large proportion of this the very poorest land in the state. A pretty poor foundation, that, to support a new county government, even if it could all be obtained. But here fresh difficulties present themselves in the way of the new county project. In that portion of land in each county proposing to join a new county, fifty genuine free-holders must petition the county commissioners of their respective counties, to order an election to determine whether the territory where they reside shall be allowed to become a part of such new county. It is very unlikely that in the thirty miles in Pulaski or the fifty in Jasper could be found fifty free holders willing to sign such a petition, but in case there should be found enough qualified signers for the petitions, how much chance would there be that a majority of the vote cast in either county on the question of the [division, would favor the proposition, which the law requires before it can be done? It is in the last degree unlikely that a single one of the three counties would vote in favor of the proposition, and it may be set down as a certainty that Jasper and Pulaski would vote against it, thus leaving only Monon township to form the new county, in case White county should happen to vote favorably. The war-ship Dolphin has lately returned from a four years’ cruise, around the world; and a rigid inspection of her condition shows it to be almost perfect. This is the vessel which was made the pretext, by Cleveland’s administration, for breaking down and hounding into his grave, honest old John Roach, who had incurred the hatred of the Democrats on account of his active exertions on behalf of Protection and Republicanism. The vessel was contracted for with Mr. Roach, during Arthur’s time, but was not fully completed until after Cleveland came into power. Secretary Whitney, with Cleveland at his back, was determined to destroy Roach, and the breaking of a shaft on jthe first trial of the Dolphin, gave them a pretext, and by fining him $30,000 for this natural and unavoidable accident and by staving off the acceptance of the vessel for a long period, they finally succeeded in driving him into bankruptcy and finally to an untimely death. There was never really anything wrong with the vessel; she was stanch and seaworthy, and pronounced so at the time by such reliable and non-partisan authority as the Scientific American, and now the severe trial she has gone

through fully proves the excellence of her construction. Since her return she has been examined by a board of naval experts, the chairman ot which was Admiral Jouett, a naval officer of more than thirty years service, and he says: “Never in my experience as a naval officer have I known a ship-of-war to make such an admirable record as has the Dolphin. Three years and nine months has she been on a tour of the globe. After submitting to more severe tests, m my belief, than any ship that ever sailed, she has returned in as excellent trim as when she startedon her voyage. She has been under steam for 9,000 houis. She has travelled 58,000 knots, the longest distance, I believe, that any vessel ever travelled in a single voyage. At times she developed a speed of sixteen and seventeen knots. From England she came at the rate of fourteen knots. She has been subjected to the heat of the torrid, the changeable weather of the tepiju-rate and the piercing atmosphere of the fngid zones. Her engines have been put to a more crucial test than ever have- Fee* before those of any ship that sails the sea. She comes back fit to make another tour of the world at ten days’ notice. Thpre is not a strain, there is not a blemish or a weak spbf of any kind in her from bow to stern. Almost invariably, after a man-of-war has endured a long voyage, pits are to be found in her steel. The most rigid examination has failed to discover anything of the Kind in the Dolphin. For a vessel of her size she surpasses any that the world has ever produced. If ever the memory of a builder was vindicated, that of John Roach is.”

A suit has been begun in the United States Court of Claims by Attorney General Michemr through Earl & Pugh, of Washington, which, if it is successful, will add over a half million to the State Treasury. Ohio and Illinois are also interested iD the matter, and should Indiana be successful, they will bring suits also. In an act admitting Indiana into the Union,, land within her borders and sold by the States had specific exemption from taxation, and in consideration of this the State was to be allowed 5 per cent, of the sales of all the public lands, whereof 3 per cent, was to be applied by the State in the construction of pnblic roads and canals. The Government did begin the construction of a road, which extended from Cumberland, in Maryland, through Ohio, Indiana end Illinois. Large sums of money were expended on it, and, in 1836, the United States formally abandoned its construction. Instead of allowing the road to be free it was transferred to other States, as their several properties, and toll was charged. The State now claims 2 per cent, on the sale of 21,637,760 acres of land, which amounts to over $618,000. The Land Department claims that the State is not entitled to the money, saying that it was expended by the Government in the building of the Cumberland road.