Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 38, Number 45, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 February 1906 — BILLY BLODGETT BADLY BALLED. [ARTICLE]

BILLY BLODGETT BADLY BALLED.

The Indianapolis News of Wednesday, under a Monticello date line published an article from the pen of W. H. Blodgett traveling staff correspondent, devoted to the McCoy trial postpontaent, and pur porting to give the reason ©f Tom McCoy’s downfall. The versitile Billy managed to write a fairly entertaining article, but showed either a total ignorance of his subject or a desire to misrepresent the facts, ju the case and thus create a favorable opinion of Tom throughout the state. The tendure of his article was to the effect that Tom was ruined by politics; that he entered the game of political adventure as pure and untarnished as a virgin, and ae cumulated all the, bad habits that are responsible for the bank’s fairure while he scattered %is money broadcast along the route for the sake of Republican success. He starts out by saying that it was another case of political banker—the result of mixing politics with the banking business, of the bank going on bonds of county officials in order to get county deposits. He states that Tom was the absolute king of Tenth district politics, and was one of the cleverest politicians in the state. He then tells that Tom was thoroughly honest and never took a cent with the intention of defrauding his fellowman. He even became lauditory of Tom and stated that if the missing money was in Tom’s hands now he would pay it back and deprive himself to the last cent to square up with the sufferers from the bank failure. It would take a long time to cont rovert all the slush that Blodgett printed in the News, but readers of his articles who have had any acquaintance with either Tom McCoy nr the bank he conducted will be unable to see the slightest scinu.la of truth. In the first place the bank records show hat Tom McCoy violated the very first trust that was placed in his hands and that he was indebted to the bank thousands of dollars long ’>efore he became chairman of the t-nth district. The county records ill show that the bank was neve' in the habit of bonding county officials, and that there was never a def ilting officer of trust bonded by th.- bank. The deposits in the bank at the time of its failure will show among the losers county and towns iip Democratic officials who were mder no obligations to the bank tod simply-kept their money tnere as others did, with the misplaced coutiderev that the bank was backed by a vast amount of unincumbered land. No one in Rensselaer ever considered Tom McCoy a clever politicion. He was as near a Blockhead in politics as a man could be who had ever devoted any time to it. He had no business tact— no foresight—no memory and any man in Jasper County who had ever had a tilt with him in politics where shrewdness was required beat him out. He never spent any money in politics, either that any one ever knew of. During the years he was district chairman he never turned a cent into the republican campaign fund of the county. During the 1898 and 1900 compaigns the "private adventures of the bank in politics were taxed to the county committee and when there was no money to meet the expenses Tom • headed the list of contributors with SIOO, others made up the balance, and Tom’s promised hundred now shews as an overdraft on the bank books, charged to the republican committee chairman who checked against the fund. Persons here know that riotous living, foolish business methods, and no application to work, were the sole qualities of Tom MoCoy’i downfall.

He rot the “pace that kill/’

from the first time he was given th combination to a safe full of money, and kept it up with no regard for anything except the gratification of his own desires until there was $1.49 left in the bank tills, and all the lands and property he had secured through his father and others were incumbered. His desire to settle “everything’’ was evidenced by the methods pursued to retain every farthing the law allowed. While further more than“the law intended are openly charged. His policy led him to solicit deposits from poor people -when ihe tiauk wus at the very verge of closing its doors. - Blodgett’s own review of the bank at the time of its failure was directly contradictory to this version, and a great sight nearer the truth. The article was so strikingly sympathetic to Tom McCoy as to give it the appearance of inspiration from himself. It is such falsifications that cause the public to lose confidence in the reliability of newspaper correspondents.