Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1874-02-12

which you must sheer at 'sNecedah, !"
and speak about the Sheriff disregard
ing 'sthe law" and enter your solemn
protest against any Infringement upon
the rights of the '.peopIe 70 Talk
loudly about the county not needing
to be put under guardianship Ii
convenient, get some lackey in the
same paper that contains your article
to call you Judge" This will lend
effect to the whole thing And the
people will be so glad-so grateful to
you. They will readily see that YOU
do not care fig about your friend and
partner, Remington, against whom
criminal proceedings are pending; they
will see at glance that you do not
want to elect tool that you can use
to further your purposes in certain
civil suit, in which you are elected de-
PENDANT for having generously, Though
wrongfulIy and illegalIy,) grabbed and
run out of the State with $780,
900, of the obligations of the people :;
they will besides see that you do not
want to reipstate and feed from the
public bounty, a servile hanger-on,
whom you have used until he has been
ousted for official misconduct, and
whom you feel unwilling to support
from your private means. Of course
nothing but dislntereSted patriotism
could move you Ia this matter The
''people" know you, Judge" and
they will stand by you-especially at
Remington. IF any Of them fail t 0
see how much they owe you, remind
them of the time when you went to
Green Bay and talked 100000 to
the G. B. & L. P. Railway Company
for running here with their road, when
the people here had never heard over
$3.50, 900 talked, until it was let out
here IN public meeting by the Com
pany some time afterward and by
reason of which ''talk' Of yours, our
affairs with that Company became so
complicated that the people were in
duced to vote the 5000, 900. Tell
them it is not you fault that the Com
pany afterward failed to build the road
on time You did yom duty,
Judge" and the people will never
cease to be thankful to you.
| have advised the Sheriff, and 9TH
ers, that special election now, would
involve another two years from now.
The authority referred to by you in
18th Wis. Report, may answer that
objection. Without examining, now
with any care, [ am very willing to ad
nit that [ have been mistaken several
times in my life, and may be again.
Quite as good lawyers as the Judge
have expressed to me the opinion ex-
pressed by me to the sheriff, to whose
attention doubtless the case referred to,
had not been called. The Judge
assumes that the Sheriff ''disregards
the law by not calling a special cleo
ton, while the Attorney General to
whom he or his friends, have referred
the question, carefully o6stains from
expressing the opinion that it is the
duty of the Sheriff to call such cleo
ton, under the law. Tt is true that
Attorney General Sloan, otter lodging
the legal question, goes on to adgiSe
that the Sheriff has power to act; and
that the people can be trusted, &c, 1t
is entirely proper for Mr.. Sloan to adj
ease those who ask him for advice.
Those who do not. are under no obi
CATION to act upon it, if given and [
will take the liberty to state to you,
Judge, as a legal proposition, that
if it is not the imperative duty of the
Sheriff to act, he has no poacer to act
in the premises-thc Attorney General
to the contrary Notwithstanding. IF
it is true that the word ''may" as used
in the Constitution claimed to apply to
the present case, means ''must," and
it is true also that the present contin-
gency Is one contemplated by the Con-
stitutional provision referred to, then
it must follow, that the Sheriff npst
act; and if it does not apply he can
not act. Of this, however, and kim
dred, or any other questions. involved
in the controversy, which gave rise
to this letter, [ shall be most happy to
speak hereafter, provided always that
you shall invite it by any further pub
TIC demonstration in defense of cause
which you know to be Infamous.
Meanwhile, Judge consider me
afectionately Yours,
CHAs. NJ. WEBB.