The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1877-11-02
Tactics that all Honorable Men VIII
spurn with Contempt.
40 per Cent OF Truth to co per
Cent OF FalsehOOd.
But the Voters VIII not Submit 30 DIS
BuIIdOzed on the Eve OF
Election


BuIIdozed on the Eve OF
| Election.
During the entire progress Of this cam
paign, the editor OF the Ledger did moi
bring any charge whatever against any
OF the commissioners. 1t did not sug-
gest tibet they had In any way neglected
20 "gu-rd and protect the interests OF the
county in every material item that came
within the sphere Of their action as de-
| fined by law" &c. It never limited that
they had failed in any case to "protect
the county against any unnecessary ex-
pendIture OF money" II the editor OF
that heightened sheet bad any duty to
perform toward the tax payers In thu
way OF parading any OF his personal
grievances for their sympathy, or expos
ing any improper action Of the county
| commissioners for their benefit and pre-
| lection, he utterly neglected and failed TO
attend to that duty during this long cam
paign, although he had ample opportu-
| nifty to do so. Week after week the Ledg-
er columns have been occupied with mat
tax payers of Lyon county, or to any
body else, but they were as silent as the
grave In regard to the county commits
sioners. HenIck's collins were not more
vacant OF expression than the Ledger has
been on that subject, and just about as
| instructive and entertaining generally.
The $40 per cent" editor did not say a
word as the campaiPn progressed to give
| the county commissioners any reason to
| suppose that his long nurtured venom
against them was to break forth only in
his very last issue before the election, to
misrepresent, malign, and II possible de-
feat them, by distorting their records
without giving them any chance OF de-
Tending themselves against 80 malignant,
unfair, and Gowardly mode OF newspaper
warfare. Such q sly and INSCRIPTIONS
method of stabbing mems regulations
and falsifying their official actions in
what the Ledger supposed to be the last
newspaper issue before the day OF cleo
tlon, has never before been undertaken
in Lyon county, and we mistake the in
telligence and the judgment OF the vo-
tiers If they do not spurn with contempt
such $40 per cent" scheme to bulldoze
them into voting the county printing into
the pockets OF any newspaper. II such
tactics can be successfully used this or
any year to bamboozle voters and lead
them like SO many sheep TO vote against
their previous information aud judg-
ment, no man could be safe no matter
how honest and capable q record he
possessed. We protest in the name Of all
that is fair and courteous and just against
such an unfair, cut throat game being
permitted to succeed. Being, by mere
accident, day late In gsing to press this
week, we are able to devote little time
to exposing the humbug OF the Ledger's
pretensiOns and the falsehOod of Its state
ments.
First, Its coffin story Is substantially
this-that the county commissioners have
purchased the coffins used for deceased
paupers from ID. s. Gilmore, at the rate
o; $S.5TX cents each, and refused to
even consider a bid from +. Henick to
furnish them for $6.O5. And the green
eyed editor OF the Ledger says he has
searched the records for the last two years
and found that at least $12.62X cents
have been paid for collins more than need
ed to have beeni
IL the Ledger had stated It in time to give
Mr.. Gilmore any chance to explain it, 1t
would dwindle down into q deliberate
Misrepresentation Of facts in order to
mIslead the public. The facts of the
coffin business are these. For the last
eight years at least the practice of the
county commissioners has been to leave
the matter of furnishing collins for pau
pers entirely where the law places it,
with the various overseers of the poor
in each township. Each overseer orders
collins when 1t is his duty to do so, of any
one he chooses to, and all the commits
sioners have to do with the matter is to
audit the bills and pay them. They have
not in any way directed or authorized
the overseers of the poor to buy collins Of
any body, and the overseers have gener-
ally bought them in their respective To-
calitIes, the present board having paid
bills for collins purchased in Americas,
plymouth, Hartford, Center township,
and other places. 1t would hardly pay
the county for an overseer who lives 10 OF
Is miles from Emporia ito come here tc
get . coffin when he can get one made up
Ia MS own IielgEoOrnooQ.
By reason of this system, the commits
sioners have not asked for any bids tC
furnish collins, or made any contracts fol
collins, and when MIR. Henick rendered al
unasked bid, no one else having any no
tiee to bid, il bids were in order, Mr.. Gil
more did not say, as. the Ledger states
When we want to buy collins of him we
win make him furnish them at that rate
and throw the bid aside. He moved tina
the bid be placed on file, so that when any
overseer bought collins from MIR. Henick
they could make him furnish them a
that rate" and the bid was placed on fiji,
r for that purpose.
The bill of $42.s7H referred to by tn
q Ledger, consisted of three collins furnish
ed by Arnold & Co., and two by Mr.. Gil
, more, and the rate paid for them was a
low as any for any coffin of the same de
/, scription which the county has had to pa!
for. The collins in question wereIorderet
by the oyerseer OF the poor and not in an!
q way by the county commissioners. W.
challenge the Ledger to pr Oduce a state
/ ment over thu signature Of any oversees
Of the poor that Mr.. Gilmore has eve
, solicited any orders for collins, or in an.
way used his position to Influence any on
to purchase collins at his store. Overseer
are perfectly free TO purchase collins from
: Mr.. Henick or any one else who can max
them, and Mr.. Henick would be per fsctl,
right in charging more for an occasiOna
coffin than he would on contract to fur
! nish them all. The public economy OF tn
, case is not in favor OF any person having
the exclusive right to furnish all the cot
l fins for dead paupers, and the law permit
4 the overseers Of the poor to purchaa'
5 them as they find best, the commissioner
: only exercising the duty Of refusing t
pay more than = fair price. The presen
commissioners, like proceeding boards
have acted in regard TO the coffin bushes.
in accordance with law and usage and 70
: the best interests OF the county as whole
:, instead of contracting the coffin bushes
IN any establishment at Emporia.
The Ledger's story about county print
: ing is an another sample OF 40 per cent. {
, truth hashed up with 90 per cent. of falls,
= hood. Take ITS own admissions as col