The Worthington advance., 1879-01-23
Mr.. SIMMONS CONES TO THE DEFENSE
OF THE FARMER.
WEsTSInE Ian 21 1879.

farmer, rather lnt1mat1ng that he IS
dishonest in making debts and not pay
ing up. The farmer is dependent on
his crop from year to year to pay his
debts, and If it is cut short, he can't
meet all his debts as he would like to
and then he is called dishonest. l think
the farmers in this town have done all
they could to pay their debts. know
of two that have sold every bushel of
wheat they raised to pay their debts,
and one man told me he had got 125
acres to seed in the spring and not
bushel of seed to SOW. I asked him
why he done it. He said he was obliged
to pay up his mortgage on his property
or have it sold. Farmers have paid
about all they could from the crop and
have secured the rest by giving cl,attel
mortgage on their property. Mortgages
are taken for very small amount.
One merchant not great distance
from here compelled farmer to give
him mortgage for the small amount
of $1.35. This is a fact. I will not
call the merchants name. The Town
Clerk told me there was about SIS, 600
in mortgages recorded on his books a.
gainst the farmers of this town. Does
that show dishonest spirit? 1t is we'll
known that the farming community
are rather ignorant class and hard
working people. They are not posted
up like the merchant Or the wheat buy
er or the speculator. Some of the far
mers can't read or write, and when
they take 4 load of wheat to market,
they take just what they have mind
to give him. If they are honest, they
will give him his dues. If not, they
keep back a part. This thing has been
tried on me at Wells, in this State,
years ago.
There is another grave charge made
against the farmer, that he will put his
best wheat in the top of his sacks so it
will grade higher. That is mistake.
There is but one good granery in this
town and all the rest have no way to
keep the wheat separate. 1t all goes in
together, good and bad. If there is
any difference in Quality it comes out
as it is threshed and put in the bin.
hope I shan't hear any more about
the dishonest farmers. r. SIMMONS.
AN INTERESTING LIQUOR DECISION
The Supreme Court rendered decis-
ion 4 few days ago, in liquor case,
which is of interest to our people. The
village of Kas; on had voted mo IL
cense" and Martin Hanley was convict
ed Of selling liquor without license.
The case was carried to the Supreme
Court, the judgment of the lower court
was reversed and the defendant dis
charged. Judge Berry rendered the de-
cision and said:
That a person selling, after the no Ii.
cense action, would become liable un-
der section 3, chapter 81 of the laws
quoted. lie is not liable for selling
without license, for where there is nU
license to he obtained, any circumstance
charging him with the offense of selling
without license is il manifest inc0ngru,
ity. There can be no offense in the vii.
lage of Kasson, Of selling liquor with
out i license. a sale other than fot
medicinal purposes. would DO the Of
fense of selling after i vote against Ii
cense and the offense should be so di,
rected. This was the defendants Of
fense in this case. He is charged il,
the indictment of selling without a Ii
cenSe, and upon such indictment ht
was found guilty and sentenced. But
from the foregoing views Judge Berry
says the indictment was not sustained
by the facts, and conviction and Sch
tence were erroneous.
The syllabus is as follows:
After the voters of the village O
kasson, in the county of Dodge, had
pursuant to chapter 81, State laws OF
1917, determined against granting Ii
cences for the sale Of Intoxicating liqu
ors in said village, an indictment fol
selling such liquors in said village
should be under section 7, that chapter
and should describe the offense as sell
ing after the voters of the village l,at
voted against granting licences. Aftel
such vote an indictment under chapter
16, general statute, is insufficient.
| Judgment reversed.
| This is a matter of great interest t.
our people, and especially to those wht
have been punished for liquor selling il
Worthington.
COLD WEATHER IN KANsAs.-A
former resident of Faribault, in pri
vate letter from eastern Kansas, dateG
Jan. 8, says:
''On December 12 and 10, snow fell t
the depth of 20 inches, and at interval:
since, lighter SHOWS have fallen, all o
which still lies on the ground. Tht
thermometer has been 20 degrees below
zero on five or six mornings, and dur
ing the whole of last week the mercury
was constantly about zero night and
day. There is a good deal of suffering
among the poorer folks on accO mt O1
the extreme cold, as no one here is eve1
prepared for such weather.
| In this last paragraph lies the secret
of the distress and loss in Kansas near
ly every winter. In a good portion oI
the State, neither shelter nor food art
prepared for the cattle, as the farmers
depend on the grass to feed the stock
over winter. When a blizzard or cole
snap comes, there is great suffering ani
loss. LII 1873. the number Of cattl,
lost was reported ut $1,000.
Here in Minnesota, however, people
prepare for winter rs theIe is always
enough cold weather to make prepara
tion necessary. Contrast the presen
winter in Minnesota with the winte
south and east of us. Here we hav
had one cold snap when the mercur.
indicated 80 to 81 below, but there ha
been no great fall Of snow to blockad
railroads, very little wind. and til
roads are AS hard and smooth as il
: