The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1881-11-03
Q. WOOD DAVIS IsD1ors
A Number Of Tpistlss. which Contain Mighty
Interesting Reading.

To the Editor Of tie Eagle:
s. E. Jocelyn's first question when the
Sedgwiek County Railway Committee was
organized, was how can WE make some
money out OF this thing?
The re in this case meant JOCELYN,
WHITE and davis, and being addressed to me
sub rosa, replied that from my earliest in
fancy had been taught TO entrap the hare
before cooking it. Here the matter dropped
for time, but it was not very long time
before the Col. " thought he had the hare
securely in the trap. See his letter OF June
Is, 1879.
Let us see, Col. Sellers-no Cole Jocelyn,
wanted and eXpected-as the disinterestcd,
self-sacriflcing guardian of the peoples in
terests-(He was the very especial guardian
of soldiers Blum, Harder and others, in fact
guarded it SO well that they had to institute
proceedings against him in order to get it-)
to secure. for JoCELYN-frst the contract
to build the railway. Second, to organize n
close corporation-ths mining and manufac-
turing company Of his letter--and thereby
mon6polizing the coal, lumber and other
business on the line. Third, to locate the
Wichita d, pot g. q Would pay Jocelyn and his
man Friday-and lastly to take in out of the
weather any other scff thing which might be
lying around loose. All this is outlined in
his letter of June 10, 1879.
C. WOOD DAVIS.
P.S. To an ordinary mortal he appears
to have closed his incsors on more than he
was well able to masticatc.
S. Z. Jocelyn-As the self constituted Tres
urer of the Sedgwick County Railway Com
mittee, did propose to pay me salary from
the county funds then in his hands-See his
letter of March 10, A. d. 1379-and charge it
up, not as salary but as erpenses.
declined to acceptit in such away. How
is this for a re.form-i0g County Treasurer
and an honest rendering Of accountss
c. WOOD DAVIS
P.S. am not able to say whether Jocelyn
charged this salary up in his reformed way,
he certainly never paid it to me.
When the renowned warrior captain Wili-
lam SMALLwEED White and colonel Sellers
+. Jocelyn accompanied me to Butler county
to work up the bond business, they care
fully made provision for the hazardous yoy-
age by loading their buggy with refresh
ments This was before the era of prohibit
ton remember-) to-wit: Some canned
goods, little cheese, q few lemons, more
sugar, plenty of cigars and an exceedingly
large proportion OF net groceries-in palmer
English. good whisky and wine-in fact the
fluids constituted the greater part of the
cargo.
All these good things were paid for out Of
tie county funds then in the COLONIES
hands, he being the self appointed treasurer
OF the Sedgwick County Railway Committee.
am unable to say whether he cooered the
amount in expenses-as expenses or as a
good temperance man-ds he a0as charged
it up as chemicals. G.. WooD DAVIS.
CONTRACT.
charge az followsi
That when the subscription, by Sedgwick
county, to the stock of the st, Louis, Wichi'
ia & Western Railway Company, was pend
ers, S. Z. Jocelyn did enter into conspir acy
with others to withhold such subscri ptior
until a contract to construct n large part q
the railway Of that company should be given
10 Jocelyn, Alexander Il Co. On the day be.
fore the board met to make such subscription
Joeelyn came to me and said, many objec
tons to making the subscription were being
raised. and while he could see the force of
some of them, he believed that the subscrip-
ton would be made if the company duly rec.
ognized the services Of those who had been
active in securing the voting of the bonds, al
the same time setting out his claim to such
recognition and asking that contract to
grade the road west of the Flint Hills be
given to Alexander d Co., stating to me that
himself, Mr.. York, Mr.. Alexander and pos.
sibly one other party would be interested in
the contract, and urging me, as the agent oil
the railway company, to make such con-
tract, or agree that it should be made.
The next morning he met me and again
urged the making of such contract, telling
me that he knew Commissioner York would
not vote for such subscription until the con-
tract was made, and that he was afraid Steen-
rod would also vote against it; but that il
Alexander s. Co. got the contract he, Joce-
Ign, could manage it so there would be no
further trouble about the subscription, u.
York could manage Steenrod, but that he,
Jocelyn, could not manage York, unless the
contract was made.
The contract tcds not made and after two
days the stock was subscribed. An attempt
was made to inveigle Commissioner Steenrod
into this contract business by Offering him an
interest therein.
This is the sef-same contract which Joce-
Ign asks for In his letter of June 18th. This
is the contract which Jocelyn now says he
was trying to get for others, but which, in
July, 1879, he urged that York and himself
were entitled to for their services in securing
the voting of the bonds. Neither Mr.. Alex
ander or Mr.. York ever importuned me TOR 4
contract (which, in fact, l had no power to
make) but S. L. Jocelyn did SO importune.
time apd again.
In proof of the charge that Jocelyn ct al.
attempted in this way to coe.ce the making
OF such contract, call to the witness stand
the then Commissioners Steele, York aud
Steenrod and County Clerk Dorsey who are
all cognizant of the facts.
c. WooD DAVIS.
P.S.-This affords one more opportunity to
rise and explain.
Col(?) S. L. Jocelyn did offer to sell cut the
county. The man from Oswego has repeat
edly said he could buy Jocelyn at any time,
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