Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1881-10-26
Communication.
MrrrLrsrowx, Oct. %, 1881.

This communication may not sui
your views on the subject on which
| it treats, but with all that there is ne
reason why you should not permit it:
publication. lam a Republican;
have never been anything else, and
have a right to be heard through q
Republican Journal in defense OF a
number of men that have asked me
to speak for them, on question thai
interests every honest Republican
I would say, too, that / have sym
pathy for the men of whom l speak
for they have been most villainously
abused. I am talking about the Re
publicans that voted for Wellington
Smith last May for the office OF Su-
perintendent of Common Schools.
They have been abused like a lot OF
dogs, and by whoma Put the men
under your eye that have been hound
ing them ever since last May, and see
who the leaders are. Do they CON-
pare in honest worth with such men
as Nevin Pomeroy, Michael Coldren,
Christian Shelly, Uriah Shuman, Sol
omon Manbeck and many Others on the
same list They have been charged
with doing something wrong. What
wrong did they do? Their time to be
heard has now come; their time to
act is now here Let them act at the
polls and maintain their manhood by
voting down the men that have been
bounding them all summer. Let
them not think about party. The
men that have been, and are still
bounding them, go about and whis-
per machine. They shout machine,
and say stick to the party to people
that they believe they can influence
in that way, and to others they
say there is no party concern IN
it, it is fusion. The highest right
that an American citizen has, Is
the right, and duty to correct evils
at the polls by the power OF the
ballot Now then is the time to
strike q most unholy combination
that has been formed in Juniata-a
combination that is based and fed on
personal abuse and bounding. Even
at the primary elections the vote
that Republicans cast for Wellington
Smith was used to confuse men and
make people believe that some wrong
had been done to the School System
and to society by voting for Yelling
ton Smith. The County Superinten-
dency is not a political office in the
strict sense of the term, yet In dis
tricts where one or the other of the
parties are in a majority, the majority
party generally elects school directors.
The county convention of directors
held last May was Democratic by q
small majority. Eight candidates
were before it for election, and every
was doing his best to secure
votes, irrespective of party, which
was his right to do. if he chose so to
act. Politically speaking the candi-
dates stood four Republicans and four
The candidates we're
Republicans, W. II. Groninger, j. J.
J. H. Smith and A. Y. Nc
Afee; Democrats. W. A. Auman, Wei
lington Smith, w. L Hibbs and E. o.
kreider After the 10th ballot was
had the candidates that remained In
the field were J. j. Patterson, Repub-
lican, Wellington Smith and W. l.
Hibbs, both Democrats The 11th
ballot brought the election to close.
The ballot stood, Smith 81, Hibbs 81,
Patterson IL. For days before the
of the convention the men
that were showing Hibbs forward
and their leaders are all known
we're abusing Republicans that they
thought or believed would vote for
Smith They did not say a word
against Republicans that had prom
sed to vote for Hibbs and other
Why were the Repub-
leans that voted for Hibbs praised
ind the Republicans that voted for
Smith and other Democrats hounded ?
Why are they still abused as having
lone something that is not for the
good of the School System? The
other candidates did no more to dis
honor the Common School System
han did Hibbs and his friends, yet
It is by inference declared that the
friends of Smith and the other can
lidates did something to debaueh the
Common School System. Men of
Juniata, resent that insult at the polls
1t the coming election. No mans
however prre; will be safe
rom assault if the defamers are al
owed to escape rebuke at the polls
As far as intention for the good of
he system goes, every candidate ON
he list before the convention had
good intentions. But as they have
'aised the question of the motive, it
S proper to ask again and again, why
Republicans that voted for Smith and
other Democratic candidates are
and why are the Republi-
,ans that voted for Hibbs not abused 7
Hibbs is not in the county, does not
nave interests here that cannot be
packed in a grip-sack, or trunk. He
s in no sense better than the other
that were before the con-
-ent;on for its favors. He was
Wiling instrument for men that are
till here anu are yet engaged in
Safeguarding Republicans that did
lot vote for Hibbs. II one breath
hey blackguard Republicans that did
lot vote for Hibbs, and in the next !
'reath they ask the abused Republi-
ans to support a fusion that has set
Up the County Superintendency years
n advance. The men that have
'een bounding Republicans for not |
'oting for Hibbs are subtle set |
# traders and tricksters. So sub
lie are they that they buzzed
round Captain J. ]. Patterson till