The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1883-04-26
The People win Sustain the Commissioners.
The White clond Rerier has struck the rish,


the subject this il question that every payer
in the County should take interest in. We can
no; see why the people Of the County should not be
willing to stay with the Commissioners in this mat
ter and believe they will. and this personal feel
ing in regard to the members Of the BOard should
figure when the interests Of the entire County
are at stake The County could paw out with no Sc
rions inconvenience II her bonds can be eomproms-
ed hut it viii bankrupt the County If the full amount
and interest mnst be paid. We do not look upon the
refunding of our bonds repadiation, as some do.
The Commissioners doing what think is for
the best for the County Personally, We do not like
Of the Board but this compromising of 500 600
of County bonds is for the good Of all, and are
not one to condemn them because OF something else
they have done that we did not approve of. We
think the Commissioners right in refusing TO
levy the tax for the payment of the bonds and those
who are gOading them for not doing so, certainly
take strange way of showing their preference for
the taxpayers of the County over the holders Of the
bonds by objeeting the the Board is taking
Oar taxes are already high enough.
That is the correct doctrine. The men who
are finding fault with the Commissioners are
not, as the Rerier supposes, urging that tax
be levied to pay the full face of the bonds; but
that is what il will come 10. if they carry out
the design of their warfare. II the Commission
ers fail to secure compromise, aud the people
have to pay the bonds in full, it will be DANA
ging to the Commissioners-and that is just
what these fellows want, even If the people have
preston they seek to convey is, that the Com
mssoners can secure a compromise if they want
to, but that they arr putting il oii, for some
purpose of speculation of their own. The County
Board has hard fight on hand with certain
heavy bondholdeIs, nd tire in the rear is kept
up 10y personal enemies in the County. In this
work they find willing organ in the paper re-
Gently started at Severance, the editor of which
has interest in the County. and knows moth
ing whatever OF its affairs. He Is in for any
thing that promises prospect of blOOd-money.
Thesr attacks at home arr doiug Iuore than all
else to prevent a compromise fbf the bondhold-
erS see that men in the County arr stabbing the
tho Commissioners in the back, and they hope
that this division at home will result in the peo-
pie repudiaiing the Commissioners, aud electing
men in their place who can he more easily man
aged.
The men in Doniphan County who Inaugural
ted the fight against the payment in full of
bonds that were disposed of without value re-
ceived, and that were bought up by the present
holders at less that fifty cents. on the dollar,
knew that they had long and ugly fight before
thenl--that men who speculated in such proper
ty would fight for the last dollar, and that they
usually have the Courts on their side. They
knew that they must elect men to the County
Board who had the backbone to stand mp to the
work without fiinching: and the members of the
Board, while doing so, had a right to expect
that the people would sustain them, and not
countenance false charges against them, or en-
courage the throwing Of obstacles in their way
by personal enemies, who after the little
County offices No matter whether some indi-
viduals may personally like or dislike members
of the Board, that does not enter into the ones
ton, but it is a matter of dollars and cents, and
good many of them.
The first move toward starting a compromise,
was the passage of law authorizing the Com
missioners TO compromise at not moro than fifty
cents on the dollar. number of bondholders
accepted this, and about 81, 500 Of bonds We're
compromised. The largest bondholders were
company in st. Joseph, who refused to take that
figure; but they gave the Board to understand
that if the law was amended so as TO allow sixty
five cents TO be paid, they would accept it. Ma
ny citizens doubted the propriety of making any
concession: but the law was amended, they
had desired. Then they squarely went back
upon their word, and refused to compromise at
that rate-perhaps thinking that, as the people
had yielded once, they could force them to give
up the fight altogether. 1t is this company that
are leading the fight against the County. If it
were not for them, most of the bondholdeTs
would come TO terms at once but, seeing these
large bondholders fighting the County, the
smaller ones stand back. waiting to take adj
vantage of their success. These are the sharks
The members of the Board are not fighting their
own battle-they are enduring the annoyances
and worry, and taking the cursings, in behalf of
the taxpayers of the County, and are being
bushwh hacked 10y men in the County. who want
10 be Treasurer, and Clerk, aud Sheriff, and
think some 0f the members of the Beard stand
in their way. and if they can fonl the people
with the cry of Ring. and steal. and all that.
they can climb into the offices. even if the tax
payers do have I" snfiri.
The Board have been negotiating. lur some
weeks past for the compromise of batch of
bonds; but the chances are that this buShwhack-
in. at home has given the owners hope that they
will get somethin: better and the trade may
fail The Commissioners have for wears been
Icvyiug small tax for contingent faUd, 70 he
IScpsTcd for the compromise. This fGnd now
amounts to quite handsome sum, ~ will be
seen by the quarterly report Of the Treasurer, in
this paper. 1t is sufficient to meet large
amount Of compromised bonds. and i waiting
for those who first accept compromise. So
that, il the cniirr bonded indebtedness of the /
County were compromised Tomorrow. the in-
crease of tax 10 meet it would he slight that
tax payers would scarcely feel it, If these I
bonds compromised. Doniphan County /
would soon he in better shape than any County (
in the state. But as long as the boudholders .
who are fighting the County in the Courts are
aided and abetted 10y bushwhackers at home, I
the prospect is mol cheering
Those who imagine that the Commissioners 4
are having good time and making money by Z
not compromising, Wonld perhaps like 70 try il .
themselves. One of the members has been sued /
for Sl2,O00 in Missouri Court, for 1
refusing TO impose a tax upon the people to pay I
the bonds, and it may yet cost him heavily. All 4
the members have once been taken away from I
their homes aud business 10 Topeka. under ar
rest, for disobeyng an order of the Court to levy
n tax; and they will have to 60 again in June.
the busiest time in the year for farmers: and /
then, if they again refuse to levy tax. in Au-
gust, thcy will probably have TO 90 to Jail, or
he placed permanently under arrest. Is there /
much fun speculation in that. They could /
get ont of all this trouhle simply by levying q
tax to pay the bonds in full Are the tax-pay-
ors anxious they should do this' If not, they can
afford to back up the Commissioners, even though
a few bushwbackers should he disappointed in
their attempt to get hold of the Offices.
? We call Sol Millcr's attention 10 the fact that
the patent paper at Wellington is the official organ
Df Sumner County over the all home print steam
power, gilt-edged Prss- Wichita TBleS.
This is nothing new. This species of hoggish-
ness has been common in Kansas, for years. We
shall miss our guess if the Wellington Pres does
not, before long come out in some sort Of patent
shape. And we sha'n't blame it, County
that cannot appreciate a live paper, doesn't de-
serve one. We are changing our mind about
patent papers, when we know they are run by
men who would like to do better, but are forced