Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1884-07-24

SOUTH NAPOLEON, July 81, 1884.
ED. NoRrHwEsT:-In glancing over the
columns of the last issue of that abortive
excuse for county paper, the Signal, my
eye was caught by short editorial on the
candidacy Tor the county clerkship. In
the matter of adherance to modern Re-
publican principles the hoary headed edi-
tor displays himself to a decided advan-
tage. He openly admits in that edito-
rial that he don't care for principle so long
as he can accomplish his own ends. This
is decidedly Republican according to the
present general and accepted meaning Of
the term. His attack upon Mr.. Donovan,
the Democratic nominee for Clerk, is posi-
lively the most damnable piece of editor
Ial ignorance I have seen tor some
time, directly implying that he (Mr. d. is
man of foreign birth and that his resi-
dence in the county has been confined to
but few years. This is not the first i'm
stance in which an implication of this kind
has appeared in the Signal, nor does the
writer expect it will be the last, as it
would seem that the fountain head of the
said Signal is so crammed with togyism
that it is incapable of comprehending the
simplest modern truth. In case, however,
he should have lucid interval in the near
future the writer will state that he is pre-
pared to furnish affidavits by the dozen and
from the most reliable men in Henry
county, that the present Democratic can
didate for County Clerk was born in Hen
ry county, that he received his primary
education IN a school in Henry county,
that he has never been out of the State to
exceed six weeks, and that his residence
4 outside ofthe county is confined to period
of less than two years during which he
was completing his education at Lebanon,
Ohio, with the single exception, however,
of two months residence at Antwerp, in
.Paulding county. This same old Signal
fogy would have it understood that Mr.
Donovan is young man, and therefore
necessarily incapable of performing the
duties of the Office. This is the worst
piece of asinine cussedness in tho whole
article. Has it came to that pass, in the
administration of public affairs, when
gray hairs and palsied hands are requi.
site to fitness for public services; is it 8
disqualification for official duties not tc
have been born back in the 2O's or 30si
If so, when has the mighty change beer
wrought? The time is not far gone when
this same Signal under the same manage
ment howled voiciferously "turn the ole
fogies out" "down with the third ano
fourth TERMS" "no life lease on county of
fees, etc, and headed its county ticke
with man not any older, ifas old, as Mr.
Donovan, for the identical place for whicl
i Mr.. D. is now candidate. 1t is not fou
years since the Republicans of Henr,
county nominated man scarcely out o
} his teens, for the Office of Prosecuting At
torney, and the Signal man did all h,
could to elect him over a man older by Il
years, than the Republican nominee: W.
would like to ask Mr.. Fouke when, VIII.
and how this mighty change has beel
wrought.
The Signal in the same article speaks 0
Mr.. Barnes coming out on an Independent
ticket for reelection. I am not informed a
tie truth of this, but can hardly believ
that Mr.. Barnes, after being for nearly 8
consecutive years an office holder in th