The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-09-10
FOUNTAIN COUNTY.
The ConspiratOrs Run Against Honest
Trustee Who Gives Them Away.

The Conspirators Run Against an Honest
Trustee Who Gives Them Away.
Charlottesville Review.
Prof. w. T. Fry has just returned from CHI
cago, whittier he went, accompanied by Prof.
Bingham, of Fountain county. His object in
going was to discover how the trustees of this
county stood He learned that the modus operandi
of the sharpers was about as follows: They
would 20 to the county seat and secure the serv-
ices of some well-known citizen by means of
large fee. The sharper and the citizen would
then attack the citadel of the weakest trustee of
the county. They would go to him and thrust q
roll of money into his hands, saying; Take
it; it's yours" offering no explanation whatever.
If the victim hesitated they would
insist that the money was free and belonged to
him. They would then leave him. and be gone
several days, weeks probably when they
would return with their furniture plot The
trustee, with their money in his pocket would
naturally feel under obligations to order large
amount of furniture in payment. The first war
rant was always small. $500 or $400 In six
months this was followed by another and largee
one, and so on, always increasing in size and
coming in semi annually. but none of them due
until the trustee giving them had gone out OF
Office. Glover got So, 500, the first warrant of his
coming due in eighteen months, the warrant
bearing per cent interest. The trustee of
Fulton township, Fountain county, also got $2,-
300 of the swag. The trustee of Van Buren, town
ship was approached, and $3. 600 forced into his
hands He was in the field plowing. After
studying the matter over he handed the money
back to the fellow, saying, This is add fraud
and I'll have nothing to do with it." The agent
then informed him that his contemporaries,
Glover ct al had invested and why not him.
He lost no time in seeing Superintendent Bing-
ham and laying open the whole plot Together
they came down on Glover, and he disgorged his
bribe They got after Starnes, and he went to
Chicago with the superintendent and secured
his paper. That of the other trustee had beer
sold'to New York brokers. Professor Fry says
Davis & Co. have an immense establishments.
dealing in school supplies of all kinds, and car
deliver the goods. He thinks the townships
bound by the action of the trustees. He says
one trustee in Vermillion county has invested,
and another in Vigo has gone in $4,000.
It is intimated that certain educator of this
county knows all about the abovenamed Davis
& Co. school supply doubletriegered swindle,
and that he is as clay in the hands of the potter
under the manipulation of certain Cincinnati
text book publishing company.
These agents are found in every department
of school work, begging their way through and
often bribing 1t. They sell a trustee a bill ci
furniture or supplies, an1 give him check for
$50, and often more, as pay for delivering the
order at the school-houses Plainly bribe fox
future orders, but done in such manner the
trustee don't feel it as such. Professor Fry says
these sharks have insinuated that he could be OF
great influence for them in the way OF lntroduc-
ing their wares and books in the schools OF this
county, and he would ''lose nothing oy IL,
which evidently meant" said he that my
salary could be doubled by prostituting my Office
to the purposes of speculation always spot
those fellows and warn the trustees.