The intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1887-1891, 1888-11-03
HON. SANI,. P. aPARKS.

WARRENsBURG, Mo-, Oct, 70, 1888.
Hon. Alex. Lesueur, Lexington,
Mo.-Dear Sir: Yours of yesterday
received, enclosing the following,
clipped from the editorial columns of
the Lexington Register of the 25th
inst:
"Coal miners and other laborers
should know that MI. Samuel p.
Sparks, democratic candidate for the
state senate from the district composed
of Lafayette and Johnson counties, was
an active agent, q few years ago, in the
inieuitous aud dishonorable bust ess
of locating in the coal mines of MOI t'e-
rat, johnson county, Missouri, several
hundred convicts from the state peni-
Tertiary, at Jefferson City, to work in
competition with you and your breth-
rem. 1t was largely owing to his paid
efforts hat this shameful wrong was
perpetrated against free and honorable
labor. Mr. Sparks is now q candidate
for reelection and is seeking your
votes. Are you i'm favor of endorsing
his efforts in behalf of the convicts and
against honest labor2 Vote for his
opponent, Mr.. John b. Jones'"
This recalls the familiar lines OF
Burns:-
..Some books are lies frae end to end,
And some great lies were never spenn'd;
Ev'n ministers. they have been kenn'd,
In holy rapture.
A rousIng Wild. at times, to yend,
And nail u VII scripture"
The facts of which the above para
graph is p~redicated are, briefly, these
In the spring of 1879, tho law firm o
which was then a member, Land 4
Sparks, became the legal adviser ant
attorneys Of j. B. Price b Co.; a firm
composed of Col. James b. Price, o
Jefferson City, and Genl. Wadd.
Thompson, then Of this place. Thu
. firm, sometime prior to that date
| about the latter part of the year 1875
had Obtained the right OF working sue
: a number Of tho cqnyicts outside OF tn
9 prison, whose labor could pot be util
: lied or worked within it. This trI
d In August, 1877, were at work nes
: Lsmonte, i'm Pettis county, Missouri
Il engaged In developing a coal and ella
mine. At that date q general striE
Occurred among the miners employs
l by the Neptserrat coal company
q Montserrat, Johnson county,, Mo
which then had q contract With Il
Missouri Pacific Railway Co. to suppl
it with q specified quantity of coal pr
. day, with a heavy penalty attached
case of a failure. i'm this extreDlt
and being unable to adjust the difte
ence between tho company anq u
It miners, the company entered INTO
-, contract with j.. u. Price ~ Cc
. whereby the convicts obtained by the
70 under their contract with the stat
, weye TO mine coal tor the MOntserr
AZ coal company, and j. Is. rice d y
,t moved the cOnVicts from
the mines Of the company at Montse
Irat, and there continued to work the
down to sope time in August, l8s
~ Our law firm, nor J, nor even anyo
- then living in this city, Warrensbgr
u had anything to do with the convit
e. being brought TO Johnson county, b
40 OH the contrary, ! opposed 1t and CO
m demned il when il was done, becau
- they were Put in competition with II
o. labor. This was tie gtate OF lat
= which continued up TO about l
= month OF March, 1879. 1T was III
! rumored that efforts would be made
induce the stale TO cancel or anhul
he contract so entered into between 1t a
j. Il Price 10 Co, which Wou!d rehC
them unable to fniill their contr'
ev with the MontBerral coal cOmpal
- Our firm, in conjunction with Juo
w. IL. Brinker, now judge OF
supreme court of New Mexico, W
At consulted aud employed TO give
opinion;