Dodge City times., 1889-11-21
TEN YEARS RECORD
Of a man thai Receivsd d
a.: !:::S friends
IN ORDES TO LOAF ABOUT TIE
STREETS AND NOT WORK.

ten wears. no matter how bad his record
may be, but there must always be an
end to the career of common beats
and in order to protect those who nigh,
still be unacquainted with W. F. Petition
and his mode of obtaining living, We
have written the following history q
himself as dcwellor among US since
1880:
Some ten yeas ago there arrived in
our cirya barber who came from Wheat
land in order to take mp a homestead
north Of cur city, he attempted to work
on his arrival here but saw that there
was an easier way of living because of a
town that was composed Of generous
hearted people. He also proclaimed his
democracy and By 50 doing became one
OF tie members of that party. About
that time he being better acquainted at
Speareville he went there Just before an
election and attempted to traduce and
pull down the high standing and charac-
ter of Hon. r. NJ. Wright who was then
candidate for representative. In this
he failed but came back to Dodge and
took good threshing at the hands of
Mr.. Wright for his pay Soon after
this the democrats organized Il stock
company and started democratic pa
per with Chas. Lane as editor and man
ages .,ir Lane was soon called to
MObcctie, aud here was where Petition
saw the chance of putting himself up
as politician; he at once offered to
manage the paper without pay provided
the stockholders pay for man to edit
and prin; the same. The stockholders
gave him the job At that time the pa
per was clearing aboat $4,000 per
month, but at the end Of seven months
Petition brought in an account Of over
seven hundred dollars that he claimed
the office was in debt, He told the
stockholders, however, he would assume
this Indebtedness if they would turn their
stock over to him. The stockholders
not wishing to put up any mere money
and taking Petitions promise thai he
would keep the paper going, they gave
their stock TO him. not knowing any
thing about the newspaper business or
whether it was making money or not
This started Petition. as he thought,
Oh the high road to fame. He immedi-
ately started out as a candidate for Of
fee, appointed himself as delegate to
both State and National eeIgent:ons,
and was as he stated in the cast the
boss OF fpolitical matters in Ford
county. Here, however, he found that
with all the money tie paper was max
ing that he could not keep up under his
large expenses in travelling, but he
must travel in oroer to keep up his
high political standipg?' So he
adopted the borrowing principal and
proceeded to ''gull' his friends.
He run blacksmith bill for several
years with Andy johnson, and not salts
fed with that borrowed $4,000 and to-
day owes him nearly $4,000
lie borrowed, and by getting A. J.
Anthony on to his note has caused that
gentleman to come ent over $4,000
short
lie succeeded in getting elected
treasurer # his school district and
squandcred abcnt 500. 90 of the school
funds The teachers of that district
had TO run alter him day after day to
get their pay and by one story and
another lie would put them off until
finally Dir. Gailand who was one of his
bondsm:h got after him. then it was
that he fled TO Chicago and pleaded
wSh his brother, who iaaaed him part
OF the money he had squandeFed, and
by paying that money over his good
natUred bondsmcn kept him out of Jail.
There is hardly business man in the
city bat what he has tried to beat. and
has been successful in large number
Of cases.
He got to such a stage that in vrdes |
70 ge: more money he in June of 1888 |
threatened the democratic party that
he would not support their candidates
+ they did not put up cash to him, and |
hen it was that the democrats call, d
II onye e1itor to help them out, which
We did in manner that soon caused
Petition and l,:s paper to become things
If the past.
He has not done a days work during
Ill of this time except to scheme out
some plan to bat our business men. aud
s still in that business.
We have left him alone dus;sy all
this time because of his family, who
nave worked hara to run the farm.
while he sported in the city as gentle
nan of leisure, but when he began to
njure the name aud good standing of
.he TINES by hiS lies then We, after
xaiting So long, concluded to call halt,
ind sho~ &c the people this man in his