Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1890-10-15
Mr.. DEGEER TALKS.

MIR. DEGEER TALKS.
Mr.. L. w. DeGeer, who was so gross
~ and maliciously sIandered by an artI-
Gle in the Cresset of last week, wrote
the following reply, which he took to
that paper last Thursday morning, and
demanded that it be published. 1t was
refused.
EDITOR CREssET: In your last issue, in &C
cordance with the code of political procedure
prescribed by the supreme power of your par
tv, disregarding the Golden Rule and the
''Decalogue." you have hired a mercenary and
proceeded according to your mode of warfare
Ito mutIlate, TO kilT' and ito destroy" even to
the extent of mutilating and destroying my
private character. Your procuring the merce-
nary over whose signature you promulgated
your Infamous SANDER. convinces me that you
are not only shallow pated knave. but that
you are a cowardly lying knave. Cowardly be-
cause you sought by procuring the signature
of s. Robinson to lessen your legal liability by
destroying the presumption of malice. Cow
ardly because the accusation you bring against
me is SO framed that feeling of deiicacy
would prevent anyone from refuting it before
Il mixed audience. Lying, because you knew
there was no foundation of truth in it. You
knew that v. Rapp deserted his wife and fam
lily in Illinois. and lived here in a 10x12 house,
on claim, in open and notorious adultery
with his wife's sister-Elizabeth Kurtz You
knew that they were a drunken, disreputable
couple as ever dsgraced any community. You
knew that while they lived here happs wife
obtained 9. decrce of divorce on the ground of
desert1on and adultery. You knew that Rapp
was dead beat; that he dead beat his sister,
and that when she came here and found thar
elizabeth KurtZ was here, and living with
Happ, she got out of his wagon after she had
started home with him. and walked back to
town; that she then worked for NJ. Dorgan in
Medicine Lodge to obtain money enough to
take her back home, after Rapp had fieeced
her out of all her money. You knew that
Rapp and his paramour, Elizabeth, owed me
$2S and that they attempted to blackmaiI me
out of 1T by charging crime. You knew that
they tried the same game on one of the best
citizens in this county-S. Y. Carr. You knew
that to avoid prosecution they married imme-
diately after charging me with crime. You
knew that in less than five months they had a
child. You knew that when they left the coun-
try they left in the night to defraud their cred
ltors. In fact you knew you were lying as
evidenced by your signature to petition In
recommendation of myself, signed last May, of
which the following is copy:
PETITION.
To Robt. P. Porter, Superintendent of Cen
sus: we, the undersigned representative re-
puDncans of Barber county, Kansas. most
cneer1ulIy recommend Lyman w. DeGeer az q
person OF GOOD MORAL CHARACTER and an
honest, energetic industrious citizen, and one
VINO; II appointed as census enumerator, we
n md and Gsasa
department:
J; W. Dobson, Sheriff.
II. A. McNeal,
Waldron Chase,
w. L, Rouse. County Clerk.
[. M. AXLINE, Editor Cresset
r. q a. Brown, Deputy County Treasurer.
0l Boyd. Deputy Sheriff.
E. B. Peck, Treasurer.
T. H. Nixon, Register of Deeds
e. NJ. Byerley, Deputy Register of Deeds
f. w; Hill. County Surveyor.
L. Edwards, Probate Judge.
X. A. Cameron, County Attorney
Z. w. Ellis, Judge District Court
Frank Holmes, District Clerk
5. Il. Allen, Deputy District Clerk
You knew that all the facts and circumstan-
ces were inconsistent with my guilt. You
knew that If Elizabeth Kurtz saw Mrs. Brice
at the time of the alleged assault that Mrs.
Brice must have seen the assault if there was
any, and as Mrs. Brice saw no assault you
hhO" tuer0 was NO assault.
You knew last May that was of good moral
| character, honest and industrious. or else you
were willing to recommend me as such.
"hether was so or not, so long as would be
a republican; but as soon as 1 attempted to ex.
! erclse my political rights, if they happened to
| conflict with your opinion or your distribution
OF patronage as political boss, you had to
resort to approved republican ethics and pro.
ceeded forthwith, disregarding the decalogue,
| 10 lie, 10 XIII, to destroy, to mutilate ETC.. not
having an active conscience or sensitive
moral nature" to interfere. Believing that
yours is a case of confirmed and total depray-
ity, believe you would refuse me the use of
your paper in vindication of my character.
but that you will wish to appear fair in order
10 practice receptions; therefore expect you
will publish my vindication. You knew that
was elected in Deerhead township to the
Office of Trustee as a republican, over one of
the pest men In the county, and you also knew
that Deerhead township was democratic by
majority, and that received a majority of
FIVE.
For fear you may mistake my feelings for
you, assure you have no feelings toward
you, save those of contempt and nitv pu,
that you may know in a measure what nv
know what they think of yourself. v. Ram
| Elizabeth Kurtz, s. Robinson ct al. IanDepd
| the following sworn statement of nv net0h
oors. ALL my neighbOrs who were in the
county at the time of the charge and are Still
In the neighborhood. Sir, you have perverted
an Old and well established principle of Jaw
ana In your court instead of the presumptiou
OF innocence, running with the accused unit
proven guilty, you presume person guilty
uhul proven innocent. L therefore, as an
IN your court, without my consent, proceed
according to your rule, to prove myself limo
cent:
we, the undersigned legal voters and neigh
9ots OF l.. '" Detieer, being of lawful age pro
uuceu ana sworn, upon sur Oaths, state thai
NC are ana nave been acquainted with L. W
DeGeer for number of years, and we turtle,
STATE we are acquainted with the facts above
SET Sr+ tortn ana believe them to be true We
lurther believe that the charge made over the
SIGNATURE OF s. Robson, in the Medicine Lodge
Cresset of Oct. g. 1890, is malicious libel. con
found in 3 R ubPlPrinclpied conspirators. who
tool with which they could accomplish theiI
purpose OF ln1uring the private character of 3
that the charge made against L. W. DeC3eer bS
Elizabeth KurtZ was an attempt to eTtory
IMio NO S 1y plackmail, which she and Rapp owed
Henry Frederick, Clay MoGrath
James K. Litz, John McGrath.
| 1890, ., ncClWdlus r. u. FIetcher,
u a.: Jefferson, G. w. McElwain,
y. 6itz, A. e. Dotson,
u. d. Lacy, Samuel South,
p Garr, Joseph W. Decker,
n n. hlckman. William Walker,
T. a. halIsback, e. McEnany,
!. T. Renfrcw, John Renfrew
9onn Larkin. J. II. Gentry
=; h;C COX, John A. Holiness
"A: hickm9n, David Roller,
Robert Walter /: w HottoifFN'
w :; tCISe a, T. q. Frederick,
W. olemepI, j. n, John,
In addition to the above the TNnvv
mas statement of aharoafar &c. IN