The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1892-08-18
MORE OF RAY ROTTENNESS
Goods Sold TO Trustees in Madison
County Away Beyond Their Value.
An Anderson Paper Takes Up the Work of In
vsstigaiion--How Ray Has Been Protected
by the Shelby County Ring.

The Anderson Times has begun an exam
iDation of the township books In Madison
county, with a view to learning how ex-
tensive the operations of George NJ. Ray
have been there. and at the first dash 1t
turned up some thing In the nature of news.
1t says editorially:
school supplies in Shelby county last week
put the Times a thinkin'. 1t thought there
might be something of the kind in Madison
county where In the dim and misty past 10
has transpred that some Democrats con-
strued public office 10 be private snap.
On the first page of this edition Is given
the returns from two townships where Geo.
NJ Ray worked bis school supply
racket with two Democratic trustees.
The figures given arc interesting
courthouse cellar organ to prayerfully
and carefully examine them. Rays
scheme, which seems to have found pa
irons In good ola rock-ribbed Madison
lard scheme of some. years ago. by which
the people OF the State were robbed OF over
S750000. The scbsme consisted of working
susceptible township trustees by the sale
OF large amounts OF inferior school supplies
at exorbitant prices the trustees warrants
for the same being sold ut a discount tor
cash, the heaviest operations OF
Ray being IN his own county, where
he was leader of the Democracy and q
brother of Scott Ray, the editor of the
several counties of the State, and in each
instance the warrants have been issued for
q few specified articles and school supplies
Under the latter delusive heading il where
the multitude of sins find refuge. The
disclosures of to-day are only eye-Openera
Each township In the county. including
those with Repu blican trustees, Will be
examined"
Now, if the Journals exposure of Rays
debauchlng of trustees will only set other
newspaper people-and boards of county
commissioners as weIl-t0 thinking, possi-
bly, the full extent of this rottenness can
be developed. and the betrayers of public
trusts and their seducer brought to justice.
The Anderson Times, in it's news columns
of Tuesdays issue. gives this information:
The Times Can give the facts regarding
only two townships to-day. but more are
TO follow. The first is Adams township. of
which Adam FOrney Is the trustee. He
issued orders to George N. Ray to the
ments were as follows: Sept. IA, 1888. due
two years after date. for eleven sets
of International Cyclop8dlas, $500.
Same date, eleven sets of writing
charts md school supplies. $500. Same date.
another order, due January Is, for S4l5,
bearing per cent. interest. This latter
order passed To the ands OF II. Mccullough,
through purchase. presumably, aud he Sc
cured Judgment against the township
trustee for S4S4. 10 and S32. 20 attorneys fees,
which increased the expense SOL .05 max
ing grand total of S1,S36.04. as the cost to
Adams township of perhaps three or four
hundred dollars worth of supplies.
Mr.. George NJ. Ray also had dealin's
with Trustee Vanmeter. of Lafayette town
ship, but Mr.. Vanmeter has been paying
the orders he issued. and has not allowed
them TO get into the courts as did Trustee
Forney. On the 4th of August. 1890, he paid
an order issued to Ray for object forms and
school snppiies'-S36644. On the % of
March. 1890. he paid the order to Ray for
nine sets of geographical sketches and nine
sets of A-B-C charts-$224.2S. On the I'd of
August, 1891, he paid an order to Ray for
nine sets of cube blocks ard nIne maps and
crasers-S33l.74. making total of the three
orders of S922.46. The Times did not have
the time. yesterday evening, to search for
orders preceding or following these. nor has
it any means OF finding whether there are
any unmatured orders outstanding. Only
the trustees books show that"