Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1895-06-27
Tell the Truth.

money that we publish the following
from the Atchison Champion, as the
fairest statement that has ever been
made Of the trouble:
Republicans have nothing to gain
but much to lose by misrepresenting
the facts in the Breidenthal case. 1t
is better to tell tho exact truth, no
matter who is bit or hurt by the oper-
alton. No citizen who knows HIM be-
lieves that John W. Breidenthal is a
dishonest man or an incapable officer.
The report of the accountant shows
that there have been technical viola
tlons Of the law, but no actual viola
ton Of its spirit, A statement was
published in a newspaper Saturday
morning to the effect that Bank Com
missioner Breidenthsl had retained
$29,117 in fees belonging to the State.
That was very serious charge and,
il true, places Mr.. Breidenthal in a
very bad light. If the published
charge is untrue, he ought to seek
and secure prompt redress.
The fact of record is that during
the entire time covered by the report
Of the accountant, the total fees COL
lected by Mr.. Breidenthal, and his
deputies, was less than thirteen thous-
and dollars Ia face of this fact it
would look like a carefully devised
plot to create a false impression in
the public mind and destroy the
character Of a public officer by state
ments false in fact, and, we fear,
malicious in purpose.
The accountant, in his statement,
charges the Commissioner with fees
from the date of each examination,
when, as a matter of fact, it has often
happened that it was two, three OF
four months before the fees we're re-
celved by Mr.. Breidenthal. His
policy has been to keep his deputies
at work in the field, and, as we under
stand it, he instructed the deputies tc
pay themselves and their expenses
out Of the fees they collected, which
they have done, and settlements have
been made when they returned to the
home Office at Topeka. To illustrate
Upon the very day that such charge
against Mr.. Breidenthal was publish
ed each of his deputies made exami-
nations of banks at distant points,
and, of course, collected the fees
According to the report Of the &C.
countant, these fees we're that day in
actual possession of Mr.. Breidenthal
and should have been turned over To
the State, although as a matter Of
fact he is not likely to receive such
fees for several weeks to come.
The law does not require deputies
to turn over the fees each day, but is
silent upon that point. The intent Of
the law was to prevent loss to the
State and if Mr.. Breidenthal has, in
the legitimate course Of business
turned into the treasury every dollar
due the State, we cannot see the
force Of the charge that he has been
guilty of serious crime.
In his last report Mr.. BreidenthaI
urged that the law be 30 amended
that the banks should not pay the
fees to the deputies, that should remit
them directly to the treasury, but
his sensible suggestion was UNDECIDED
by the Legislature. Mr.. BreidenthaI
has been declared the legal Bank
Commissioner The decision of the
Supreme Court ought to settle that
question. He is chairman of the
Populist State Committee, and, from
a partisan standpoint, ought to have
sbided the decision OF the people al
the last November election. The
Populists promptly decapitated Mr.
johnson, the Republican Bank Com.
missioner, who had not been confirm.
cd by the Senate; and Mr.. Breiden-
thai had golden opportunity to show
that bis party was sincere in its pro-
fessions by promptly resigning and
allowing Republican to take bis
place. He did not do this, aud has
thus shown that the most virtuous
Populist Of them all. had some of the
plain, old fashioned, ordinary hank
ering after the Aeshpots of Egypt,
but that Of itself il no reason what
ever why any Republican should
treat him unfairly and ungenerously
in the attannt IN nust him from biu