Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1895-03-06

who were wealthy. This wealthy organ |
ization had fenced large tract of the
public domain and the wood haulers
had probably left gate open ant their
life paid the penalty of their supposed
negligence. Then as now. the Cresset
paid homage to corporate power, and
murder by the following
bold headline:
''THEY GOT THEIR DOSE"
So it would seem that in the estima-
ton of the Cresset, the far meTs who
and delivered cane to the
sugar mill last season and the laborerS
that worked night and day, early and
late, all got their Dose" for we see
that the following headline is placed
oyer DR.. Z. p. Miller's article:
GETTING WHAT THEY VOTED FOR.
Read the headline carefully and dis
coYery sympathy. Can any construc-
ton be placed on it other than they
got their dose?" Thus farmers, wheth-
er you are republicans, populists or
democrats or prohibitionlsts, you all
"gOt your dose" and are getting what
you voted for"
Not wishing to do the Cresset any
injustice and that our readers may
properly weigh Dr. MilIer's statements
made by the republican press and the
antics of gentlemen that carried two
sacks of sugar through the late cam
paign, we Will quote from the doc
tors article and then briefly give facts:
GETTING WHAT THEY VOTED FOR.
To the Editor of the Cresset:
am In receipt of your issue of Feb
ruary s. In the article The Sugar
Question" see the farmers of Med
icine Lodge are taking steps to try to
collect pay for cane they have sold to
the sugar factory this summer. The
reason given for their not having their
pay, is found in the following para
graph:
"Mr. Best, we understand, says that the re-
peal of the government bounty and the entire
ly unexpected low prices of raw sugar is what
has caused the company trouble; that no on e
is more anxious than he, to see the farmers
get their money; that sugar at present prices
would not pay freights and commissions, and
he tied his hands with the assignment at n
time when he had to have some cash to run
the mill and confidently expected reasona-
BILE price for sugar"
Mr.. Best thus expresses the whole
situation in nut shell, and l believe
he states the actual truth about it.
do not believe he, or anyone connect
ed with the sugar mill, has the Slight
est desire to wrong the farmers Out of
one single dollar of the money for the
sorghum which they sold to the factory
On August 30 and September 6,
the price of graduated sugar is quoted
at 4.72 cents per pound, while on jam
ary 81, 1895, the price is given at 5. "A
cents per pound, showing that sugar
has declined in price almost one cent a
pound since the last of August 1894.
Early last spring several meetings
were held by the cane rails ers and Mr..
Best and the result was an agreement
on schedule of prices, two schedules
being agreed upon. The first provided
for the same pay for the same grade of
1893, provided the bounty clause of the
Mckinley law remained in force. The
second provided for graded reduction
on all grades of cane provided thebOun-
ty clause was repealed and tariff
equal to one cent a pound was placed
on raw sugar. There was also placed
in SAID contract q clause providing that
the company would not be required to
take and pay for any sorghum should
the bounty clause be repealed and sug-
ar be placed on the free list.
Certainly Mr.. Best cannot claim that
any advantage was taken of him or
that he was not expecting such legisla-
| ton, else why did he have the saving
| clause placed in the contract? Did
Best do his best to pay the farmers? If
he did he certainly practiced deception.
Mr.. Best cannot complain of the treat
ment he received from the farmers for
they exhibited a great deal of forbear-
ance as class and some of them (be it
said to their sorrow placed entirely too
much confidence in the oft repeated
statement that 1.-The sugar company had
unlimited capital at their disposal"
Does last falls disclosure prove their
assertions2 Tom Best represented to
the farmers that the state bounty
would be applied to the payment Of the
cane haulers bills and when the farm
ers became alarmed and appealed tC
the legislature Mr.. Best stated to some
of the cane haulers that he was perfect
ly willing that the legislature should
make the appropriation for their bene
fit and that he would do all he could
to assist them. All of Mr.. Best's pro
LESSONS Of tair treatment about this
time fell to the ground for about this
time it was discovered that Mr. Best
had made an assignment of the bounty
due from the state of Kansas. The as
signment was by agreement of August
10Th, 1894, and sigpedAugust oath, 1864
said assignment was fiied in the state
auditors Office Nov. 2Sth, 1894. In the
assignment Mr.. Best agrees to do all ht
can to procure the bounty for the First
National Bank, of Carroll. Iowa.
Was Mr.. Best doing all he could t.
pay the farmers when he was promis
ing them to assist In procuring tn,
bounty for them and was unde,
stipulations to procure it for anothe
) and to pay all costs in case a suit a
} law was necessary
Here is where the two little sacks o
sugar were getting in their work. TIL
Carroll County Bank had sued Bes
Bros. and the Medicine Lodge Suga
} company in the q. s. district court
Chester l. Long is the attorney of rec
ord in that case. A judgment wa
, entered by stiplulations on the 17tl
day Of Sept. 1894 for over $4,000, on
} of those stip1iatiOns. was the assign
ment of the state bounty. Chester