Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1899-04-27
A MANLY REPLY
10 a Very UngentlemanIy and
False Attack Upon the
County Attorney.
The Poor, Degraded LibeIers of
the Incubator Meet an
Aguinaldo.


seems to be roaring, seething and
boiling over with either venom or
agony IN its attacks upon Daddy"
Payne, Sinnott, their assistant"
and the gang" which are proba-
bly, the Legitimate issue of an i'm
beetle nondescript, generally aimed
at myself. As their side of the
matter is presented or misstated to
the public, | request that my state
ment OF matters as to the charge
they allege against me, may be
made to the world through the col
umns of the Bulletin.
After complimenting me by call
ing me an intellectual freak" and
crediting me with being the nerviest
of the gang" the writer describes
me as "the mistit county attorney"
As | never had the support of the
outfit that run or pretend to run
that paper for the position | hold,
it is not for them to Judge me. 1t
is for the people who elected me,
and when they will say that | am
false to the trust they reposed in
me, will step down and out.
In answer to the charge of cow
ardly warfare against a respectable
lady, | will say that | am doing
nothing of the sort. | am not try
ing to deprive her of the position to
which she has been elected, and |
do not know of anybody who covets
the place. The sum of the matter
is this:
The act of 1897 defining the du-
ties of county superintendent of
public instruction provides that no
person shall be eligible to that
office except practical teacher of
not less than two years experience
and the holder of valid first-grade
certificate at the time OF his or her
election or appointment.
As county attorney, my attention
has been called to the fact that
Miss Lodge, at the time of her cleo
ton, did not possess this qualifica-
ton, and was therefore Ineligible.
Last January, when she qualified
for the office, | called the attention
of the board of county commits
sioners to the fact that the law re-
quired this qualification, and adj
vised that the board ascertain that
she was legally eligible before she
would be permitted to qualify,
There was no dark-lantern work
about this-it was done openly and
in the presence of that lady. As to
this qualification, she did not then
and there claim to have it Her
legal counse! CIV. G. Howie) being
present, objected to any proceeding
by the board in the case-claiming
that it was a matter for the court to
settle-and the board sustained the
point. Under the existing circum-
stances, there is serious matter of
law to be determined, and the sooner
the better. Is this lady de jure
or de facto officer If she did not
at the time of her election possess
the legal qualification, is she le-
gally qualified officer according to
the existing law? If she is not,
then every official act done and per-
formed by her becomes necessarily
invalid AS matters now exist the
legality of all school matters in this
county for the next two years is
open to contest; hence the necessity
of settling the matter in the court
and placing the affairs of the office
on an unquestioned legal basis by a
decree of the court.
For this reason this suit is
brought as test case, simply to as
certain her legal standing If the
district court decides in her favor
then her title is clear. If otherwise,
the office will be declared vacant.
In this event, | will say that no,
body that | know wants the Office
at least nobody among the Silver
people, whom the Republican sneer-
ingly refers 70 as "fusionists." AS
she was duly elected, she, in such
event, would certainly be appointed
by the board to fill the vacancy
and as she now holds valid first
grade teachers certificate her ap
poiDtment would be legal and there
would be no question as to the lie
% litv If her acts as Such officer
if done as the law directs.
There is my position and there il
the why, the wherefore and thu
truth of the matter. There is nj
intention of persecution of veal
woman on my part. seorn it. l.
1899 | stood upon the floor in tn,
Idaho constitutional convention al
member ftom this county, and of
fered a woman's suffrage plank t.
be placed in our state constitution
The attack upon G. NJ PAYNE i
simply unwarranted and villainous
Mr. Payne was not party to thi
matter, either directly or indirectly
and he does not and never at an,
time did he endeavor to bring tn,
slightest influence to bear upon "a
in any official affairs of mine.
At the time this suit was brough
by me, ! made the same explana