The Indianapolis journal., 1899-02-27
THE TAxEATERs COMBINE.

IN 1891 the Democratic fee and salary bill
was saved by the vigilance and energy of
Speaker Niblack and a few friends. The
county officers lobby had demoralized the
engrossing clerks, and members of it were
driven from the rooms when the bill was en-
crossed. The law was invalidated because
the compensation of the officers of Shelby
county, notorious for the pundering
of county officers, was omitted from
the enrolled BILL undoubtedly by
the procurement of the tax-eating gang.
In 1895 the fee and salary bill which became
law had to be watched at every point, the
gang even attempting to prevent it's delivery
to the Governor for signature by an attempt
TO keep the committee out of the Statehouse
until after midnight of the last day that
bills could be presented to the Governor for
his action. The persistence of the committee
and the good will of the late Gov
ernor Matthews toward the measure
saved it. That year the county of
How much of this amount was used in brib-
ing an insufficient number of members and
clerks to defeat the bill, or how much of it
the committee representing the association
in the lobby slipped into pockets, will never
be known. On these two occasions the lobby
of the county officers association alone
fought the measures to check the plunder-
ing of the people.
With the same desperation that character
ized the Hobbies of 1891 and 1895 the alleged
county officers committee, headed by
Democratic official. is fighting the county
bill. The Journal has no means of knowing
the size of the corruption fund which this
committee has collected to defeat the county
bill and to pass the Hedgecock fee-grab-
bing bill It knows that several county of
ficers have refused to contribute to such
fund, and it is fair to assume that the most
Of them have refused. In this lobby are
men who have been very near the State
prison for plundering taxpayers, through
weak or conspiring township trustees, of
many thousand of dollars in the interest Of
a school-supply house. Into this opposition
bridge companies and general supply deal
ers have entered-all the names of whom
can be given. In short, all the elements
that thrive by unnecessary and eXtravagant
contracts and by corrupt practices are COM
bined to defeat the county bill. Their agents
are alert and unscrupulous. They have an
abundance of money to be used when it can
be, and men to dominate and threaten a few
men who seem to think that it is better to
represent the tax-eaters than the men who
elected them.
AS the vote stood on Saturday all but two
Democrats are lighting the battle of this
voted against the county bill Saturday are
Baker of Martin Dilley of Huntington, Dun
ham of Vigo, Hall of Benton and Newton,
Holcomb of Decatur, Marshall and Reser of
Tippecanoe, Miller of Kosciusko, Murphy
and Strong Of Marion, Reese of Elkhart
and Shrader. These twelve constitute one
fifth of the Republican members-enough to
enable the Democrats to prevent the pas
sage of the bill, which, in caucus or by
agreement outside of a caucus, it was their
last determination to do. Thus they make
themselves the allies of tax-eaters, and the
twelve Republicans sustain the decision of
the Democratic conference rather than that
of four-ffths of the Republican members in
conference or caucus. The Journal says to
them in all kindness that they are making
a very grave mistake and doing their party
a very grievous injury if they persist in their
opposition to the county bill. Its earnest ad-
vice is that they join will the great ma
jority of their party associates in enacting
this measure into law.