Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1899-01-26

| less He Had . Cuticle Like ,
Horned Toad.
Yesterday there appeared in town /,
man with something TO sell at leas1
that's what he said. 70 hasten on tc
the end of the story before We go any
further. and just to relieve the sus.
pense of the sympathetic reader, it may
as well be stated right here that be
didn't sell it. Nobody wanted il,
that's the reason. That same reason
has prevented the sale of numerous
articles even N. re valuable than that
whio b our hero attempted to sell and
claimed to possess. The mans
name was w. II Douglass, and now,
sp aking metaphoric4lly, his name is
Dennis or something else of Irish ex-
traction.
When he appeared on the horizon he
waved a right of way, with the air of
mar who bears a reprieve for the
fellow who stands on the scaffold with
the moose around his heck while the
sheriff turns the other way and pus hes
his toe toward the trigger os the trap
door.
Yet there was no excitement Every
inhabitant of this city kept his shirt on
and breathed the usual number of
times per minute, in the face of this
thrilling spectacular performance,
The story, to be nice about it and
tell it right straight ahead, is about as
near like the following as the facts of
story can be like newspaper article:
Some time ago, when the meeting
Ia the interest Of the electric line pro-
posed to be run between this city and
Hamilton was held at Fairhaven, there
was amid the throng enc w. 81. Dug
lass. Alter that meeting he obtained
from sundry persons letters that mads
the very safe statement that the bear
er was man of integrity and all that
sort OF thing so far as the writer knew.
Assuming that the writer didn't know
the man at all, that staten ent is also
corr ct. O.e letter borne by Douglass
stated that the bearer was known
to be "a railroad promoter.
This letter was perhaps the most
chrritsble Cf the lot, and
went fn; ther out of its way to say some
thing nice. This man then went to the
farmers between Morning Sun and
o., and, accol dir to his
own ADMISSIONS. stated that he was
III the interest of the commit
tee appointed to get franchises and
right of way for the new road, and
that he would ike to have their re-
spective John Ha1cocks to the papers
ne carried. Many uf the SIGNATURES
we're given. by those who took the
matter in good faith, and when he bad
gathered sufficient number he
arouziit it to this c,tv to mark ket, claim
ing also to have the right of way from
Darrtown to Hamilton, having OBJ
tanned the same from the man Peter
Schwab.
Now 1t transpired that when he told
this story in this city he struck gang
Of skeptics, including Perry Freeman,
some of u hom had heard of him be-
fore. In fact. when DR.. Lorimer of
Fairhaven made a trip to this city last
week it was to tell BeI jamin Starr
that man named Douglass was So
Letting the right of way and franchises
FOR the new road between Morning
Sun and DarrtOwn, and was using Mr..
STAIRS name in the solicitation. Mr..
Starr wrote in vigorous Ben Starr
English statement 90 the effect that
be knew Lot Mr.. Douglass and had not
him or any other man to
solicit q right of way in his name
Armed with this letter DR.. Lorimer
returned home aud put the man
out in the first round, accord
ing to tradition When the man
yesterday he tod parties
that he had the right of way
for the first eighteen miles OF
he road this side of Hamilton. It was
surmi ed by the parties to whom he
told this story. that he was attempting
10 ho somebo dy up for a piece of money
IN exchange 70, his property, and the
things they said to him are too numsr-
Dus and too emphatic to be published
in conservative family newspaper.
He was informed that If he or any 9th.
or person attemptei to hold tho COM
nittee up for the price on q right of
way, the plan would be dropped. He
was advised, without any due tender
ness, to go home.a thing which he did
He was asked, however. to appear be-
fore the committee at its meeting last
night, thing which he didn't. He
was told that what he had been doing
and representing was a serious ma ter,
and was warned to desist.