The independent., 1903-11-26
BUTLER COUNTY

Mr. McCuns sums mp His Rsassns for Ds-
iisving There was Dsai 10 Trade
sornbsTgsr Tor Evans
The Independent last week prom
ised Messrs. Skiles and Casper sum-
ming up OF the reasons for believing
they and others were parties 10 deal
to trade OF Sornborger for Evans. MT.
McCunes communication has been de-
layed because of death in his family.
In Justice to Mr.. McCune, the asso-
ciate editor desires to say that Mr..
McCune, the morning after election,
related substantially what appears IN
| the communication below-nOt with
| the idea OF going into print about It.,
but rather as a man tired out and dis
gnsted with striving to overthrow re-
publican misrule when such miserable
trades as he believed had been con-
summated in Butler county were being
engineered by the leading opponents
4 to republicanism. Mr.. McCune's at
| titude was one Of despair; but the as
sociate editor, after returning home,
believing that an airing OF the
matter might do some good wrote.
|IgI "a 3 WlIidli G7i1o f6fE stliG
4 classical Billingsgate of Messrs. Skiles
and Casper.
Editor Independent: While I did
4 not expect to break into print about
Butler county politics when inciden-
tally mentioned some matters to you
in regard to the campaign, am not
inclined to dodge the issue. Had |
known while talking to you that what
| said was to be used as the basis for
an article in your paper should have
been more explicit.
Now as to the information upon
which | based the opinion expressed
to you:
was told by several well informed
residents of Butler county during the
campaign that there was tie-up by
which some democrats were to do
what they could for A. j. Evans for
district Judge in consideration OF
Evans, in the event of his election,
appointing Charles Zergan, who IS at
present stcnographer in his Office,
court reporter. This fact became
EnoWn to the democratic state COM
mittee which resulted in an investiga-
ton being made and an effort put
forth to have the deal called off.
Personally | do not believe G. D.
Casper was a party to this court re-
porter deal, but ! do believe he was
favorable to the election OF Evans.
This opinion is based on the fact that
in the article Casper published in the
| Butler County Press relative to the
| Bellwood bank matter in the begin
| ming of the article he predicted Evans
| would poll some fusion votes and to-
| ward the close of the same article nc
| said that if they did he would for
give them. If this was not bid fol
fusion votes for Evans, what was it;
The chairman of the democratic cOun
ty committee, editor Of the only demo
cratic paper in the county and god
father of the party in the county, of
fering absolution in advance to those
who would scratch their tickets for
republican!
Politics in Butler county seem tt
have drifted into system of persona
graft. Mr.. Casper will agree with mt
on this point, for he said in his frs
issue after the election that after pass
ing through thirty-one campaigns II
Butler county, he had reached thi
conclusion.
The Ulysses Dispatch is we'll knowl
to be the personal organ of Count.
Judge G. M. Skiles, for about ever.
month he is held up in its columns a
the greatest legal luminary whose ef
fulgent rays of wisdom have ever bee
shed in Butler county Mr.. SlSiles
hand in glove with the coterie of chea
grafters who manipulated the cour
reporter deal There Is a well found
ed suspicion that Mr. Skiles' ambitio
Is to warm seat on the bench of tn
Fifth judicial district. Seeing. as Nj
III Casper asserts, that politics Is a pei
sonal graft In Butler county. what
more natural than that he tSkiles
should become CRATER, so to speai
and shrink from giving oflense 10 tt
republican grafters2 Is IL not barrel
upgsIhle that this Ii the reason fh