The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1908-05-07

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strife between Kellison and Mar
tindale that would make the cleo
ton of either impossible or TN
certain. if nominated.
The scheme was a deep laiC
one, and was worked by trained
band of hirelings for months, IL
quiet way, and it succeeded IL
soaring large number OF homes
Democrats into doing what they
did. nominating Bernetha.
Metsker's hatred and opposi
ton to Martindale and Molter, a:
everyone in Plymouth knows
was because they had represented
the State in the prosecution Of
three indictments, returned by
the grand jury of Marshall coun-
ty. against Clay w. Metsker, two
of them charging him with hav-
ing presented for payment fraud
ulent claims against Marshall
county, and one for presenting a
fraudulent claim against West
township.
Two OF these indictments, il
will be remembered, were quash-
ed by the court, Judge Bernetha
presiding, for technical and other
defects, and the little editor was
set free without trial, in the two
cases.
The result of these rulings, and
the Tribune does not say that
they were wrong, naturally made
the little editor feel very kindly
and grateful toward the judge,
and it may have been right there
and then that the little editor re-
solved that he would join the Ber-
netha forces and help TO defeat
and betray every Democratic law
yer in Plymouth and prevent ny
of them from getting the nomin-
alton.
The little editor is not to be
blamed for feeling grateful for
his deliverance. The penitentiary
is not a very desirable place to
live in. If Metsker was grateful,
it is the first time in his life that
he was ever grateful for anything.
Therefore he is not to be blamed
for taking an active part in re-
nominating Judge Bernetha.
But, if the little editor has
tenth part OF the brains he thinks
he has, he ought to have known
that he was under no obligation
to Judge Bernetha. for the pre-
sumption is that the Judge only
did his duty in quashing the in
dictments. a judge may be COM
PEELED from a sense of duty to
quash an indictment that is de-
fective in form or substance,
against a rapist or a cold blooded
murderer, and yet the Judge have
no sympathy with the criminal or
the crime.
But criminals as class do not
look at the principle of such
things. In addition to being
crooked and vicious they are gen
orally fools, and they frequently
make the mistake of srpposine
that because a judge is compelled
to make a ruling in their favor,
that it is because the judge is
friendly to them and their cause.
Knowing Metsker's mental cal
iber, as we do, we can hardly
blame him for feeling ugly and
revengeful toward Martindale
and Molter and kindly toward
Judge Bernetha, get we believe
that Metsker was badly mistaken
if he imagined that the Judge had
any sympathy for him in the mat
ter.
When the Democrats of this
judicial district nominated and
elected Andy Molter prosecutor
two years ago, they knew that he
made no pretentions to being z.
good lawyer, and he never de-
ceived or attempted to deceive
any man on that point.
He probably was not so good
a lawyer, when elected, as some
Of his predecessors in that Office,
but he made one of the cleanest
prosecuting attorneys ever elect
ed in this district.
Molter always wore his heart
on his sleeve where every man
could see it, and under his admin
some of the worst GRIM
inals and curses that ever infest-
ed Marshall county were sent to
the penitentiary, and that more
were not sent there, was not his
fault.
He is the first prosecutor who,
for many years, called public at
tention to attempts to tamper
with justice and to the attempt
made to bride the prosecuting at
torney. When a man does that it
is the highest proof that he is an
honest official.
In these days of official graft
ing, when SO many public officials
are charged with taking brides,
and passing themselves off as
high minded and honest officials,