The Semi-weekly leader. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1905-1941, 1908-02-26

lUIUCldlS anu Lu6 SGUGkuUlu0TS SUi
banks have every whit as much
right, of course, to take part in
politics national, State, county or
municipal-as any other citizen
but when it comes to corrupting
politics and degrading public and
official morals by resort to fla
grant graft or something worse,
it is another matter.
This brings US to the real meat
of this editorial.
For some time past there has
been persistent, half whispered
story or rumor that Mr.. w. q.
Linton, Lincoln county's new
treasurer, tried to sell out to two
of Brookhaven's banks--the Com
mercial and the Brookhaven Bank
& Trust Co., when he went to
make his official bond.
Treasurer Linton belongs to a
family which has always stood
high in this county for honesty
and integrity and is an incurable
cripple. He is a mechanic by
trade and owns a little farm of 81
acres in the western part of the
county. About seven years ago,
while engaged in some carpenters
work, he had the misfortune to re-
ceive fall which completely pa
ralyzed his lower limbs and he
has never been able to walk a
step since. His ordinary means
of locomotion is to wheel himself
or have some one else to wheel
him around in an invalid's chair.
Since he became confirmed Grip
pie, his only means of support
has been what he could produce
by having his little farm worked,
and by running little country
store on the public roadside. All
the property he owns in the world
above bis liabilities would prob
ably not bring one thousand dol
lars. His only other visible pos
sessions are wife and five chill
dren, the latter ranging in age
from IA down to two, and the eld-
est boy in the family has but one
leg and goes on crutches. Wheth-
er ". q. Linton is man of prin-
ciple and made out of the right
kind of stuff, can best be decided
by what is stated further along.
When the official returns of the
first primary election in 1908
came in it was found that of the
six candidates who we're in the
hurdle for county treasurer, the
two who were to run over in the
second were the late Thos. w.
keenan, and Wade l.. Summers.
keenan, led Summers by a plural
ity of 81 votes. In less tkan ten
days after the first primary, Mr..
Keenan, sprang surprise on
friends and opponents by announc-
ing bis withdrawal, leaving Sum
mers without a competitor in
the second primary. 1t was the
popular understanding when the
result of the first primary was an
nounced that it made no differ
ence whether Keenan, or Summers
won out in the second primary,
the Commercial Bank had cinch
on the county treasurer's account,
and that therefore it refused to
give Mr.. Keenan, any further sup
port, financial or otherwise, to
continue in the race, and that this
determined his retirement. Mr..
Keenan, published card deny ing
that this was what Influenced
his withdrawal, but the resent
ment of some of his friends and
many others was so great On ac-
count of what was believed to be
the action of some of the principal
representatives of this bank 10
this affair and other political mat
ters as we'll. that they set about
bringing out an independent can
didate fol county treasurer at the
regular November election against
W. L. Summers, who, with Mr..
Keenan, out of the way, easily be-
came the regular Democratic
nominee. A mass meeting was
called and w. q. Linton, Grip
pied then as now. was decided on
as the independent candidate to
make the race; and so general
was the feeling aroused against
what was believed to be the Com
mercial Banks position in the
premises, that though Summers
himself vas confirmed cripple
on crutches, the regular Democrat
ic party nominee, and as was ev-
erywhere charged, backed by a
liberal campaign fund, he only
came out 4 votes ahead of Linton
at the November election.
Last year $500, Mr.. Linton
ran for treasurer again; subject
to the action of the Democratic
primary. With Z competitors, he
came out second in the first pri-
mary and in the second was NOM
mated over bis remaining compet-
itor. He didn't owe tho political
bureau of the Commercial Bank
Ianuthinty mhaknvnr for occ;cAoroo