Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1909-01-18
Republican Board Stops Practice and
Returns Money Collected.
DEMOCRATS DIVIDE OVER JUDGE
Selection of Holcomb Instead Of Dean
Causes Sore Spots.
SUGGESTION ANSWERED
Friendly suit Purchase OF Bonds
would Have Settled Point Gov
ernor shaIlenberger says
IL Important.
CFrom a Staff Correspondent.)

LINCOLN, Jan. 17.-(Special)-Th effort
OF the democratic legislature to make pOA-
teal capital out of the bill to pay back
to the members of the soldiers homes that
portion of their pension money collected
by the state will doubtless prove unlvai.
ing.
That little matter has already been at
tended to by the republican State Board OF
Public Lands and Buildings, or at least the
board issued orders to Commandant Hoyt
of the Grand Island Soldiers home 10
fund the money. This order was issued
many months ago. No pension money wus
taken from the soldiers at Milford under
the last order of the state board.
For many years It had been the custom
of the state to collect portion OF the PEN
sion money of those soldiers who hal n
dependent relatives and apply 1t TO the
maintenance of the home. The republican
board, in order to make It easier on the
old soldiers, adopted rule whereby the
money to be deducted from the pen sons
should be graded according to the amount
the soldier received from the government.
This graded assessment provided tina; no
soldier receiving only s12 a month should
pay any thing to the state. Those who hud
heretofore paid a stipulated monthly sum
were assessed considerably less.
The democratic campaign committee mis-
represented this fact to the voters OF the
state and used It in opposition to the re-
publican party. The matter finally reached
the courts and 1t was decided the state had
legal right to assess the members OF the
house a portion of their salaries. When
this was established however, the repub-
lican state board rescnded its previous
order and instructed the commandants of
the two houses not to take any of the
pension money. Further, the command mt
at Grand Island was instructed to refund
any money which he had collected under
the order At that time Mr.. Hoyt sale he
had sufficient money in his cash fund to
do this.
On the heels OF this, however. a bill has
been introduced in the house to force the
state to pay back this money, and the
junketing committee has recommended its
passage.
The appointment of Judge Holcomb by
Governor Shallenberger in place Of Judge
! Dean, appointed to the supreme bench by
| Governor Sheldon. has caused considerable
talk among the democrats and the belief
is that a wide breach has been made in
| the party.
Judge Holcomb is one OF the men who
came to the front for the selection Of
! Judge Dean at the hands of Governor
Sheldon and that was one of the reasons
why the governor turned him down when
he finally asked for the place.
Among the other supporters of Dean wee
Clarence Mackay, late candidate for the
democratic nomination for state treasure;
w. II. Eastman Candidate for land COM
missioner; Judge Sullivan Of Broken Bow,
and the chairman OF the Custer county
| democratic committee.
! After these men had requested the ap-
pointment of Dean at the hands OF the gov
ernor Sullivan and Holcomb came to Lin
| coin and asked Governor Sheldon to ap-
point Judge Holcomb. This request was
made in the face of the fact that they had
already endorsed the candidacy Of Judge
/ Dean, and Judge Holcomb had been one of
| the first to sign his petition.
In the mantime the question has not yet
merely trying to get the legal point se
| tied as which had the authority TO canvass
the vote on the amendments, the State
! Canvassing board or the state legislature,
why suit was not started to enjoin the
state treasurer from investing the perma-
nent school fund in county bonds.
This amendment was voted on at the
submitted and a decision In this case would
have settled the other without any need
OF disrupting the supreme court This, how
ever, was suggested by Taylor OF Custer
county on the floor OF the legislature.