davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Starkville news. (Starkville, Miss.) 1902-1960, 1911-06-30

VeStlSate NOel Goo. ~ CIley
went to work at once. Employed,
at the tax payers expense. a ST.
enographer, an accountant. sum-
moned many witness, took down
the testimony in and publshed d
it. all at the tax payers expense.
They went to the Banks of the
City, hunted up every merchant
with whom the Governor had
transacted business or made an
account. They took up so small
a matter as base ball bat, and
found where the Governor had
that charged to the State. They
injected that into the public re-
cords at no small expense (See
page 40 Of their Report) Then
they went to the Banks to ascer-
tain the disposition of those two
large warrants on the Contingent
Fund. At one Bank they found
deposits corresponding in dates
and amounts with the warrants.
placed there by Vardaman when
this great discovery was made a
whoop and howl went up from
every common cause" sheet in
the State that would have made
a Comancher war dance sounded
like thirty cents" They were
actually hilarious. The Ex- Gov
ernor was caught! But I said a
moment ago, they made a great
blunder. They did. for Noel too,
had to be examined. and To-!
Noel had been doing the very
same thing, placing from $500. 90
to 100000 to his account in
Bank and was forced to give re-
asons which justified both Var
daman as well as himself, (See
his testimony at page 35 OF Re-
port).
What else did the committee
do towards exculpating Of Var
damau? In it's report page 4,
and Immediately over the sign
ature of each member, they said,
1--WE further find from the evil
dence that Governor Vardaman
had his last biennial report pre-
pared and ready for your COM
mittee in 1908, but the committee,
by over sight failed to call for
and check or approve the same" J"
It is we'll known fact. un-
disputed that Vardaman was
checked up the first time by the
committee, there being only two
legislature committees to check
up each Governor. (page 43 of
Report). 1t is also undisputed
that Vardaman was the first
Governor for years to have him
self checked up, which was at
his request. (See report page 49,
What else? Edwards who was
Private Secretary to Governor
Vardaman the entire time he was
Governor except the last IA
months testified that, sit was a
uniform custom, never varied
from, so far as my recollection
goes now, to take receipt for
each warrant and all sums of
money paid out of the Executive
Contingent Fund. Governor
Vardaman was so careful about
this matter that he was, it
seemed to me, continually and
eternally instructing me to be
careful about these vouchers.
and about having them all in
one place for the inspection of
the Legislatures" (See his testi-
mony % of the Report
That is only part of his good
testimony.
The Starkville news. (Starkville, Miss.) 1902-1960, 1911-06-30

time came, and not before,
Vardaman turned in every cent
he had collected, which amount
was only secret, but known to the
entire Committee.
Did his traducers do the manly
thing and make gentlemanly am
ends for the injury they had done
him? Not much They simply
sought another ground of COM
plant.
Next. they sprung the Meridi
an Cyclone Fund. and accused
Vardaman of misappropriating
that. This we Mt the rounds.
The charges were SO absurd
that Vardaman paid little heed.
Finally it got so bad and bold.
Col. Street, a. political enemy,
but gallant gentlamen, came
out and branded it as false of the
whole cloth. Did they apologize?
On the other hand they actually
still herald the same damnable
falsehood to all the world!
What next? This seemed to
settle them for a.short time only.
for next the. came with the
Spanlch and American War Fund
and said he had embezzled that
also. They took this up, publi-
shed it in all their papers, Alex
ander and Percy discussed it
from the stump, until finally Nc
Laurin, brother of the dead Sen.
ator, though a political enemy,
yet gentleman, came out and
branded that also as a malicious
falsehood. Did they make due
amends? leaveit to you. Even
his opponents.a actually aspiring to
the highest office within the gift
of the people, actually hurled this
malicious faslehood in his face
and "framed up" questions to be
propounded.
Next came the Bryan Fund,
and said he "swiped" that also.
every cent. HIS enemies publ
shed that too, and declared 1t to
be the truth. That furnished
material for weeks, until news
came from Prof. Kincannon at
Columbus, that not only the
principal but also interest there
on had been placed in the proper
hands.
By this time the thing became
desperate with them. The
caucuse had defeated Vardaman
at an expense of over One Humid
red Thousand Dollars Of The
Peoples Money, and Legislators
were afraid to go home until they
did something to clear up things
and give the "white wash" time
to soak in. So Will Percy, a
nonresident brother of that ''ac
cident" of the same name. got
his nimble fingers mixed up with
the vouchers Governor Varda-
man had left in the Office when
he retired two years before and
two important vouchers, repre-
senting $4,000 and 100000 re-
spectively were missing from
the files. (See page A of the
Committee Report) What hap
pened? Why, they thought they
had trapped the Great White
Chief. The Legislature, still
being in session. appointed, post
haste. a joiut committee from the
House and Senate. with power,
and especially charged, to make
Investigation of the Expenditure
of the Executive Contingent
Fund, etc (See Laws, 1910 Chap
ter, 1863 But in their haste they
4 II n.
The Starkville news. (Starkville, Miss.) 1902-1960, 1911-06-30


check it over. He said further
that" Il found a compartment
in the steel fling case marked,
contingent Fund. When war
rants were drawn, if a receipt
was taken. except when money
was drawn by Governor Varda-
man direct to pay some expense
which he would mark 'Contin.
gent Fund.- the receipts were
filed in this same compartment"
(page 43-44) On the last page
mentioned above he further said"
[ know all vouchers. were there
for the fourteen months [ was
Private Secretary, and presume
they were while Mr.. Edwards
was. The first time [ ever look
ed at the receipts taken during
the four years term of Gov ernor
Vardaman, was when Mr.. VIII
Percy came into the office" etc.
Mr.. Buck said further, on page
As that, II had seen some news
paper criticim and some state
ments that it was likely that
these receipts had been with
drawn in some manner because
many had access to the Gov
ernor's office. These vouchers
we're not kept under look and
key' etc.
So you see from the above
that the matter of the safety of
the vouchers had been discussed
and it was shown that they had
been open IN plain view of all
the world, Sin a steel filing case.
marked "Contingent Fund
Now Will you kindly read what
Governor Noel testified to before
that committee. he also being
sworn and under oath? Listen,
referring directly to the vouc-
hers he said. "They were taken
from the locked drawer and turn.
ed over to Mr.. Moore" One said
not kept under lock and key"the
other. said they were Buck Noel
Now in the name of goodness,
what does that sound like? 1t
cannot be successfully contended
that either could have been mis-
staken, Too important a matter.
One of them testified falsely to
material fact, and I say, whom
do you think testified falsely?
If it was Noel, it was because he
hated Vardaman. If it was Buck
it was because he wanted to favor
him. Please bear in mind that
Buck is still Private Secretary to
Governor Noel, So I leave the
solution of this problem of false
hood to you.
Does any honest man doubt
what became of these vouchers?
Now all this came up while the
Legislature was in session. That
Body is charged with the MAX
ing of all needful laws to proper
ly protect this State and her pro.
pertY. I say, If they had any
proof that Vardaman had misused
either fund placed in his hands,
the grand-Jury was in session,
why didn't they have him in
dicted? Some sage has wisely(D|
said that Governors were immune
to punishment for violations of
the laws. Well that; like all the
other rot is also fake, every line
and letter. A Governor, like
any other officer, is amenable to
all our laws, both while in Office
and out.
But grant, for the sake OF
argument, that such was the case
whv did thew not pass a law cor.
The Starkville news. (Starkville, Miss.) 1902-1960, 1911-06-30
Longview Scraps.
BY BETSY BROWN.

We have been having a lot of
rain for the past few days, but
we are glad to see the sun SHIN
ing once again.
The Republican journal., 1911-12-14

Pictures, framed and I'M
framed. NJ. P. Woodcock &
Son.
The Republican journal., 1911-12-14

has developed to the consolidation of the re-
organized Eastern Steamship Co., the Metro
politan Steamship Co and the Maine Steamship
Co. into single corporation Mayor Fitzgerald
has sent communication to the Boston Cham
Der of Commerce in which he asks that body
to join him in opposing the proposed consolida-
ton and he has gone to Washington to lay the
matter before President Taft and members of
Congress. His objection is that in exchanging
Eastern Steamship Co. stock "for nearly double
its present market value the directors Of the
new corporation have created paper values up
on which the public will have to pay divi-
dends," and that "the increase of capital means
no addition to the fleet or to the actual assets
of the company, land he does not "see how the
company can continue to paw liberal dividends
without raising the rates and thereby impos-
ing fresh burdens upon freight and passenger
traffic to and from this port c. Vey Holman
of Rockland has also sent presentment to
President Taft, complaining that the recent re-
organization of the Eastern Steamship Co. is
can attempt to attain monopolistic restraint of
competition in interstate traffic" On the
other hand the Boston News Bureau says that
panies "into a single, strong corporation under
able and experienced management and with
Headquarters in Boston is one of the most i'm
portant events in local transportation circles
in several years." Routes covered by the new
company will comprise Boston to New York
for freight the year through and for freight
and passenger during the summer and early
fall; from New York to Portland, Me-. for
freight and passengers the year round; from
Boston to all points along the Maine coast as
far east as St. John for freight and passengers.
Other new routes are under contemplation,
which will mean large increase in business.
All the steamers of the new corporations fleet
will hail from the little town of Eliot in York
County on the Piscataquis River. instead of
Bath, and it is understood that the change Of
hailing port was brought about by Ex-Governor
John F. Hill, who is one Of the principal own
ers of the Eastern Steamship Company, and
native of the town of Eliot.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-10-29

sonally be inclined 10 accept the offer
and thus TO take the cash and let the
credit go" Perhaps the majority would
do SO If left entirely TO their own decl-
sion. But that would not suit the trade
unions. and the authority Of those or
ganizations will presumably be exerted
against il.
The text of its report shows that the
commission considered not specific Sriev-
ances and demands Of the men, but
rather the technical forms Of procedure
through which disputes over such mat
tiers are hereafter TO be settled. Per
haps that was the course of wisdom. II
not of necessity. But it is obvious that
refusal TO accept the recommendations
leaves the dispute far from settlement.
There is 10 settlement Of the specific
grievances. and there IS no agreement
upon a method by which they are to be
settled. The companies propose a short
cut. by which one Of the chief real griey-
ances would be abated without setting
any precedent for future methods Of pro
cedure. That Is shrewd tactics, and Will
give the companies some advantage
whether the offer is accepted or not. For
if II is accepted the men will have much
Of their ground for striking cut from
under them: while if it is not accepted
the companies viii have the credit of
having offered the men better wages, and
the men Will suffer the reproach Of hav-
ing rejected betterment OF their condl-
ton for belligerenr purposes.
The dispute. on the face of the com
missions report. Is over technicaliues Of
recognition and procedure in nesotia-
tons. 1t is not over the wages and
hours Of service Of the men, In which
the whole humanitarian public would
take interest. hut over the question OF
sectional or central boards Of concilia-
ton, Of independent or partisan chair
men. Of written petitions or verbal de-
mands. and the like II is not injudi-
cious 10 say that the public cares for
none Of these things and it would doubt
/ less regard with little sympathy or pa
thence a strike over such matters. II
wants TO see the workmen fairly paid
and decently treated, and it would sus-
/ tain them in demands for such condi-
tons: but TO have the business Of the
country disturbed and the whole people
put 10 immense inconvenience, loss and
suffering because of a difference OF
opinion over the scope Of Cancellation
boards or the form Of requests would
probably cause much more Indignation
+ than sympathy.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-10-29
THE RISE IN FOOD PRICES
Ascribed to the s7,OOO,OOo,OOO Toll
Taken by Middlemen.

To the Editor OF The Tribune.
Sir: The closing sentence OF your AWAY
admirable editorial, Money and Business
this morning says: ASIDE from cotton, iron
and steel. prices for commodities. as q
rule, are higher"
Nothing OF such brevity could more clear
" indicate the undesirable and unwarrant-
able circumstance Of increased and increas-
Ing cost OF living which obviously prevails
and which your editorial leader In The
Tribune Of July 30 set forth so clearly and
mpressively under the heading wv orth
While" In that able summary II was
shown that the agricultural products alone
marketed In this country last year cost
the consumers $1,000 0Oo,Ooo and that more
than half this enormous sum OF money
went 10 riddlemen. The following quota
tons from that editorial should nave a ma
ton wide circulation. because Of the out
rageous overcharge for marketing WHAT
the whole people must have that is now
unuuestionably directly due 10 the rapaclty
OF those who stand between producers ana
consumers, selling at profits 10 winch thes
are not naturally entitled and reyer codld
rake off we're public opinion really formed
by such thoroughgoing reliable Information
as this.
1T is not the high cost OF living "lch
burdens the consumer so much as no hiSn
cost OF selling. II the farmer and the con-
sumer could come closer together TINS
has been successfully done IN Denmark
they could divide a considerable portion
Of the s.OOo.0O00CO now dropped into inc
laps OF middlemen. The farmer could Troo-
ably Increase his charge % per cent and
the purchaser save % per cent on his out
Iay-and the elimination OF waste Woulo
mean ample prosperity for the on9 and
material relief 70 the other
Coincidental with this, 1t is distinctly
alarming 10 note that in 1910 the entire
value OF our agricultural output was SVW''
0O0O00. one-third OF which was directly con-
sumed at farms, etc, and yet SLe0Wp"
was literally collected from the American
people for marketing 10 them %'ooO""'y'
worth OF things 10 eat and, In spite Oh
these lncontrovertible facts, the license Oh
generally aggravated imposture extends II
self and prices for commodities get higher
ALFRED LAURENS BRENNAN.
New York. oct. %. 1911
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-10-29
PATENTS AND THE SHERMAN LAW

To the Editor Of The Tribune.
SIR. The letter OF Mr.. Brady in The Trib-
uue of to-day relevant 70 the relations ne
tween the patent law and the Sherman Ia"
ts. promuted me- as the author Of the best
l,noUu writings on both OF those laws, TO
o,pIain rheir established relations, which !
do as follows:
The patent law secures 10 each patentee
an exclusive right TO make. 10 use and 20
sell whatever is the subject OF his patent
and the sherman law does not diminish
that right. The Supreme. Court decided
this point in the Bement case IN 49, as
reported In 80 [. =, 20.
The sherman law prohibits any two or
more uatentees from combining their sep
a-ately owned patents by means Of pool
for the purpose OF stopping all competition
botyyaen them and collecting higher prices
from the public than the patents II sep
sratolv managed. could be made 10 Drlns
in This was decided by Judge Brown In
rho Blount case In 1870, as reported IN loo
r.d Rem. So. and there Is no reason %
doubt the correctness Of his decision
THE pateut law secures TO the patentee
~ a process patent the exclusive right 20
u.e lis process in making whatever article
n /. adapted 10 make cor help 10 make, but
the patent law does not give him any right
q. combine with other men 90 fix the prices
III which that article shall be sold after he
sells u. And any such combination as
that violates the sherman law. This was
decided about two weeks ago In Baltimore
bv Judge Rose and Judge Pritchard In the
Bathtub case. and there Is no reason 20
expect that any court Will ever decide the
poiut otherwise. ALBERT II. WALKER
New York oct. -. 1911
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-10-29
THE REAL TSSTE

II is hard 10 understand the motives
and reasoning Of those professed Oppo-
nents Of Tammany rule who halt and
Maggie over accepting the local fusion
ticket in its entirety. They feel at lib
cIty TO give Tammany the moral ell
coUrag cement Of supporting some Of its
nominees, while they loudly denounce
the odious and undemOcratic system by
which those nominees We're designated
and the general results Of Tammany
maladministration both in this city and
at Albany. Tammany viii never be
overthrown if its opponents. either Re
pUhlicans or Democrats, merely abuse
NJ Murphy and then vote Tor his can
didates.
In pleasant contrast with the wab-
bling attitude Of some Of our local
Tammany baiters whose zeal relaxes
more and more as Election Day ap-
prOaches Is the unconditional demand
made by Democrats Of the stamp Of
Thomas NJ. Osborne that Mr.. Murphy's
entire ticket be defeated simply because
It is Murphys. Mr.. Osborne is running
JHis year as Democratic candidate for
Mayor I'm Auburn, his home city. Yet
he has the courage TO invite reprisals Oh
the part Of the Democratic state ma
chine by coming to New York and say
ius that the defeat of the local Demo
cratic ticket is the imperative need Of
the hour and asking all good citizens to
join in defeating it whether they count
themselves Republicans OF Democrats
in state or national politics
III Mr. Osbone's view. which is that
of most sensible citizens. Murphy and
the satellites who do his bidding rep
resent only q selfish desire 10 get q
profit out of disagreement. They are
net working 10 carry out the ideas of
tie Democratic party. 10 which they
nominally belong. for they have always
treated the promises made Ina Demo
cratic state platforms as idle chatter
They are mere freebOOters, busy lining
their own pockets, and the Democratic
voters Of the state owe them no more
consideration than do the Republican
voters. Even from the narrowest party
point Of view. as Mr.. Osborne rightly
says, genuine Democrat ought TO do
his best to defeat the Tammany ticket
Eere. since its success can only mean the
perpetuatiOn Of a leadership IN state
politics which is driving thousands and
thousands Of Democrats into revolt.
Democrats who want TO make their
party more respectable and efficient
and TO save this city from spoliation al
the hands OF the Tammany hooters
ought 20 declare war on the Murphy
county and Assembly tickets from top
20 bottom. Mr.. Osborne talks only com
mon sense when he says that there is
only one issue for New Workers in this
campaign-to Overvhclm Tammany and
az its candidates.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-10-29
70 TAINTED ERIHYE

The Reputation Of Mr. William VII
lett by his colleagues on the Demo
cratic judiciary ticket in the Second De
partment rather adds 10 than detracts
f-om the scandal grown out of Mr..
William Berri's charge that this ticket
was tainted with the touch Of Tam
rianv" and that there was q rumor Of
payment for = nomination. The haste
OF Messrs. Ketcham and Callahan 10
assure the public that they do not bear
Tammany's faint and would not think
Of buying a judicial nomination is per-
fectly natural But when they frankly
svov that they consider certain facts
brought 70 their attention which caused
them 70 withdraw their libel suit
against Mr.. Berri as furnishing strong
grounds" for what he said if applied only
10 Mr. Willett they leave their associate
in an impossible position. Neither Will
Mr.. Ketcham's scramble TO free himself
from the accusation Of the faint Of
Tammanyism help him before the pub
lie overmucb. in view of his relations
with John II. McCooey. McCooey is and
has been the recognized Tammany
agent in Brooklyn. whose favor was
necessary for aspirants 10 Office or
nomination 10 office. II was Mr..
Ketcham who, as Surrogate. appointed
McCOoey his chief clerk, and it was
Mr.. Ketcham. according 10 the Brooklyn
Young Republican Club who used his
influence at Albany 10 have his clerk
salary raised from $1,000 10 $4,000 a
year when the Board Of Estimate had
refused 10 make that increase. And IL
was McCooey who turned around and
nominated Mr.. Ketcham for the SUI
preme Court
SO far as future action is concerned
the situation is simple. Mr.. WillettS
nomination should be investigated. The
public can not and should not rest easy
under any hint Of scandal concerning
its judiciary. Mr.. William Berri has
said that the matter would not end
with the dropping Of the libel suit
against him. 1t should not The Ger
tain facts" should be made known, and
be at the disposal Of the public before
Election Day. too.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-10-29

two cents, these three nations must ADD
to their military budgets s14,6OO.OOO an
nuaIly. or, In other words, more than the
cost of two weeks OF actual warfare to
England in South Africa. Divided
among the three powers, this sum may
seem only a straw added TO the load
but single additional straw broke the
camel's back at last and Europe groans
even now under the crushing weight OF
its taxes. The estimate given Is. more
ever. probably too low. 1t IS more like
II that the additional cost Of main
tenaDce OF these armed forces VIII
amount to S3O.OO0,OoO year. Here is.
lrdeed, another and potent argument
for the reduction OF ornaments. But
the Moroccan crisis has led the German
Naval League 10 clamor for still more
ambitious programme Of naval construc-
ton.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-10-29

The steady rise Of the cost OF food
in Europe has led to acute outbreaks of
ricting in Northern France. where cat
tie disease and the prolonged drouth
and heat of the last summer bad most
unfortunate effects. What amounts al
most 10 a meat famine IN Austria led to
scenes Of violerce ia Vienna which that
city had not " messed since the days
Of 1s4S IN Germany the increase in
tie price Of the necessaries of life has
long been intel y felt and bitterly
debated.
Thus FAR this worldwide cnonomic
problem has been considered only ia
its general aspect. but there is one
srecial phase of IL. overlooked hitherto.
which has begun 10 receive the atten-
ton Of the French press. What it is
asked. viii be the effect of the in
creased cost OF living on the military
budgets Of Europe: TO what extent
will it add 10 the burden Of armed
peace borne 10y the nations:
Restricting q tentative inquiry into
The subject 20 the three powers where
the increase rs most deeply felt. we lind
that In round numbers France. Ger
mnuy and Austria maintain together
some two million men under arms
on peace footing. u huge body of
potential producers who. kept i'm bar
racks and in battleships. add nothing 90
their countries wealth, but on the con
trary, draw upon it heavily. Estimating
the increased cost IF daily ration at