The Clayton news. (Clayton, N.M.) 19??-1954, 1918-06-22
REPUBLICAN CENTRAL COMMITTEE
SUED FOR ELECTION BOOZE Bill
When is a debt not a debt ?

When is debt not debt
This question has bothered JUS
tices Of the peace, county judges,
distrit judges and even supreme
court judges for years since the time
that Rameeses issued a royal decree
repudiating all debt of the crown
and was dethroned because the old
Egyptians were such mercenary lot
that they could not get along with
out their money.
It's troublesome question. Some
debts are good debts, some are bad,
and some are just sort of indiffer-
ent. But when debt is not debt
is not debt is all clear TO at least
one Clayton man.
Elmer E. Hamm can answer that
question.
A debt is not debt when it is owed
by the Republican County Central
Committee.
At least it has not been q debt un-
til here lately. And to make it a
real, honest-to-goodness, outstanding
debt, collectable from members of
the Committee. Elmer E. Hamm
has filed suit in the District Court
to obtain judgement against Robert
o. Palmer, as Chairman, Manuel Mar
tinez, as Secretary and H. J. Ham
mond, as Treaurer of the Republican
County Central Committee, and to
collect from thoe leading Republi-
can lights of the county the sum of
two hundred and three and ninety
five one hundredths dollar.
That is the balance Hamm alleges
is owed him for whiskey and cigars
purchased thru him-for the use of
the Republican vote getters at the
last county and state election.
Hamm alleges that that whiskey
was plumb good whiskey, and that
those cigars were at least as good as
any handed out by politicians along
about election day. That the hand
ing out of these goods did not win
the election for the Republican Par
ty, Hamm, alleges, is no fault of his,
and he feels that he should be re-im-
bursed for the liquor and cigars even
tho the election was lost by ma
jority much smaller than will again
defeat the party at the coming cleo
tiOn.
Confident that they would win the
election, Hamm alleges the defen-
dents among others, were engaged
under the name and style of the Re-
publican Central Committee of I'm
ion County, New Mexico, in about the
business of carrying on anr conduct
ing a political campaign in Union
County, New Mexico; that in and "a
bout the conduct of said business
in furtherence of said campaign, and
as a means of promoting such cam
paign, the said defendents did pur-
chase of this plaintiff large amount
of beer, wine, whiskey, drinks cigars
and other like merchandise, and that
the account for said merchandise
was due November 9th, 1917.
OF course, when the morning of
November 9th, 1916, dawned upon
the people of Union County, there
wa no daylight coming for the mem
bers of the Republican Central Com
mittee nor their henchmen who had
so carefully placed those quantities
of wine, beer, drinks ETC., where they
thOt they would do the most good.
1t was morning in which the head
donor of those gifts was muddled as
the head of the recipient of the
bounty, but for a different reason.
The morning dawned bright and
fair, il the Newman remembers COR
recty, but the impression that there
had been snow storm and there
was nothing but gloom in all the
wide, underworld must have been
strong in the camps of the Republic
can cohorts.
That the little matter of $2O3.95,
booze bill was forgotten in the great
er misery of such pronounced dereat
is not at all surprising. One could
forget most anything under such
circumstances. But that the debt
should so persistantly be forgotten,
in spite Of all efforts on the part of
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