The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1919-04-25
'DEFYING ". f. RHINOWl
ST. PETER COMMITTEE HAS
CONTROVERSY WITH HIM
THEY WILL STAND PAT
Appears That the Matter o.
Handling Money Is Bone
Of Contention

st. Peter April 1S.-Tne Herald
publishes the following:
! There's a chance-a remote one
it's true, but still chance-that A
| Bornemann, former mayor OF st
Peter, and a member of his associates
on local committee, will face fir
ing squad about daylight some nice
morning. They're in bad. They are
defying no less person than Adult
ant General Walter f. Rhinow, one
time captain of artillery on the
Mexican border, but more recently
I boss war lord of Minnesota. They
are opposing his wishes, and some
thing diSagreeable is likely to hap
pen TO them.
The controversy has arisen over a
fund of $1S1.19. 1t was raised by Mr.
Bornemann and his associate commit
| teemen, for the use and benefit of
Company X, Second Minnesota In
, fantry, and was, they say, intended
| for no other purpose. The adjutant
general thinks the money should be
placed to the credit of the local arm :
DRY board, and this slight difference
of opinion promises interesting COM
plications.
Reported Facts in Case.
The facts in the case are that when
Company X was called to the Mexi-
can border in 1916 Captain Francis
Wagner requested Mr.. Bornemann,
then holding the office of mayor, to
act as chairman of committee to
have charge of the armory during the
absence OF the organization. Other
| committeeman appointed were Clare
ID. Mol. August La CrOix and Dr.
William Trench. During that summer
| and the following year they gave
aances and other entertainments. Ii
was purely a labor of love, for. ut
no time did the members of the com
mittee make charges for their serv-
ices.
Out OF their revenue they sent q
monthly remittance of SIS to Captain
Magner. paid the express charges on
consignment of Christmas gifts that
went TO the st. Peter soldiers, paid
for The banquet that was given them
! on their return from Mexico, and also
presented each member OF the com
pany with souvenir pin. AT this
time. and later he committee paid for
heating and lighting the armory and
for various repairs that were made on
the building. notably repairs to the
roof and on the plumbing.
Committee Sent Money.
When the company went into the
war with Germany the committee
continued to send it money, the to-
tai going over 5000. Among other
items it advanced $25 to a soldier who
returned from Camp Cody suffering
with a very severe attack of rheumat-
| ism. Ii even extended aid in various
forms to number of selected men of
Nicollet county, it's members hold
ing that it was created for the benefit
of any Nicollet county man in the
c-rvice of his country.
When the present national guard
company was organized and new
armOry board came into existence it
had balance of $1S1.19 in it's treas
ury. In this connection, incidentally,
its transactions have been checked on
| two different occasions by the pup:.c
| examiner. The last of these inspec.
| tons was made last Friday, and no
criticism was made if it's expenditures.
Reply From Rhinow.
Recently communication was adj
dressed to Adiutant General Rhinow
| asking what disposition was to be
made of the fund in the committees
possession. His reply was addressed
to Lieutenant Colonel E. z. Miller, of
/ the Fifth Minnesota, and was as fol-
lows:
THE fund turned over for main.
tenance of the armory at st. Peter
should be redeposited under the
charge of the new armory board, of
which You are president, subject to
your checking, and should be used
for the maintenance of the armory
in any way, shape or manner which
the aImory board deems necessary"
When this communication was
shown to Chairman Bornemann he
was, If the truth be known, some
what wrathe. He and his associates
hold that they directed their energies
to creating fund which was TO be
used for specific purpose. They
are likely to have use for their money,
he says, until such time as all the
boys OF Company X have been re-
| leased from service in the army. So
he and his fellow committeeman
are arrayed solidly against the adj
Jutant general.
| They're standing pat. Now it's up
to Rhinow.
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