Si? i
Official Tiqppr of Box Dutte County
TWICE A WEEK TUESDAY AND FRIDAY
Official Taper of the City of Alliance
VOLUME XXIX
(Eight Tages) ANCE, BOX BUTTE COUNTY, NEBRASKA, TUESDAY, MARCH 14, 1922.
a
No. 31
v
!
r
0
SCHOOL BOARD
NOW READY TO
: ASK FOR BIDS
FLANS APPROVED AT SPECIAL
MEETING SUNDAY
Estimated Cost a Bit High, But Hope
Two Schools Can Be Built and
Furnished for $200,000.00
The members of the Alliance school
board held a special session Sunday j
afternoon with a representative of the
Lincoln firm of architects which is
(drawing up plans and specifications 1
.for the new high school building and,
.the grade school, to be located on the
east side. The conference had been
;scheduled for Saturday night, but the
architect failed to make the proper i
train connections. The board went over
jthe plans, saw that their suggestions.
ior improvement had been incorpo
rated, and approved them tentatively,'
the understanding being that no fur
ther alterations will be made if it is
lound to be possible to construct the
two buildings with the money that is
yai?Je I'or the purpose
i The board has some $200,000 to be
nised for constructing and equipping
both buildings, and if it is humanly
possible to do fo, will not consider
spending another cent. The bond issue
authorized for this purpose was $250,
000, but the board, realizing that pub
Hie sentiment was strongly in favor of
strict economy, decided to change the
plans sufficiently to get by for the
smaller sum. It still has this point
of view.
The architect's estimate of construc
tion cost on the two buildings ran
$5,000 beyong the $200,000 maiK, leav
ing nothing at all for equipping the
buildings. He estimated the excavating
cost at 26 cents per cubic yard, the
figure in a contract recently let for a
new public building at Fremont, and
with this as a basis for this portion
of the work, said that the new high
school building should be erected for
$173,000, and the new grade school for
$32,000.
The school board, however, have
hopes that these figures can be shaved
by the contractors,, and decided to go
ahead and advertise for bids, which
will be opened April 20. They hope
that the contractors will shave the es
timates sufficiently to allow the $200,
4)00 to cover all expense of construc
tion and equipment. The equipment
cost is estimated, generally at 10 per
cent of the cost of the building. Un
less the contractors pare the archi-
N (Continued on Page 5)
LASfSERVICE
IN OLD CHURCH
BY METHODISTS
LARGE CONGREGATION PRESENT
ON SUNDAY EVENING.
County Judge Tash Gave Interesting
Recollections Covering the Last
Thirty-five Years.
A large congregation filled the old
Methodist church Sunday night for the
last Methodist service after thirty
years of continual service. According
to the response given to the questions
put by the pastor, two persons were in
town at the time of the organization
of the first class, Mrs. Hampton and
Mrs. Barkhurst. There were fourteen
grownups who had attended the Sun
day school when children, and thirty
four who had been baptized in the
church. The number who had united
with the church under different pas
torates was as follows: present pastor,
31; Rev. Wright, none; Dr. Morris, 4;
Dr. Barns, 8; .Dr. Baker, 26; Rev
Jones. 1: Rev. Yellow. 1: Dr. Ray. 16;
Rev. Horn, 3; Rev. Mc.Reynolds, 1 and
Rev. Gammon, 1.
Juds Ira E. Tash gave a most in
teresting address on personal recol
lections of the church during the past
thirtv-five vears. reviewing each pas
torate with his usual humor. There
had been thirteen pastors. Some have
since become leading preachers of the
rhntvh. for instance. Dr. Charles
Wayne Ray, who has written a number
of books, and Dr. Jesse Jennings, who
became manager of the Kansas City
book concern.
Following the judge p address, Mrs,
Barkhurst, known as "Grandma Bark
vnrt " rave some further reminiscen
ces, and told of being present at the
organization of the first Methodist
class. The meeting was held in the
building now on the corner of Third
n,i rhpvenne. which was then a
Mrhoolhouse and public hall combined.
A" she was out walking one Sunday
afternoon, she heard singing as she
passed the building, ami concluding it
v-i .-i velieious nu'eting, went in. A
Motlir.il;t nreacher was holding reli
l inuj scrvicen, ami at the close of the
tciTum. organized a class of seventeen
nu'niliprs.
Minv who were present will agree
th it the clo-ir.g sen ice was one of the
tno-t enjoyable ever held in the build
in". Next Sunday they will meet in
tho'irvninasium of the new church on
the comer of Seventh and Box xiutte
THE WEATHER
Forecast for Alliance and vicinity:!
Fair tonight and Wednesday; colder
tonight.
Declamatory Trials
at the High School
Friday, Mai .h 17th
The preliminary try-outs for the
high school declamatocy work will be
held at the high school auditorium on
Friday, March 17. A number have en
tered and from the material very good
representatives for the high school
should be chosen. There are three
divisions the humorous, dramatic and
oratorical. Alliance last year won
two of the three divisions at the dis
trict meet and should make a good
showing this year. Those who have
entered are.
Oratorical Theodore Benson and
Jay Cantlin.
Dramatic Miriam Harris, Mildred
Pate, Dorothy Deering, Barton Kline
and William Zirg.
Humorous Eva Bcal, Frances Flet
cher, Vivian Corbett, Elsie Harris,
Margaret Vanderlas, Kuth Hutchin-,
son, Wauneta Robinson, Josephine
Wright and Margaret Schill.
REISENWEAVER'S
FRIEND WORKING
FOR HIS RELEASE
NEWSPAPER WOMAN IS INTER
VIEWED AT LINCOLN.
Says Youth Frightened Into Con
fessing by Picturing Terrors
of Electric Chair.
The opening gun has been fired in
the fight by Mrs. Laura Kerr of
Sheridan, Wyo., to secure the release
from the penitentiary of Walter Reis-j
enweaver. Mrs. Kerr was in Alliance
last week, but found the authorities
dead set against recommending a pa
role for the youth of seventeen who
waa sentenced to life imprisonment for
the murder of Charles Johnson.
Mrs. Kerr tells her own version of
the story, which in some respects fails
to correspond with the facts as discov
ered by investigations here. She makes
the claim that Reisenweaver was
frightened by the officials, who threw
into him such a terror of the electric
chair that, although innocent, he
pleaded guilty to second degree mur
der. . -
The State Journal publishes the fol
lowing interview with Mrs. Kerr:
Mrs. Laura Kerr, pretty, blonde, '
newspaper woman from Sheridan,
Wyo.. arrived in Lincoln Sunday to
open a fight for a commutation of the
life sentence of Walter Reisenweaver,
twenty years old.
At the age of sixteen. Reisenweaver
was tried and convicted of the murder
of Charles Johnson of Alliance. John
son was in charge of the Burlington
commissary and Reisenweaver was in
his employ.
Knew Reisenweaver as Child
"My father owned a department
tore at Sheridan which is Walter's
home town," Mrs. Kerr said at the
Lincoln hotel last nitrht. "Walter and
his brother, Ernest, always stopped at
papa s store in the evening on their
way home from school and waited for
their mother who always went there
to meet them. I
"I grew to know the boy3 well and
was fond of them. When Walter was
fifteen he began working in the Bur
lington shops and before he drew hi3
first pay check he got some water
melons and other things from the
commissary which were charged i
against his account.
"His father asked mm about a ana
sent him to the Burlington cashier
to straighten it out. Rather than tell
his father what he did Waiter ran
away.
. "A few months later I learned he
had been found guilty of murder. His
mother calls on me every day when I
am home and I promised her that
sometime when business called me to
this part of the country I would en
deaver to do something for Walter.
"I talked to him at the penitentiary
this afternoon. He tells me he is in
nocent and was frightened into a con
fession by officials at Alliance who
drew a vivid picture or the electric
chair and the horrors or the death
cell. Upon promise of a lighter sen
tence, he says, he confessed to the
crime.
"I have been nt Alliance talking to
officials there. The Alliance newspa
pers publi.-hed stories to the effect
that while Walter was incarcerated at
the penitentiary he struck a man over
the head with a baseball bat. 1 talked
to officials at the jenitentiary today
and they tell me that the .story is not
true."
Mrs. Kerr has n letter of introduc
tion to Governor McKelvie from Gov
ernor Ci-.rev of Wyoming. However,
after talking to pri.-on officials she
decided to call on H. H. Harmon,
secretary of the board of pardons and
paroles, Monday morning- and make
arrangements to fill! application for u
commutation of sentence.
CANDIDATES FOR
COUNTY OFFICES
ARE SHOWING UP
SEVERAL HATS TOSSED IN THE
RING SATURDAY
To Date Only Republican Aspirant
Are Committed to the Race, But
Democrats Are Not Idle
At last it begins to looks like an
election on July 18. In other counties,
the candidates have been springing up
1:1... i a. - t . . ii i
ime wtwii, out in ims nuue mere nas Alliance, on Monday, which was at
been a bit of rtelay. Plenty of names j tended by some 150 farmers and their
mentioned, but few candidates had , good wives, from various parts of the
planked down theii-filing fee and deft- count v. There was a good-sized dele
nitely committed themselves to tho'gation from Hemingford and Berea,
race. On Saturday, however, there : although the attendance wns cut down
was a small rush staged for filimr. r-nd
when the county clerk's office closed
that day, there were seven candid it es
whose hats had been shied into the
ring.
ot a democrat was among the
seven, but this doesn't necessarily
mean that the November, 1920, land
slide, took all the scrap out of 'hem
Instead, there seems to be a diapo.-l
Hon to hold back and let someone else
start it.
The filings to date include:
Miss Opal Russell for re-election as
county superintendent, a non-uaitisan
office.
Nellie Wilson, for the republican
nomination for county treasurer.
Mrs. Cora Lewis, republican nomi
nation for county treasurer.
r rank lri&h, republican nomination
for county cleric. -
Thomas !r. Mislcimen, county com
missioner, Third district, republican.
G. H. Hagaman, commissioner, Sec
ond district, republican.
C. L. Hashman, county commission
er, Second district, republican.
Scrap Looms on Commissioner
Apparently the biggest scrap of the
coming campaign will center about the
office of county commissioner. Two of
the three members of the board are to
be elected this year, and there is an
opportunity to choose two men who L Jeep. Among the farmers who
will control the board. George Dun-1 have granted oil leases are mentioned
can, present commissioner from the Fred Herbert, Ed Zochal, M. P. Nason,
Second, or Alliance, district, has not Fred Nason, F. H. Nason and D. R.
yet returned from a western trip, but Lawrence. .
he is not expected to file for re-elec- G. E. Burke of Gurley, Cheyenne
tion. However, even if he should de-' county, organizer for the Lnited
cide to. file,' he will find his place con-! States Grain Growers,-waa also pres
tested. ... et at the meeting and a number of
Already, Tom Miskimen is out to fill , the farmers are reported to have de-
Mr. uuncan 8 snoes, ana aiuiougn no
is the first, he isn't the only. J. R
Lawrence, who has not yet completed
l.!.. ' : ,1 l.-.l.,.-
Ills llllllK. is ttii tt v v w evi lauuiiwic mi
,rftht S
KTnt& ! -1 .
Sevpral othfrrs Are mentioned as nos-
acYgriU ouiers are menuoneu us ius-.
sible successors to Mr. Duncan. Prom-'
i .1 J T A V..
who is considered to be about the right
kind of timber for the place. His
friends have been working on him, but
tUv have not yet persuaded him to
U L. Hashman already has an
nounced opposition for the Third dis
trict commissionership in the person
of Georee H. Haeaman, a well known
or ueorge n.
and well like! farmer of Wright pie-
cinct. It is probable that t here .will be.
?tteLm fi makS?SD tte
banota arrites I
WHh aTarge number of farmers and'
SlHnS '
ye "he' arm-lab? elemStas i
pfaced any candi.lates in the field, hav-
i. r..i,M1wi that thv want irood
ing announced that they want good
unionists and if they hold to this po-!
;r&rii nfJlhlv hSvS
considerable amount of inff uence in the
selection of the candidates. Even if
they change tactics, and start to elect
their own men, their votes are not to
be sniffed at.
Other County Offices
Although several names were men
tioned for county clerk, Frank Irish
is the only one to definitely announce
himself in the race. John Jelinek has
been mentioned: as a possible contest
wnt. and a woman is suggested as a
likely candidate, although she has not
vet nermitted her name to be used.
The office or county treasurer win
.be contested for, on the republican
i i m -i T .1 fn
. . -ii
!la?A "A. Vra mX1
deputy and vicchainrln of
the county central committee, and if
narty activity has anything to do with
it, is considered as having a pretty fair
chance to land the nomination. Mrs.
Iewis is a former deputy county trea.
urer and has a large number of , ping as a means of bringing in reany
friends. So far, no other candidates cash and tiding them through the win
h.ive been mentioned, although it is i ter. Other ranchmen leased their lakes
.v.iiui thiit thk immirtani ntfieo will
. .......... - .
be contested for bv the democrats, ana
po.silv other republican aspirants
will show up.
Judge Westover
Able to Iveturn
' to His Office
District Judire W. H. Westover, who
was taken suddenly ill while hoMinr
court in Alliance a few weeks ago, is
reported as being on the road to re
covery. He was able to walk, to hi
office' from his home in IJu.hville
Monday.
FARMERS HAVE
A BIG MEETING
OUT ATFAIRVIEVV
CONSIDERABLE DISCUSSION
ROAD SITUATION
OF,
Sentiment In Favor of County Spend
ing All Road Funds Many
Oil Leases Signed
The Box Butte county farmers' un
ion held an all-day session at the Fair-
view church, eleven miles northeast of
I.... . ...
to some extent by the conditions of the
roads, which, in the midst of the pres
ent thaw, are not in the best of shape
for aulomobiling.
There were too many problems
scheduled for discussion to admit of
politicx, but the men present took up
a number of other matters in addition
to the formation of a county-wide po
i tato selling organization, which was
the principal object of the meeting. A
large majority of those present fa
vored the orgwinsatton of such an as ;o
ciatlon, nd the name, "Box Butte Po
tato Growers' association," was tenta
tively approved, although it is possible
I hat this may be changed before, arti
cles Of incorporation are filed. Some of
the growers thought it a good idea to
incorporate the phrase "Dry Land Po
tatoeV in the name of the association,
to distinguish their product from the
spuds grown in the irrigated North
Platte valley. Officers for the asso
ciation were named at a previous
meeting, and a meeting has been
called for Thursday of this week at
Berea to perfect the organization.
Clark C. Denny and Fred Bloomer
were present during a good share of
the day, and were busily engaged in
securing oil leases. It was reported
that the leases were being secured in
the name of Carl Modi sett and Victor
emeu io join me Mn;iiiuii,
Talk Over Road Problems.
Possibly due to the fact that the'
liMlu
r 1 i
"liwany of the delegates drove to attend
hG meeting, is in need of filling for
. . . ! . . ,. L
over which a good
i.,f v.,, ,l uM, . t
. ' .i , r..
61UI1 UI1UCI1
to roads. One speaker
quoted figures showing that the cost of
seven miles of state constructed road
on the Potash highway was sufficient
to build 104 miles of road that was as
good for all practical purposes. It was
also declared that one stretch of the
Antioch road was just four inches
higher than the specifications called
for, and that the contractor was or
dered to take off the excess filling,
. . liaril9sion of tlM,
of road construction, and the
sentiment at the meeting was that the
state hiKhwav department is spending
"tirely too J W "fjj1'"
'dtnt was
pannedon a couple other counts., one of
them being that the state officials are
entirely too dictatorial and insist on
...;. . ,(Jeag of where
roads should be built, giving the county
little or no voice in saying where
money which comes from them in
directly, shall be spent.
Ranchers Make
Good Money By
Trapping Muskrats
Rockv Mountain News: W. W. Gil
bauirh. banker of Bingham, In the
sandhill district east of Allianle, es
ti mates that the eross income of
tranDers and ranchmen in the western
I Nebraska sandhill district during the
season which closed reoruary io.
amounted to one million dollars. Prac-
tically all of this came from muskrat
hides,
According to Mr. Gilbaugh, many
ranchmen who were facing financial
extinction, due to the drop in the value
of livestock, turned to muskrat trap
to professional trappers who pay
. . . n,
snare -oi vne yroetfus w imwi. ..
. trapper is reported to have made a
gross income oi over uunuK u;
teason,
The Nebraska sol on s who fixed the
time limit for trapping from Nov. l i
until Feb. 15 were evidently not well
'i ci uainted with the fur business. Ex
pert trappers and fur buyers say that
the seaNon should be from Jan. 1 to
April 1, when the furs are in the lot
condition. It is unite probable that the
rievt session of the legislature will be
n.-!:ed to remedy this mi.-take in the
H it ing of the proper time limit.
Prime mu.-krut furs brought from
$1 to $1.70 during the past season.
Boy Scouts Will
Put On Benefit
Performance Soon
The reheasals for the boy scout per
formance will begin aa soon as possi
ble. This entertainment will be under
the direction of A. H. Harper, who
has already put on some highly suc
cessful shows here. The date for the
show has bee set for the 7th of
April. This will be a minstrel show
and thould be well worth seeing, as
there is a good deal of talent at hand.
The campflre girls will assist to make
the show a success and with these two
organizations the show should be a
humdinger.
Lexington Man
Now Owner of the
Alliance Bakery
E. Shr.dwinkel of Lexington, Neb.,
on Saturday of last week purchased
the Alliance Bakery plnnt of Pember
ton & Gillespie. Mr. Shadwinkel has
had a number of years' experience in
this line of endeavor, having been a
wholesale and retail baker for fifteen
years. He came to Nebraska from
Langdon, N. D. Messrs Pemberton
and oillespie and their families will
remain in the city for another woek.
The new owner is now in charge.
SOLDIERISNOW
IN TROUBLE OVER
PASSINGCHECKS
AUTHORITIES TO MOVE AGAINST
MAN AT FORT ROBINSON
Warrant to Be Issued for J. N. McCain
Despite Sob Story and Prom
ise of Restitution
A young soldier from Fort Robinson,
who signs checks by the name of J. N.
McCain, ia about due to find himself
in the center of a mess of trouble,
due to an annoying habit of writing
checks when he baa no funds in the
bank. Alliance people have practically
abandoned this practice of earning a
living, due to Judge Tash's. habit -of
socking the offender the full limit of
the law, but every now and then a
stranger tries it out. Some ot them
get away with it, but others are not
so fortunate. - - ' .
Mr. McCain, according to informa
tion given to County Attorney ;,ee
Basye, was once caught, but deliber
ately tried the stunt a second time,
with what it is hoped will be disas
trous results. According to the story
told Mr. Basye, McCain comes to Al
liance from the fort every now and
then to visit some young lady with
whom he is acquainted. Apparently
soldiers kn't draw very heavy si 1
aries, anyhow he ran 6hort of cash
on a trip here a couple of weeks ago,
tor he cashed a check for $15 at the
National store. The check came back
from the bank.
On March 6, McCain cashed a sec
ond check, this time for $8, at riol-i-ten's.
The second check likewise
came back. On the latter date, Man
ager Speer of the National, who l.fcd
by this time learned that the check
was without value, saw him on tie
street, recognized him and took him
to task. The young man pulled a long
sob-story, wept more or less freely,
and while dabbing at his tears with
his coat-sleeve, acknowledged that he
had done wrong. He also promised to
make restitution in the event he were
not hailed into court and his crime
made public. The tears and promises
convinced Mr. Speer, who released the
hold on his coat collar.
Shortly afterward, it seems, it was
discovered that the soldier's repentant
mom had lasted for only a few hours,
and that he had repeated the little
stunt As a result, complaint was
made to the county attorney, and a
warrant will be issued today and an
effort made to locate McCain. .
Fire Sunday Eve
Burns Wires and
Puts Out Lights
The fire department was called out
Sunday evening about 7:30 to put out
a fire at a barn belonging to Mrs.
Young, 08 Box Butte, the hie is
believed to have been started from hot
ashes, and spread so quickly that it
was lmiiossible to save the building,
The barn was full of straw and hay
and became entirely ablaze before the
tire fighters arrived, making it impos
sible to do more than protect the
neighboring houses. The liht wires
pa.ssi.ng directly over the barn were
burned anil the resulting short circuits
I united the scenery for some distance.
The hiuh power wires, made the prob
lem of figliting the fire more difficult
as it would have been extremely dan
verous to have thrown any water on
them. The wires eventual!;.- tepurated
und the lights on the we.t side of Hox
Butte avenue were put out for about
two hours. Some trouble was had
with the fire truck, which refused to
move after reaching the scene of the
. . 'iu: . l.. .i:ip
fM-iw-mriiu ins iii.me uii.ir- mud-
ence, however, in the final result.
CITY IS READY
FOR POSSIBLE
COAL STRIKE
TWO
MONTHS' SUPPLY BEING
PUT IN STORAGE
After April I, City Will Not Urn
Bound by Old Contract, and Will
Buy in the Open Market
In the "City Manager's Corner" for
today, N. A. Kemmish discusses th
coal situation. The city has been buy
ing under an old contract, which has
resulted in paying out some $175 mora
a month over prices in the open mar
ket. April 1, this contract expires, and
the city is now running a series of
tests to determine the most economical
fuel for the municipal water and ligh
plant. Crude oil, it appears, will be
too expensive.
Mr. Kemmish says:
"Two years ago coal for our light
plant was difficult to get. The mine
operators had much their own way and
contracts for two years, which
contracts will expire April 1, 1922.
'1 hose contract.? contained clauses pro
tecting the mine operators against
strikes, any wage increases of Vie
miners, etc. We had such a contract
and have endeavored to break it or
modify it, but were not able to do bo.
Our legal advisor rendered an opinion
stating that the contract was perfectly
good and should be lived up to. It has
caused ua to pay $175 per month more
for our coal for some time than, wa
could have purchased it from the same;
company,
"We are surely glad indeed to be out
from tinder this contract April 1.
After that date we will buy our coal
on the open market wherever we can
do the best. We began yesterday
morning on a series of tests which will
take us the rest of the month. We are
testing the coal from a number of dif
ferent mines. We will determine from
thee tests the relative values of thee
coals- and determine the most econo
nomical coal for us to buy for our pur
pose. . y '
"Wo are now placing in storage,
enough coal to run as about two
months in case the miners should
strike. We should like to burn 41 in
our boiler3 if it were possible to da
so but it appears that while we ar.
located near the Casper fields we can
not buy oil from this-territory any
cheaper than if we shipped it in from
Oklahoma, so unfortunately this prac
tically puts the oil at a figure whereby
we cannot afford to use it.
(Continued on Page 6)
DISCOSSPUNS
FOR IMPROVING
TOURIST CAMP
CITY MANAGER N. A. KEMMISH
OUTLINES THE PROGRAM.
Chamber of Commerce Members Inter
ested in Providing Better Fa
cilities for Auto Tourists.
The members of the chamber of
commerce, at their meeting Monday
noon took up the matter of a tourist
camp near the city park. The city at
present has a camp but is is proposed
to improve the park greatly and make.
it a really desirable place for tourists
to use. The park at present has no
improvements and is merely a place
where the tourist nay go. city Man
ager N. A. Kemmisn, wno lautea on
the subject, said that it has been found
that on an average each tourist wne,
enters a town leaves $5 behind, whilej
Lloyd Thomas declared that it has
been found that tourists spend on aa
average of $10 per day in a town.
Various tourist camps were then de
scribed and the advertising that thesej
got for the town in which they wrV
located was discussed.
Plans for a tourist camp for Alliane
were then discussed. Mr. Kemmish
suggested a camp with a building
about twenty-five by thirty feet, ia
which there would be electric plates
for cooking, water and facilities for,
laundering. In this building there,
would also be a long table with benches
on each side on which meals-could be.
served. Mr. Kemmish has already ar
ranged for trees to be transplanted
from the city park to the camp, as
there i3 an oversupply in the park. A .
coal stove outside the building would
also be provided, the C. B. & Q. having
already agreed to furnish all the ties
necessary for fuel. Lincoln Lowry
of Lowry & Henry has offered to haul
these ties free of charge. H. P. Cour
sey, Lincoln Ixwry and N. A. Kemmish
were then appointed as a committee to
go into the matter and outline some
definite plan.
Mr. Bracken of Gering, formerly of
the Newberry Hardware company of
this city, displayed some signs which
are to be fastened to the radiator of
nil automobile, designating the town
the car is from. These signs are made
of cast bronze and the practically in
destructible. The plan was to handle
these through the chamber of
I .. . . . . ...
com
rnerce, thus replenishing the
1 count of the organization.
merce, thus replenishing the bank ac--