Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The frontier. (O'Neill City, Holt County, Neb.) 1880-1965 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 28, 1897)
WHMimON, •I.M NR ANNUM. O’NEILL, HOLT COUNTY, NEBRASKA, OCTOBER 28. 1897. NUMBER 17. ... .. v. .. ,vL> ■'' ft** -.'.‘j. '- : , , 1 * . •, ; . ;■ , ~ f ■ ’ ' ■■ 'kSmM ' ■■■.'■ . ... > ‘ -7yP;SC?^'f*f|' S_VVj ■':.a «■?* ■‘•‘.u ^ *■ CANDIDATE Fa<^ Concerning the Populist Candidate Who Is Being Paraded as the Soul of M Honor and the Tongue of Truth. v V:' ARE FAKES Consensus of Opinion In His. Home Is that He Is Not a Fit Man for Sheriff; F During the campaign jutt closing ] much lias been said concerning John 1 M. Stewart, the populist candidate for sheriff, relative to his fitness for the ' .position to which be aspires. He has been charged with being addicted to the excessive use of iotox I; icanla,- and of being a man of ungovern ; able temper and of quarrelsome disposi tion, and of other things unbecoming a private citizen and a gentleman, to say nothing of an officer of the law and a ■ Conservator of the peace, "•S|f these charges are true it is then erment to the unbiased mind that be > shJTuld not be elected as sheriff of Holt county. For that office- perhaps more k than any other is required a man of . sober traits, good judgment and a calm and even disposition. It is no place for a man who clouds his brain by the excessi refuse of liquor, becomes irritated by triflesjflind commits acts in moments - of freg^V that he regrets upon sober reflection. If these things that have been charged up against Mr. Stewart are not true a gross injustice has been done ■ the gentleman, and the voters of the county have a right to know upon what j foundation the charges rest, that they I themselves may draw conclusions as to ^ . their sufficiency. The Frontier has no desiie what ever to do the gentleman an injustice, and would not do so were it sure that by so doing it could secure his defeat, but it believes that when a man becomes a candidate for an office which is of so vast importance to the public generally that it is the duty of the people and the to inquire into bis character and I daily private life for the purpose of foftning an opinion as to what might be expected of him were he elected to office. This is certainly rational and fair. “By their acta ye shall know them,” and if they are unreliable, unsafe and un trustworthy privately they will be the same officially. ;We dial rVimet and Itiny, withoutn ‘ ^e dislike greatly to go into a man’s and drag out skeletons for public and in this instance we do it malice and for what we consid er the public good. HIS BOMB LIFE The home life of Mr. Stewart, it seems, has been anything but felicitous. It is a matter of public knowledge that his wife has instituted proceedings for divorce and that the matter is now pending in the district court. According to the petition on file in the case it appears that shortly after his marriage he began and intimacy with the bowl that both (timers and inebriates and has continued tihat intimacy up to the present moment, ^Ping gradually from bad to worse until the wife of his bosom, the sweetheart of his youth, is now compelled for her own jafety to testify that he is an habitual nrtmkard. When a man’s wife is forced to desert him who shall defend him? Her action has not been that of a flgkty 'or hysterical woman.' She has borne UTith his weaknesses long and patiently and suffered much. Mr. Stewart realized twice and admitted the error of his ways and. signed two agreements to abstain from the use of liquor. One of them is as follows: £ Richmond, Neb., March 12,1889. I, the undersigned, do hereby agree to not drink any more liquors of any kind, Md if I do I sm to give my wife, Della M. Stewart, all the children and all the property that I may own at that time. Sifoed this 12th day of March, 1889. t ■ '*S,*sseih: John M. Stewakt. Lsv . % Parker. Rach'el A. Parker. | This agreement and the penalties at tached were not sufficient to cope with his appetite for drink and he fell by the "swarslde. And still his wife clung to "Tra with that hope that springs eternal in tbe human breast, hoping against (ate that sometime manhood would assert itself and. he would again trod tbe path of rectitude and sobriety, fully conscious of tbe tow he made at Hymen’s alter. But disaster followed thick and followed faster and once more she placed her trust in a stipulation with severer penal* ties precedent upon his good behavior, but again the waves that she danced on so light in the morn receded and left her at night alone on the desolate and barren shore of domestic infelicity, a victim of misplaced confidence, another woman who loved well but unfortunately. Hope grew gray and despondent and the finale is tbe present salt for divorce. In this petition, which is duly verified by the plaintiff, are accusations of offences more henious than mere inoffensive inebriation. He Is accused with assault. That portion of the petition is as follows: Third—Tbe plaintiff further represents that on or about the 15th day of January 1896, tbe defendant regardless of bis duties ns a husband was guilty of ex treme cruelty toward the plaintiff with out any just cause or provocation on her part; that on said date defendant whipped plaintiff with a horse whip. .Struck her with said horse whip repeat edlv and also struck plaintiff with his fist and knocked plaintiff down, at the same time cursing her and using foul, profane, indecent, cruel and abusive language toward plaintiff, and that about 10 o'clock r. m., on the 10th dav of December, 1896, defendant cursed plaintiff and used foul and profane lan guage toward plaintiff; struck plaintiff with his fist, pushed her out of her own bouse m Atkinson, Nebraska, shut the door and locked it on plaintiff when she was sick, and she was obliged to take refuge from the winter weather in the home of a neighbor, and did not see her children for several days and weeks thereafter. Plaintiff furthei states that during many years past and often and on divers days and dates which plaintifi cannot now specifically name, it has been a common occurrence for defendant to come home drunk and act toward plain tiff in a shameful, abusive and violent manner and has repeatedly during the last two years placed plaintiff and her children in great fear for their personal safety by reason of his said wilful, malicious, unreasonable and unlawful actions, and plaintiff states that she is now constantly in fear of defendant and is afraid for the personal Bafety of her self and children. l hiii is published merely to sustain the charge of druukenness and the conclu sion that it unfits him for the office of sheriff. More in this line could be ob tained were it deemed necessary. We could append a chapter concerning his escapades during the campaign—how he has continued his drinking, and bow he has violated the order of the court res training him from interferfng or in any way molesting his family during the pendency of the divorce suit, but we will not. Here the thought occurs to us, how can a man be expected to en force the law when he himself refuses to obey? FICTITIOUS ENDOKSKHXNT8. Last week there appeared in the Holt County Independent and Atkinson Plain Dealer concurrently a communi cation signed by one D. Jones (whoever he may be) and written, probably, by some one also. The communication stated that its writer want to Atkinson looking for information; that he desired to become acquainted with the tacts relative to Mr. Stewart's standing at home; that in accordance with this laudable desire to improve and enrich his mind with useful and essential poli tical knowledge he interviewed a num ber of citizens, and published the inter views in his communicrtion. The Interviews as published are as follows; W. H. HENDRIX—Mr. Stewart has always stood up for good government nere in Atkinson, and is a good citizen ; ' 111 and an honest man. B. E. STURDEVANT—Mr. Stewart Is one of onr beet and most respected citizens, and is worthy of any office. ALEX HART—Atkinson haa no bet* ter citizen than John Stewart—he la a thorough well qualified business man. I have served with Mr. Stewart on the school board and on the town board and have known him as one of the leading business men in Atkinson for years, and I know him to be a man of iron will, the very soul of honor, and a man who would stand alone for the right against any odds. PETER BONER BERGER—Mr. Stewart is a good man—a highly re* spected and enterprising citizen. S. B. SCRIPTER—My office of busi ness baa been located next door to Mr. Stewart’s office for nearly two years and I have never known a man whose busi ness methods are more accurate nor a man better qualified to do business than he is. JOHN BRADY—If anyone aaye Stewart is not a good reliable business man it is because they do not know him. When we read these quasi-indorse ments of this man by these prominent republicans it occurred to us that some thing was rotten in the state of Den mark and we determined to investigate. Last Tuesday we sent a reporter to Atkinson to look into the matter. He found the gentlemen highly Indignant over the manner in which their names had been used without their knowledge or consent and the way words that they had never uttered had been placed in their mouths by this man Jonas. Messrs. Bturdevant, Bonenberger and Brady were more Indignant than the others and voluntarily made and subscribed to the following affidavit: Statb OF NlBllIU, 1 Holt county. f " We, B. E. Sturdevant, John F. Brady and Peter Bonenberger, being drat duly aworn on oatb depone and any, that hav ing aeen an article in laat week’s iaaue of the Atkinaon Plain Dealer and O’Neill, Holt County Independent, purporting to have been an interview from us with one D. Jonea,' we wiah to atate that same is untrue and we each and every one deny having made suck statements as therein published, and so far as we are concerned brand the same as a base fabrication. B. E.Sturdevant. John F. Brady. Peter Bonenbarger. Subscribed and sworn to before me this 20th day of October, 1897. [seal] J. Elmer Allison, Notary Public. My commission expires Feb. 3, 1899. Messrs. Hart and Scripter also said that they bad not been interviewed for publication and they were misquoted by Jonea and that while they would vote for Dickerson they did not care to mix up in a newspaper controversy. Owing to a lack of time Mr. Hendrix was not seen by our reporter, but there is no doubt he was imposed upon along with the others. Comment upon a matter so disreputable as this would be more than ■uperfluous. neighbour’s recommendation. Mr. Stewart is a humane and philan thropic individual, as Mr. Neighbour’s affidavit is here to testify: j State of Nebraska, I Holt county. f 88 I, Joseph Neighbour, being first duly sworn depose and say that in the year 1896 I owed John M. Stewart a note which I secured by giving a chattel mortgage on my two horses and a mow er, that about three months before the last payment became due Mr. Stewart came out to my place, foreclosed the said mortgage and forcibly took the said property out of my possession and In doing so he struck me twice with his Sit, and called me a G— d— s— of a b— Joseph Neighbour. Subscribed and sworn to before me this 16th day of October, 1897. [seal] J. Elmer Allison, Notary Public. My commission expires Feb. 3, 1899. HIS LIBERAL VIEWS. Stewart is one of those liberal and broad-minded individuals who gives everybody the right to think as they please just so long as they think the way tie does. In other words he is a bigoted blusterer who would deny a man his constitution-guaranteed right to worship Qod according to the dictates of his own conscience, or if he did accord him that privilege he would at the same time consider him inferior and beyond the pale of respect. The affidavit of Martin Walrath would indicate that an Irish] Catholic Is not good enough to instruct the young minds of the young Stewarts. This is the affidavit: State op Nebuasea, ) « Holtcotntt. f88 I, Martin Walrath, being first duly sworn on oath depose and say that I bare resided in Atkinson (or the past thirteen (13) years and am well acquaint ed with the citizens of this esmmunUy, end that on or about the 29 th day of June, 1897, in the school yard of the Atkinson public schools, in my presence and in the presence of several other men, [ beard John M. Stewart of this place say that he did not intend to have any Irish s— of a h— teach his children, that before he would permit it he would send his children to Iowa to educate them. Further affiant sayeth not. Mahtin Walrath. Subscribed and sworn to before me this 32nd day of October, 1897. [seal] J. Elmer Allison, „ Notary Public. My commission expires Feb. 9.1899. .1 ____ HM HOMK8TIWCWMATI0N9. Ptewart hu been heralded throughout the column* of the reform pieaaaaaman of great builaeea ability aa wen as a man of unquestioned bueineaa integrity and a man poaaeaaing a goodly amount of thla world’s goods. As to how he acquired hie financial standing, It any he has, is not explained. A close investigation of the Inner workings of this man’s put financial transactions should make him wealthy, If ipsa profit by ill-gotten gains. In Deoeaatwr, IMS, honest (?) John Stewart (th%,man the very Ideal of honor; the respected dtteen of Atkinson; the man who Js not in contempt of court for repeated failures to comply with the order hf the district court in refusing amUfalUaig to pay alimony, or in other wftrds neglecting to pay to his wife add children a snAcleat sum to keep body iqjl soul together during the pendency of her action for is divorce brought on the grounds of drunkenness, cruel add inhuman treatment and all around conduct unbecoming aaaloon bum much leas that of a respectable citizen) was Indebted to a number of implement houses for goods purchased on his financial reputation and for which they held his promises to pay, long past due. Among his creditors was the Rook Island Plow Company. It had sold honest John goods and he in turn sold them to the farmers. The proceeds John salted down in his pockets and in the ▼suits of his trusted bank, now defunct. The Plow company demanded payment and even threatened suit unless the notes i were paid. Honest John then owed about 14,000. He had notes and cash on hand and in bank aggregating some 07,000. Then it was that honest John 8tewart set about to arrange to meet his creditors who wanted pay for the gooda sold him. un ant step wu to give to his link a note, for 91,000 due on demend. Thii he eecured by e chattel mortgage on goode purchased from the plow com pany, and other implement house*, and not paid for and voluntarily gave pos session of all tA the bank. Was this an honest transactiont Would an honest man worth assets (cash and notes) amounting to 97000 give a mortgage on goods not paid for and surrender pos session table hnnkt n The badge of fraud was stamped on the face of the transaction. Then it was that honest John donned an old suit of clothes, assumed the air of a pauper and pre pared to meet his creditors, men who had trusted him in days of yore. He met them with cash and notes in his pocket and in the vaults of his friend, the banker, safe beyond the reach of creditors who came with executions and writs of attachment. He said to his creditors, "I am insolvent, but here are some farmers’ notes (I think them worthless) that I will turn over to you in settlement of your claims." ’’But,” said the creditors, "they are no good, they are past due and unsecured and no j good to us. You sold our goods and have the money and you must pay us." But honest John said, "you can accept the notes or take a judgment against me.” His creditors realising the situ ation and condition of affairs accepted his proposition. It , was either this or nothing. Stewart handed over to the Bock Island plow company in settle ment of their claim of 98100 some 18000 in notes and upon which it realised afterward about 01,900. Other creditors were settled with in the same way, and in a short time the bank turned over and back to Stewart the mortgaged goods. Stewart had in the meantime settled with his other creditors with worthless notes, and still had on hand to begin life anew the cream of his notes and a nice bank account. Such is the financial record of honest John in one transaction. In bis book of life many such transactions are recorded. But John may say, "many did not do as well as I did.” Yes, John, but they are not proclaiming their honesty to the public and asking that they be placed in office by a reform party. And thus we might emulate the brook and write on and on forever giving fact* and furnishing reasons why Mr. Stewafit should be defeated next Tuesday, but if i what we have already said will not do it nothing would. We are not ready to believe that the people will vote for this kind of a man. We lim Just opened oat stock of new hleory nuts, hazel nut*,.and e full line of California null. Alto cran berries and new honey. When needing any of the above or any of the delica ciea found in k flret-claae grocery come in. 17-2 O'Neill Gboceby Co. 8mall precautions often prevent great mischiefs. DeWitt’s Littie Early Risers are very small pills in size, but are most effective in preventing the most serious forms of liver and stomach troubles. They cure constipation and headache and regulate the bowels. HmasHisBB & Qiluoan. JOSXIOX OX TXX OOTXXXOX. Lincoln Oct. SO 1897. The development* of the lut fewj d*T* in the eaee against Bartley’* bond*-1 men at Omaha have wound the toil* more and more about the reform gov ernor. Ranaom’a chargee in open court that the governor knew of Bartley'* •Portage, coming a* it did from a pop ulist senator and the chairman of the free silver republican state central committee, aroueed such a demand from populists all over the state that the gov ernor, already much embarrassed by the entanglement, was forced to take the witness stand in self-defence/ He could no longer stand out against the precsure that came from his party, demanding that he make some effort to purge him self from the awkward situation. But his evidence in the court at Omaha, Instead of bringing relief to the embarraaeed fuaionlsts, caused the water of tribulation to rise higher and higher around their dying cause. The gov ernor tried to explain to the eourt that he bad done his best, but when it finally developed by his own testimony that he did not count the money, that he had not examined the securities in the treasurer's office, that he had utterly failed in his duty, then the people who heard the testimony, smiling at each other, said: "If this is the best that a reform governor can do, then the Ism we have of it in Nebraska the better." Any further struggle on the part of the governor is useless. Every word that I he utters in explanation sinks him deep er and deeper into the mess. In the mind of every citizen is the great big interrogation point asking the governor; It yon did your boat when yon approv ed Bartley's straw bond and the MeaerTe straw bond, are yon doing yoor best now when you permit Meserve to con tinue In office under a worthless bond, with several of the principal sureties notoriously bankrupt, and with several others having abandoned the state for ever? Are you doing your beat now j governor?" This is what the people are ! asking of Governor Holcomb. Hid you do your best In the recount fraud? Did you do your best to reform the pass system? With eighteen annual railroad passes and two Pullman passes bulging out the little morocco book in-your treat pocket, with your record in the last six months as a Junketer in this state, do you pretend to look the farmers of Neb raska In the face and tell them that you have done your beat? In the campaign of 1894 the insurance question was prominent. You taught the people in that campaign that the eld-line insurance companies had made of themselves a wicked and greedy trust which was oppressing the people with exorbitant rates, and by which, under the law as it was then, they were able to prevent the organization of mutual insurance companies among the farmers. The effect of your teachings in that oampaign, Governor Holcomb, was to ! arouse among the people a strong feel ing against the greed and over-reaching methods of these old line companies, to desire a law which would curb their ambitions, which would permit and encourage the organization of mutual insurance companies and thus bring relief to those who were oppressed with exorbitant insurance rates. The same campaign that elected you. Governor, that year, elected a republican legis lature. This republican legislature recognizing their duty as the represent atives of the people, passed a mutual law, giving the relief which the people desired. The law was exactly in line with what you have advocated on the stump. Now, what did you do to that law, Governor Holcomb? You held it at the close of the session, refusing your assent to it as chief executive, until the session had adjourned, and then you let it die. You championed this law before election, and then killed it after election. Were you doing your best then, Gover nor? Your action in this was a great surprise at the time. There had been a wrong moneyed lobby in tbe legislature, with headquarters at the Windsor hotel, during the entire session. It was the business of this lobby to defeat this law. You did at the close of the session for these old-line insurance companies what tbe republican legislature refused to do. It was said at the time by some that you vetoed the bill because it was a republican measure. That was a poor estimate to put upon a reform governor. There were other reasons hinted at why you let this bill die, but I am ashamed to write them. There is a limit to the humiliation that may be put upon a state, even when justice seems to be clamoring for the whole truth. But this is not ali; the last session of the legisla ture passed the same mutual insurance law. and you Governor Holcomb, bobbed up before the public as president of a mutual insurance company. Would you take the witness stand now, Gover nor Holcomb, and swear you did your best in this insurance matter? In six months from the time you com — - menced your executire duties io your first term, then come to your table the '- %h semi-annual report of Auditor Moon. In that report you could have nad at a glance that the fees which are required ' to be paid by iniurance oompanlee and other corporatlone Into the treMury, * ? were not being paid into the treaaury, but into the auditor's ofBce, which had r&pi no authority to nceive them. You £ : f ahould have seen that the auditor waa ; »t leaning buaineee permits to theee incur- *- ; ' ance oompanlee illegallr. because t%t* '.:3 law nquins that the fee money ehall be a In the treasury before the permit is issued by the auditor. With that nport . ’ f in your hand you should hare walked straight to the auditor’s offlee and said to him, showing him the law: “It is ■ unlawful for you. Mr. Moon, to issue v these permits until the money for esek one Is In the treasury. Now you put * this money into the treaaury and show me a receipt from the state tnasurer or I will make it hot for you.” Did you do it? Did you make any effort to do it? Will you go on the etand now aad swear that you did your best? What . does your reform amount to to the state if you fail at every opportunity where nform is needed? Why is this semi* . - ;/ annual report required from the auditor, and why are the people taxed to make and print this nport? And why is the H report addressed to the governor? The farmers understand, and everybody who . can nad understands, that this report is - ;v:; made to the governor and to no one •1«» because it Is the business of the t? v governor to nad the report, to analyse . it, for the report shows what is being done with the public money of the state. Did you nad this report at all, Goto- f nor Holcomb? Did you rand any of the reports of Iho auditor? And If you did, when you aaw that tha auditor was 4* issuing these certificates illegally, that the money waa not being paid Into the treasury as it should be, why didn't you call upon the auditor and compel him to do his duty? There have been-so many ■lips in this reform administration that the people are weary of reading about It. ' u The republican party has purged itself ", . from the guilt of Bartley and Moore, for whenever a • political party despise in secret and denounce in public a wicked 'jwiw.-than it purges itself; and bo .taint ttf guilt can rest upon it. But so long as ■ the reform press of Nebraska, and the - reform conventions, both In county and . In state, refrain from criticism of this state administration, asking for it the continued support of the farmer voters, .; then there is no political home for an honest Nebraskan but in the republican party. J. W. JomrsoH. ~ ■ moumnm. - Editob Frobtibb: The editor of the Atkinson Plain Dealer wishes fopoee before the public as a reformer on the } populist platform, against all forms of dishonesty and bribery in selecting candidates to fill public offices. Now I wish to make a statement of cold facts -\11% which cannot be truthfully disputed. On the day that the populist county convention was held at O’Neill this fall, I, with the delegates from western Holt county, boarded the same car at Atkin- ^ ■on to attend said convention. On the route to O'Neill the conductor of said train, together with the (would be reformer) editor of the Atkinson Plain Dealer, passed through the coach. The above mentioned reformer (?) - pointed out the delegates and no fare or tickets was collected. I was sitting In / one of the seats with a delegate from Stuart township. The conductor col lected my fare and passed him by. I V being a populist and in sympathy with the principles of its platform, questioned the delegate as to how he came to get 4; free transportation to the convention. He informed me plainly he was pledged i to vote for John M. Stewart, of Atkin son, for sheriff. I said to him, "you ' s ought not to support such an unpnn- . cipled character as he is.” I suggested that he should use his influence in select ing a good respectable citiaen. He then 4 informed me that he received about tlO in cash and a keg of beer, and said: “I . - V can not go back on him now, but I can vote for whom ever I please when election day comes.” -« I submit these facts without fear or favor for the consideration of the intel ligent populist voters of Holt county ; and against the slur and disgrace that is - 4 heaped upon the principles and platform of the peoples party. M. F. Cross. ' > We are today unloading a car load Of that fancy flour, Gilt Edge and Beat Patent. If you want white, tweet, wholesome, bread don’t fail to try 100 or 500 lbs. We will make the right price. 17-1 O’Nbill Gbocxry Co. $100 Muaio Box, January 1, 1898. ' >‘ FREE, To our customersa beautiful J. P. MANN. \ ” . ' ... . - l/.SS I S