The Frontier
VOL. UL O’NEILL, NEBRASKA, THURSDAY, MAY 5, 1932. No. 50
“HABIT IS A CABLE; WE WEAVE A THREAD OF IT EACH DAY, AND IT BECOMES SO STRONG WE CAN NOT BREAK IT.”
THE HOLT COUNTY SPELLING
Contestants
ARE AMONG BEST IN THE STATE
©
County Superintendent, Luella A.
Parker, left Thursday morning with
Joy Custer, 8th grade student of the
Stuart Public School, Mildred Taylor,
seventh grade student of rural school
District No. 122, near Opportunity,
and Francis Soukup, 8th grade student
of St. Mary’s Academy, O’Neill, to
attend the Inter-State Spelling Con
test and the World-Herald Spelling
Bee.
The Inter-State Spelling Contest
was held in Sioux City on Friday with
132 contestants entered from Minne
sota, South Dakota, Iowa, Kansas and
Nebraska. Joy Custer and Mildred
Taylor were Holt county’s representa
tives. They both spelled very well and
stayed in the contest until after 100
of the contestants had gone down.
They both went down in the same
round. There was a very large aud
ience and a great deal of interest was
shown. It was pronounced the biggest
and best contest held.
The winner of first place in the oral
division was Fern Steuteville, age 14,
of the South Sioux City Junior High
School and the winner of first place in
the written division was Barbara Luff,
age 13, eighth grade student of Cen
tral City Junior High School.
After the Interstate Contest Mrs.
Parker drove on to Omaha where
Francis Soukup, 13, 8th grade student
of St. Mary’s Academy entered the
World Herald Contest on Saturday in
competition against 57 other County
Champions and the Omaha and
Lincoln City school champion — the
largest state bee the World-Herald
has yet sponsored.
At the start of the match Saturday
morning there were 19 boys and 42
girls. The boys gave the girls the
stiffest battle they have yet put up in
a state tournament. By 2:30 in the
afternoon it was three boys against
three girls who fought until the final
10 minutes then Francis stumbled
on the word “sardonyx” and went
down giving him sixth place. We
think that this is a very fine record
since it was a very tiring, long, hard
struggle.
The World-Herald in their report of
the contest says, “Time after time
during the match, the audience ap
plauded enthusiastically as boys or
girls appealed victoriously to the dic
tionary after they had been ruled out.
This support came most dramatically
to Francis Soukup, O’Neill, Holt county
Champion. He was one of the final
three male survivors.
“ ‘Stupifies’, he spelled as the judges
choroused ‘Wrong’. Out he went but
up to the referees instead of to a back
seat. They found that Webster al
lowed his spelling. Back he went and
the crowd cheered. He was just ir
time to catch, ‘putrefaction’. He put
‘i’ for ‘e’. Again he had the crowd
with him as he strode to the diction
ary. The referees found putrifieatior
was listed in the big book. A beaming
boy fairly shouted to Mr. Eaton ir
his triumph as the crowd went wild.’
Francis made a fine showing foi
Holt County. This was his second
year to be representative in the World
Herald Contest. Last year he took
ninth place in the World-Herald Spell
ing Bee.
The winner of first place went tc
Barbara Luff of Central City wher
she spelled “peristalsis” aftern Ferr
Steuteville, South Sioux City, spellec
it “peristolcis.” Barbara and Ferr
were both winners the day before ir
' the Inter-State Contest at Sioux City
Barbara will represent Nebraska a1
the National Spelling Contest to bt
held in Washington, D. C.
Prizes given by the World-Herald
to the ranking spellers were: Bar
bara, gold state championship medal
in addition to the Washington trip:
$15.00 to Fern, $10.00 toJohn Finney,
.Jr.. Parks; $5.00 each to Dollie Nelson
Loomis; Charles Skogsol, Crete; Fran
cis Soukup, O’Neill; Helen Andrews
Trumbull; Wilma Daniels, Valentine:
Edna Buckholz, Falls City; Dorothy
Beck, Pilger; Edith Sic, North Bend;
Mary Hall, Lawrence; Betty Joe Koeh
ler, Stering; and Louise Marty, Col
umbus.
A tired but happy group returned
to O’Neill on Sunday evening, report
ing a very fine trip and although they
did not win first place in either con
test, Holt County may well be proud
of the fine showing her contestants
made in both contests.
Sentence Two More
Joe Juracek was sentenced on Mon
'• day by Judge Dickson to sixty days
! in jail and costs, no fine.
Harry Kopp was sentenced to foui
months in jail, $100 fine and costs
Both men are to begin serving th«
sentences on June 2. Juracek fur
nished a $500 bond for his temporary
freedom.
Both men reside in the Stuart neigh
borhood and were convicted in district
court last January of attempting tc
bribe jurors serving on the first Flan
nigan case.
The serving of sentence is deferred
in the case of Juracek because of it
being planting time on the farm and
the judge desired to give him oppor
tunity to put in the crops. In the
case of Kopp, a rancher, the court set
the date for June 2 because during the
next month cattle need special atten
teion on the ranch.
The sentencing of these two dis
poses of the last of the bribery cases.
MOTHERS DAY
made ah our8 $tor»e
fof® /Aoh^Cf®^’ J)ay, /lay Bh^,
Will benefit by reduced pr»ice$
Mrs. Susie Horiskey
Jl'DGE DICKSON IS CALLED TO
Supreme Court
LANDIS IS TO TRY FLANNIGAN
The week beginning May 16, Judge
Dickson will be at ^incoln to sit with
the supreme court for the ensuing
four days. Judge Harry D. Landis
of Seward, one of the judges in the
Fifth district, has been selected by the
supreme court to try the case against
John M. Flannigan and will be in
O’Neill May 16 to commence the trial.
This plan has been arrived at thru
correspondence between Judge Dick
son and Judge Goss, chief justice of
the supreme court. Flannigan had
| asked that another judge be brought
j here to try his case.
Judge Landis was the presiding
judge in the case in Saunders county
wherein Wencel H. Kirchman, cashier
of a state bank at Wahoo, was con
victed of a $7,500 fraud. He was
sentenced to 10 years in the peniten
tiary and fined $2,600. The case was
appealed to the supreme court but on
February 25 the conviction was up
held and the judgment of the district
court affirmed.
In presenting the matter of having
a judge from another district try this
next Flannigan case Judge Dickson
went into it in detail in a letter to the
chief justice. His letter follows:
O’Neill, Neb., April 22, 1932—Hon.
Charles A. Goss, Lincoln, Neb.—Dear
Judge: There is pending in this court
the case of The State of Nebraska
versus John M. Flannigan. He and
his brother, James C. Flannigan, were
charged jointly with receiving depos
its in the Citizens Bank of Stuart,
knowing the bank to be insolvent.
Last fall they were tried together and
the jury disagreed. Later James C.
Flannigan was tried alone; he having
applied for a separate trial. The Jury
convicted him on all counts of the
information, nine in number; motion
for newr trial was overruled and I
sentenced him to the penitentiary or
each count five to ten years, sentence
to run on each count concurrently. A
few days ago the defendant, John M.
Flannigan, filed a motion asking that
I call in some other judge to try the
case on account of my bias and pre
judice; he also filed a motion for a
continuance to a date not earlier than
May 15th. I overruled the motion and
showing on account of the alleged
bias and prejudice of myself, and
granted him a continuance until Mon
day, May 16th, at ten o’clock A. M.
There are a number of other crim
inal cases pending against the defend
ant, John M. Flannigan, and his broth
er James C. Flannigan growing out of
the failure of their bank at Stuart.
Their brother, A. E. Flannigan, was
tried in Rock county on a charge of
violating the banking law, growing
out of the failure of the Bassett State
Bank; he was convicted; a motion for
new trial was filed, overruled, and 1
sentenced him to the penitentiary for
from one to ten years. He has served
notice of an appeal and is out on bond. J
The co-defendant of John Flannigan,
James C. Flannigan, has served no
tice of an appeal of his case to the
Supreme Court. A number of civil
suits were brouaht by the receiver,
seeking to set aside a number of
transfers of notes and mortgages to
depositors; the receiver alleging that;
the parties receiving the notes and
mortgages were given a preference
over the other depositors. These cases
I tried, and I found for the receiver
in all of the cases except I think one.
After the jury disagreed in the first
trial of John and James Flannigan,
a number of complaints were filed
chargingcertain parties with contempt
of court on account of their attempt to
bribe certain jurors in the trial of the
first case. The result of the investi
gation was that I adjudged five dif
ferent persons in contempt of court
by reason of their attempt to inter-;
fere with the jury. Two are in jail,!
one is out on bond pending an appeal
to the Supreme Court, and the other ;
two are to be sentenced May 2nd. I
Counsel for the defendant, John Flan
nigan, and I are not able to agree
! upon the law. Many new questions.
are presented in these cases. I am
conscious of neither bias or prejudice
as against the defendant, John Flan
nigan, in this case or in any other
case that is pending against him. I
tried to be fair and impartial in the
A. E. Flannigan case and the Jame
F'lannigan case. My endeavor hn»
<en to admit such testimony as i
believed admissable on the par* of the
State and the defendant; and to in
MOTHER
A thought for you on Sunday next—
What could be more beautiful
Than every one at early dawn
To bow their head in humble prayer—
As mother deserves respect from you
As her thoughts turn to baby’s shoes?
What more beautiful could this picture be
As time goes on for you and me?
P. J. McMANUS.
struct the jury as to the law as I be
lieved it to be In all the cases tried.
However, regardless of my feelings
in the matter, and my belief that I
could give John M. Flannigan a fair
and impartial trial, not only in this
case but in any other case that he
might have in court; yet, in view of
the number of cases tried by me, and
the number pending and to be tried,
the feeling and criticizm that nec
essarily follows the trials of such
cases; the difference of opinion as to
the law in these cases, and the many
other things that enter into the trial
of such cases; I feel that I should
ask the Supreme Court to designate
and appoint a judge from some sec
tion of the state remote from this
locality to try this case. The Supreme
Court is authorized to do so under sec
tion 12 of Article 5 of our Constitu
tion.
For your further information as to
the time that will be required to try
this case, will say that I think it
will take about two weeks. I am
basing this on the time it took tc
try the cases before.
Will you kindly acknowledge re
eeipt of this letter, and make the nec
essary arrangements to the end that
a judge be sent here to try the case.
Yours truly,
R. R. Dickson.
Judge Goss replied to the foregoing.
Several letters were exchanged. The
final arrangements were made by the
members of the supreme court and
communicated to Judge Dickson in
j the following letter to which he
j agrees:
Lincoln, April 30, 1932.—Hon. Rob
j ert R. Dickson, District Judge, O’Neill,
I Neb.—Dear Judge: The members of
I our court met this morning and made
an order, under article 12 section 5 j
j of the Constitution, directing Harry D.
Landis, district judge, Seward, Ne
braska, to try the case of State of
i Nebraska v. John M. Flunnigan, in
, the district court of Holt county, Ne
braska. beginning Monday, May 16th,
1932. They also requested that you
sit with us on the supreme court be-,
i ginning that same date and ending
jon Thursday, May 19th. I put up to.
, them your objections but we have had ■
a very difficult and serious time for
several months on account of the in-'
linen/.a and Its effect on two or three
member* of our court, and we do not
find it very easy to get district judges
(to help us because of the condition of
the dockets in several of the districts.
Besides, it has been a long time since
you have sat with the court. We hope
you will be able to accommodate your
self to the situation and be with us
for the four days named.
Yours very truly,
Charles A. Goss,
Chief Justice.
Services At the First Presbyterian
Church
Sunday School 10:00—Mr. Geo. C.
Robertson, Supt.
Morning Worship 11:00—Mother’s
Day Service.
Young People’s C. E. Meeting 7:15.
Evening Service 8:00—“Value of
Prayer.’’
The young people will assist in the
evening service by giving short tulks
on the subject of prayer. You will
want to make Sunday a Go-to-Church
Sundny by attending our service*.
Bring your company.
H. D. Johnson, Pastor.
A shower last night and one the
previous night with good growing con
dition! prevailing give promise of •
fruitful harvest in this section of the
footstool.
