USA > Kansas > Reno County > History of Reno County, Kansas; its people, industries and institutions, Vol I > Part 13
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with the idea of limiting the length of service, yet Mr. Handy's personal popularity gave him a third term over his opponent. W. D. Woodson, a Democrat, by a vote of 1.444 for Handy to 588 votes for Woodson, and Handy was the Republican candidate again in 1882, receiving 1,361 votes. Allen Shafer 785 votes and C. Bishop 88 votes.
In 1884 the Republican candidate for clerk of the court was John B. Vincent. He received 2,040 votes. J. T. Burtch, his Democratic oppo- nent, received 1,363 votes. For the second term in 1886. Mr. Vincent had two opponents, J. H. Kinkaid, who received 1.274 votes, and W. E. Fornot. who polled 164 votes. The Republican candidate polled 1,973 votes.
In the race for the third term of clerk of the court. Mr. Vincent had two opponents again. He received 3.369 votes, Jesse Reynolds got 1.812 votes and H. B. McMullen 151 votes.
In 1890 Mr. Vincent made the race for clerk of the district court for the fourth time. His opponent was F. P. Adams, a comparatively unknown man in politics, and one who made but one race for office and then left the county. Mr. Vincent polled 2.321 votes and Adams's vote was 3.047.
In 1892 the Republican candidate for clerk of the court was Z. W. Whinnery. He had two opponents, John H. Kinkaid and Richard MeDaid. This race was a close one. Whinnery got 3, 126 votes, Kinkaid 3,063 votes and McDaid 88 votes. In the campaign for re-election in 1894 Mr. Whin- nery had A. R. Dodge for an opponent. This time he had a few less than a thousand majority, he receiving 3.356 votes and Dodge 2.364 votes.
GOOD "VOTE GETTER" TURNS TABLES.
In 1896 the Republican candidate was defeated. This was due par- tially to the' ill feeling developed in the Republican convention of that year, and partially to the candidate opposing Walter Payne-Fay Smith, who perhaps is the best "vote getter" that ever ran for office in Reno county. The vote this year stood: Payne, 3,082 votes: Smith. 3.322.
In 1898 the Republicans nominated E. Edwards and the Democrats renominated Smith. Edwards polled 2,650 votes and Smith 2,836 votes. Smith ran again in 1900 against John M. Wyman. The prejudice against a "third term" was revived and used in the campaign and Smith's "vote- getting" qualities were unable to pull him through. Wyman got 3.422 votes and Smith, 3.189 votes.
In 1902, Wyman was the Republican candidate for re-election. He had as opponents George Sain, of Nickerson, Democrat, who polled 1.938
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votes; C. D. Wood, Prohibitionist, 67 votes, and George Bishop, Socialist, 124 votes. Wyman had a good clear majority over all, his vote being 3.231.
In 1904 there were three candidates for clerk of the court-R. H. Flynn, O. S. Coffin and G. S. Bishop. Flynn received 3,692 votes, Coffin 1,944 votes and Bishop 2,060 votes.
In 1906 the Republicans re-nominated R. H. Flynn for a second term. He had J. P. Hendrixson as an apponent. Flynn's vote was 3.395 and Hendrixson got 2,242 votes.
WOMEN ELECTED TO OFFICE.
In 1908 Miss Amy Alexander was nominated for clerk of the court. Her father was one of the pioneers of Hutchinson. Miss Alexander had the enthusiastic support of a large number of the old friends of her father and polled 4,314 votes. Her opponent, W. L. Stroup, received 3,295 votes. In 1910 Miss AAlexander was renominated and re-elected, receiving 3.878 votes. Her opponent, A. J. Coleman, received 2.797 votes.
In 1912 the Republican candidate was Carl Richardson and the Demo- cratic candidate was Mrs. Florence Hutchinson. Mr. Richardson polled 2,944 votes and Mrs. Hutchinson 4,611 votes.
In 1914 Mrs. Hutchinson was renominated for clerk of the court and the Republicans made no nominations against her. The result was that Mrs. Hutchinson polled 9,248 votes.
In 1916 there were three candidates, Carl Richardson, the Republican nominee: Miss Margaret Kessler, the Democratic candidate, and C. F. Anderson, Socialist. Richardson won, getting 7.361 votes; Miss Kessler. 5,580. and Anderson, 753.
FIRST CASE IN DISTRICT COURT. .
The first session of district court for Reno county was held in August. 1872. Judge W. R. Brown opened court, with Lysander Houk as county attorney: Harry Hodson, as clerk of the court: Charles Collins, sheriff, and John McMurray, under-sheriff. The first case called for trial was that of Robert Ross against Pat Riley. The action was for the replevin of a horse and wagon. Riley was an Irishman, who had a little shack out west of town, just across Cow creek. A careful search of the records, among all of the files that are left of that case, together with the journal entries, which were kept on paper at that time, until the books of the clerk's office could
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be procured, fail to disclose how the case was decided. But it was "No. I" and regardless of its importance or its decision, it is a case of the first import- ance. The first criminal case was that of the state against John Callahan. It, too, has lost all importance except that it was the first criminal case filed in Reno county. The civil and criminal cases were docketed together until November 25, 1901, when the criminal docket was separated from the civil docket. At the present time the criminal docket is disposed of before the civil docket is commenced. Since the establishment of the separate dock- ets, until the beginning of the December term of the court in 1916, there had been 1,159 criminal cases entered on the docket. The total number of cases filed up to this same date was 12,504.
While no effort has ever been made to separate the cases-the crim- inal from the civil docket, while they were kept together-it is estimated that about sixty per cent. of the criminal cases have been cases arising out of the violation of the prohibitory law.
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CHAPTER XVII.
THE COUNTY CLERKS.
Reno county has had twelve different clerks. Seven of them served two terms, or four years; four of them served one term of two years each and one, W. R. Marshall, broke not only the record of the county clerk's office, but all other records of continuous office holding of the same office in Reno county. He served four terms of two years each.
The first county clerk, A. C. Kies, was elected on March 15, 1872. when the first county election was held. He had no opposition. He was not a candidate for a second term. Some irregularities were found in the court house. The books of the county clerk and the county treasurer did not agree. There were charges of wrong doing by friends of both of the county officials and Kies was not a candidate for re-election after he had served his first term.
In 1874 the second election was held. Harry Hodson was the suc- cessful candidate. His opponent was H. W. Beatty. Hodson received 479 votes and Beatty, 264 votes. Hodson was not a candidate for re-election. Hle doubtless could have had a second term, for he was a popular clerk. a man of good ability. He left Reno county shortly after his term of office expired.
In 1876 the election for county clerk called out three candidates, H. W. Beatty, who was a candidate against Hodson in 1874; S. B. Zimmerman, who had taught in the public schools for one year, and E. J. Russell. Beatty polled 531 votes ; Zimmerman, 421 votes and Russell, 122 votes. Beatty was re-elected in the fall of 1877. His opponent was a Democrat, George Barclay, who served as justice of the peace for several terms later. Bar- clay was a stanch Democrat. He received 211 votes, while Beatty got 1,052 votes. Beatty was a candidate for a third term in 1879 for the term begin- ning in January. 1880. He was opposed on the third-term platform by W. R. Marshall and W. D. Woodson. Both Beatty and Marshall were Repub- licans, but the "anti-third-term" talk won for Marshall, who received 1.006 votes, Beatty polling 8;1 votes and Woodson, 140 votes. Marshall ran again in 1882. He was re-elected and despite his anti-third-term talk when
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he was a candidate the first time, he was a candidate for a third term in 1885. He was opposed by Martin O'Sullivan, of Clay township. Mar- shall polled 1,716 votes and O'Sullivan, 654 votes. In 1887 Marshall was a candidate for the fourth term and he won it over C. W. Peckham, but by a much decreased majority. He received 1,716 votes and Peckham, 916 votes.
NEWSPAPER MAN ENTERS THE LIST.
In 1888 S. J. Morris was a candidate for the office on the Repub- lican ticket for the term beginning in 1889. His Democratic opponent was Sims Ely, a Democratic newspaper man, who years afterward moved to Phoenix, Arizona, where he became prominent in Democratic political circles. Morris received 2,136 votes; Ely, 1,750 votes and E. Eaton, run- ning on an independent ticket, 59 votes. Morris was re-elected in 1889 and served out his second term.
In the election of 1892 J. E. Eaton, of Arlington, was the Republican candidate. W. F. Williams, of Nickerson, was his Democratic opponent and Jackson Fryar the candidate on the Greenback ticket. Eaton polled 2,458 votes, Williams received 2,152 votes and Fryar, 406 votes. Eaton was re-elected in 1894. His opponent that year was F. D. Hornbaker. Eaton received 2,699 votes and Hornbaker, 2,006 votes.
In 1896 W. S. Yeager was elected county clerk. He had two opponents. J. W. Turkle and J. J. Campbell. ' Yeager received 2,825 votes: Turkle. 1,827 votes and J. J. Campbell, 211 votes. Yeager was re-elected in 1898 for the term of two years, beginning in 1899, P. L. Campbell was his opponent. Yeager received 2,825 votes and Campbell, 2,220 votes.
In the election held in 1900 there were four candidates for county clerk, William Newlin, Mack Ross, O. C. Borger and J. Leuty. Newlin was elected, receiving 3.553 votes. Ross got 1.784 votes, Borger. 68 votes. and Leuty, 127 votes. Newlin was a candidate for re-election in 1902. 1Ie received 3,474 votes and his opponent, J. W. Likens, 2,170 votes.
In 1904 F. S. Lang was the successful candidate. He received 3.644 votes. B. Mckeown, one of his opponents, polled 2, 141 votes, and Lem Bowser, a third candidate, received 197 votes. Lang was a candidate for a second term. J. D. Likens was his opponent. Lang polled 3,474 votes and Likens, 2,170 votes. Lang, sought a third term, but was defeated by A. R. Hamma, who secured 3,928 votes, while Lang polled 3,699 votes. Hamma was not a candidate for re-election. He was the representative of
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the minority party and knew that he would not have a third-term candi- date to run against, and that he would probably be defeated.
There were three candidates at the election of 1910, H. M. Payne, Walter Brown and John Collins. Payne polled 3,807 votes; Brown, 2,912 votes, and Collins, 285 votes. Payne was re-elected in 1912. His opponent was J. E. Burgess, of Clay township. Payne received 4,046 votes and Burgess, 3,398 votes.
In 1914 there were three candidates, A. E. Noonan, C. Brice Nash and George W. Lee. Lee was elected, receiving 4,338 votes; Noonan, 3,367 and Nash, 3,926. Lee had been county assessor for two terms prior to his election. He was re-elected in 1916. He had two opponents, Edward A. King and C. E. Anderson. Lee polled more votes than both of his competitors, he receiving 7,848 votes; King, 5,146 votes, and Anderson, 852 votes.
OFFICE GROWING IN IMPORTANCE.
The office of county clerk has grown in importance greatly since the early days of the county. Today its records are of the highest importance, as it is the office of original records. It deals with the questions of taxa- tion more largely than any of the other offices of the county. The office of county assessor was once an independent office, but the Legislature com- bined the duties of the county assessor and the county clerk. So now the clerk has all of the various phases of taxation to deal with as a part of the duties of his office. All of the assessment rolls are prepared in this office of all the property, personal and real, and also all public utilities. The work of getting the assessment rolls for each piece of property in Reno county has grown to be an immense job. After the assessors are through with their work, the office is required to make an abstract of each township so that the board of equalization that was created to adjust any irregulari- ties in the work of the various county assessors may proceed intelligently. After the board of equalization is through with its work another abstract is made of the various assessors' reports and sent to the state tax com- missioners in order that they may compare this county's assessments with other county assessments, in the same manner that the county board of equaliza- tion compares township and individual assessments.
The clerk also makes all school levies. The school directors indicate in their annual report just how much money they will need to meet their wants for the following year. The county clerk prepares the levy and reports to the county commissioners, who order the levy made. This is an immense
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task, when it is known that there are six state and county levies. seventeen general levies and twenty special levies for Hutchinson : about half as many special levies for South Hutchinson, and, at the present time, two hundred and sixteen different levies for the various school districts of the county.
OTHER DUTIES INCUMBENT ON THIS OFFICE.
The county clerk's office records the transfer of all deeds that are filed with the register of deeds and all land contracts. In addition to these mat- ters and other matters arising out of the same, the county clerk keeps a daily balance of accounts with the county treasurer. He records, also, every warrant filed with the county commissioners and has a duplicate of every check for the payment of money. He keeps a record of all the changes in the roads of the county. He keeps a record of all physicians and muirses and of all dentists, likewise a record of all undertakers of the county. Hle keeps a record of all marks and brands of cattle and a record of all names given to farms. He issues all hunting licenses and all venders' licenses. He keeps a complete record of all townsite vacations and of additions to the cities.
Likewise the county clerk has full charge of all election matters, both primary and general. He prepares and has printed the ballots. He keeps a record of all the results of elections of all kinds and issues to the suc- cessful candidate a certificate of nomination and also a certificate of election after the election is held. He issues all election notices and approves the bonds of successful candidates. The county clerk also attends all of the meetings of the county commissioners and keeps a complete record of all of their acts. This one record is the only one consecutive and complete record in Reno county. It affords the only means of supplementing the incomplete records of other offices of Reno county. The clerk prepares a final statement that is intended for the use of the governor of the state and of the Legislature, upon which much of the action in local legislative matters is based: including a large variety of matters, among them the total valuation of all property in the county, the amount paid the state directly, the amount collected for the general and all the special funds, including the road fund. both county and township: the amount on hand in the sinking fund with which to pay the bonds of the county when they become due: the amount of money paid out for interest : the amount spent to support the poor of the county: the amount for each school district and the average rate of taxation for each dollar of valuation. There is a vast
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amount of work for this office. This work is close and technical in char- acter and must be correct and it therefore has required a peculiar ability to handle the affairs of this office.
CLERK CONVICTED OF EMBEZZLEMENT.
Of the twelve men who have held this office, two of them have had suspicion cast on their integrity. One of these was A. C. Kies, the first county clerk. There was a shortage in the finances of the county. The poor system of bookkeeping of that time makes it impossible now to locate the blame. E. Wilcox was the treasurer of the county at the time Kies was county clerk. Wilcox was charged with shortage in county funds. After months of discussion, with a board of county commissioners that were unfriendly to Wilcox he was able to clear up all the matters charged against him and the account with him settled. Kies was accused of irregu- larities in office, but no suit was ever filed against him. Whether the com- missioners of that day were more unfriendly to Wilcox than to Kies can not now be determined, but no criminal suits were ever filed against either Wil- cox or Kies. However, one county clerk was checked up short. Howard M. Payne was found guilty of embezzlement and sentenced to the peni- tentiary for an indeterminate sentence. The total amount of his shortage amounted to $5,540.18, of which $3.609.82 was paid by his bondsmen, leav- ing a loss to Reno county of $1.930.35.
The result of Payne's shortage led to a checking up of all of the offices of the county and the installing of some checking systems that would make detection of irregularities easier. This is the ouly defalcation ever found against any officer in Reno county.
PRESENT RECORDS COMPLETE AND ACCURATE.
The records of the county clerk's office at the present time are com- plete and information is easily obtained. In the early days, either through lack of requirement of the law or lack of disposition on the part of the clerks, the records were carelessly kept and in many instances were placed in a filing case instead of being recorded in a permanent form. There is a lack of vault room for the records of the county clerks, and many of the old records are stored in the basement of the court house for lack of room in the vault, but the records that are being made at the present time are com- plete and accurate.
CHAPTER XVIIL.
THE COUNTY ATTORNEYS.
This office has come to be regarded as one of the most important in the county. Not only has the occupant of the office been obliged to represent the state in all criminal proceedings, but the civil business of the county has become so important that the taxpayer is disposed to look carefully to the qualifications of the candidate.
Reno county is practically a one-hundred-million-dollar corporation. Its business interests have grown to such proportions as to require the best advice obtainable. Likewise the wide range of subjects that must be handled also requires the greatest care and diligence of the county attorney. All of the contracts made by the county commissioners on behalf of the county must be drawn by the county attorney. Reno county in the year 1916 let bridge contracts for over one hundred thousand dollars. These contracts must be prepared by the county attorney and he must meet the competition of the best legal minds the bridge contractors can command. that the county's rights may be protected and the contractors' obligations kept within the terms of the agreement with the county commissioners.
The county attorney must likewise advise with the commissioners on all tax levies-their extent, when they can be levied and their limitations. He must advise them against illegal levies, that no injunction suits be brought against the collection of these taxes by some taxpayer. In this he competes likewise with the tax commissioners of the various railroad companies, who are constantly on the watch for levies that are not authorized by the statutes. Likewise the county attorney must be the legal adviser of all township offi- cers. In taxation matters there are continually arising questions as to the construction of statutes, which the county attorney must decide for the town- ship commissioners. He also is the legal advisor of the various county officers as to matters arising out of their offices.
AN OFFICE OF MUCH IMPORTANCE.
The county attorney also becomes the legal adviser of the various justices of the peace, especially in criminal cases. There are many cases,
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perhaps five hundred a year, that might be brought, that are trivial, neighbor- hood disputes that some would perhaps like to get into the courts, that the county attorney directly dismisses, advising against bringing; then settles them when he can, out of court, and uses his discretion in other cases to the end that trivial matters may not burden the courts. So the county attorney's office has grown to be an office of great importance.
In the early days the office was not so seriously regarded. The county attorney's office was regarded then as a place for the prosecution of criminals, the civil side of the office not being much regarded. So much so was this the case that the principal qualification of a candidate was his announced desire to prosecute violators of the prohibitory law. In many Reno county elections this has been the issue in the election of both county attorney and sheriff. But the growth of public sentiment against the liquor business, whether it be sold by a "joint" or a "boot-legger" or a saloon, together with the throwing down of nearly all the limitations of the criminal law in liquor cases, has rendered this clamor at election time for the enforcement of the prohibitory law a minor quantity. The community insists on the enforce- ment of the liquor law, just as it demands the enforcement of any other criminal statute. It, however, has a just regard for the civil side of the county attorney's business and, as this business increases, the importance of the county attorney's office is more highly regarded.
INCUMBENTS IN OFFICE SINCE CREATION OF SAME.
There have been fourteen different county attorneys elected in Reno county. The first attorney was Lysander Houk. He was elected at the first election held on March 12, 1872. There was only one ticket nomi- nated and Judge Houk was unanimously elected. He served as county attorney until 1874. In this third election, November 6, 1874, there were two candidates for the office of county attorney, H. Whiteside receiving 454 votes and J. H. Stevenson, 276 votes. Mr. Whiteside is still a resident of Hutchinson, but there is no further record of Stevenson in the court affairs. If he remained in Reno county long he never attained any prominence in county affairs. Whiteside served as county attorney for two years.
The third attorney for the county was W. H. Lewis. In the race for county attorney in 1876 Mr. Lewis received 1,059 votes. In 1878 the contest for this office was between Mr. Lewis, who was running for a second term, and W. M. Whitelaw. Mr. Lewis polled 1,050 votes and Mr. Whitelaw, 657 votes. In 1880 L. Houk was the Republican candidate, receiv-
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ing 2,090 votes. In 1882 Judge Houk was a candidate for re-election. Ile received at this time 1, 177 votes, while his opponent. W. H. Lewis, received 995 votes. Judge Houk resigned the county attorneyship on being elected judge of the ninth judicial district and in the election in 1883 for the balance of the term there were two candidates. The contest was an exceedingly interesting one and resulted in the election of R. A. Campbell, who received 1,203 votes to 1, 173 received by his opponent. G. A. Vandeveer. Mr. Vande- veer was a Democrat, a fine lawyer and a popular man, and he cut the Repub- lican majority to a close margin in the election. In 1884 Mr. Campbell was re-elected without opposition, receiving 2,224 votes.
In 1886 there were three candidates. The Republican candidate was Douglas Kirkling. He received 1,842 votes. F. P. Hettinger, the Demo- cratic candidate, received 1.360 votes and an independent candidate. F. L. Jewell, polled 160 votes. Mr. Kirkling was an indifferent lawyer. He served but one term. He was very deliberate in his manner in the trial of a case. and the old settlers recall how Judge Houk, in a criminal case would take the preliminary examination of the jurors out of the hands of the county attorney because of his slow manner and examine them himself. The court would loose his patience with Kirkling's manner and would act as county attorney as well as judge to expedite business.
INFLUENCE OF THE POPULISTS.
In 1888 W. H. Lewis was the Republican candidate and D. W. Kent was the Democratic candidate. Lewis received 3.369 votes and Kent. 2.382 votes. Mr. Lewis served two years. In 1890 the Republican party became a minority party in both county and state. In this election Mr. Lewis received 2,263 votes and C. M. Williams, 3, 110 votes. Mr. Wliliams resigned after serving about a year. In 1891 there were three candidates, Z. L. Wise. Republican, receiving 2,269 votes: J. W. Quick. Populist. 2,093 votes and W. M. Whitelaw, Democrat, 650 votes. Here still the Republican party was in the minority, but the three party candidates divided the votes so that Mr. Wise was elected. The election this year was to fill the balance of the term for which Mr. Williams was originally elected, and this made an election in 1892 necessary. There were three candidates this year, also, but the Repub- lican candidate was J. W. Jones. He was a good lawyer, but not popular. His opponents were James Mckinstry, an old-time Democrat, who, how- ever, had associated with the Populists in their "fusion" with the Demo- crats in their joint effort to beat the Republicans. James Hettinger was
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