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Eugene Or
COUNTY OFFICIAL PAPER FOR CROOK COUNTY
Crook Comety Journal
CITY OFFICIAL PAPER FOR CITY OF PRINEVILLE
VOL. XIX
PRINEVILLE, CROOK COUNTY, OREGON, THURSDAY, MARCH 4, 1915.
NO. 15
CIRCUIT COURT
NEXT WEEK
Judge Bradshaw'a Lait Term
In Prinevillc
Short Criminal Docket
Only Three Men Have Been
Held to Grand Jury Other
Indictments Possible
Circuit court, with lion. V. L
Bradshaw of The I Jul ! presiding
for tho laiit time in Crook county.
convene next Monday morning
at 10 o'clock. The term will be a
short ne as the criminal work now
in view, a standard by which the
length of tho term Is usually
measured, Is light, though much
can transpire within a few days in
Crook county as the past has proven
and a grand jury may spring un
expected indictments.
Only three men have been held
to the grand jury by the magis
trates. Kinil Stolte, a foreigner, is
held for the larceny of a heifer Ie
longing to C. M. F.lklns. The of
fense was committed in what is
now Jefferson county after tho elec
tion but before the new county was
organized and Iwcamo a judicial
subdivision capable of taking cog
nizance of crimes within its borders.
Stolte has been at lilertv under a
bond.
John T. Peters of I Tine is held
for assault with a dangerous
weapon, having shot Henry Tweet
of Bend last December, inflicting a
flesh wound. lie was bound over
by Justice Bowman of Prineville.
He is also at liberty under a bond.
V. 11. Meacham, a bad check
artist, who flim-flammed a number
of Bend citizens, is in jail awaiting
a hearing for obtaining money in
that city by false pretense, lie
was bound over by Justice Estcs
and a large number of complaints
have been lodged against him. He
is also wanted in Wasco county for
similar offenses committed there.
The first regular term of court
for Jefferson county will be con
vened by Judge Duffy in October
unless a special term 'is called be
fore that time. The regular terms
for Jefferson county are fixed by
law to take place in April and
October, but as the new law fixing
those terms does not go into effect
until May 21, no regular term, can
be held in Jefferson county until
October. Judge Huffy will, no
doubt, hold his first term in Crook
county In September.
Hereafter the circuit court will
sit in Crook county In May, Septem
ber and January, making the three
terms sit every four months with
an equal time between each term.
Liked in Salem
The Daily Oregon Statesman of
Salem, Ore., has the following to
say of the Jubilee Singers, who will
appear at the Commercial Club Hall
In Frineville, Wednesday, March 17:
"Those who were fortunate
enough to hear the California
Jubilee Singers at the Grand opera
house last night will recall the
superb selections rendered before
the audience last evening. Not a
word of praise more to one than to
another of the members of this
quartet is deserving. Every mem
ber is a soloist of the highest class.
There is no better cure ' for bad
humors and no medicine more
pleasant to take than an evening's
entertainment at the hands of a
irood company of jubilee singers."
Million Dollar Swindle
Involves F. Menefee
A million dollar swindle Is
charged against officers and sales
men of tho now defunct United
States Cashier Company, of Port
land, in an indictment returned
against them by the Federal grand
jury Saturday morning. The in
dictment charges conspiracy and
misuse of the mails on the part of
Frank Menefee, F. M. LeMonn, 0.
E, Gernert. li. F. Bonnewell, II. M.
Todd, Joseph Hunter, 0. L. Hop-
son, P. E. Muraine, Oscar A. Camp
bell and Thomas Bilyeu.
It Is alleged that tho concern,
which was incorporated at 1.250,
000, sold all the capital stock, bring
ing Into its treasury more than
11,000,000 in money and property
on the false representation that the
company owned the patents to five
change-making machines which it
proposed to manufacture.
Summarized the activities charged
against tho men ar as follows;
The company was organized Sep
tember 1, 1910. for the purpose of
making models as a basis for selling
stock. It continued its business
until January 31, 101-1, when it
sold out to an (Indiana concern for
1750,000 of stock in the new com
pany and a promise of 150.000
more stock would be paid to settle
the debts of the company. During
the time the company was In opera
tion the defendants sold more than
$1,000,000 worth of stock to some
4000 share holders scattered over
Oregon, Washington, California,
Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, titan,
Texas, Iowa. North Dakota. Michi
gan, Illinois and Colorado.
According to United StUes Dis
trict Attorney Reames, Bilyeu
posed &s the inventor of a change
computing machine, a bank cashier,
a lightning change machine for
streetcar conductors, a currency
paying machine, and a new style
adding machine. The models which
ere shown tho prospective pur
chasers of stock worked beautifully,
in fact, the thing looked so go.)d
that tho operators were able to
advance their stock from a par value
ef til to prices as high as $;!0.
Advances were announced before
they were made in order to induce
buyers to close their deals.
Large sales of stock owned
privately by the promoters, it is
alleged, were made under the rep
resentation that the company would
use tho money to build a large
plant and enter the manufacture of
the machines on a lommercial basis.
The indictment asserts that dur
ing the entire life of the concern it
was insolvent, and that in the pub
lished statements of its financial
condition liabilities to tho extent of
500,000 were entirely omitted.
The Indiana concern, which took
over the United States Cashier
Company is now in operation at
Terre Haute. It was organized by
Menefee, who now has no interest
in it. A plant was at one time
built at Kenton, but the factory, it
is said, was used only for the man
ufacture of models.
For a time the company enjoyed
an apparently prosperous boom.
The price of the stock went up
from 11 to 12.50 a share. From
12.50 it advanced to 15; from
15 to 20, and finally from 20 to
30. These advances, the indict
ment alleges, were purely artificial,
and were engineered by the pro
moters for the purpose of consum
mating stock sales.
Frank Menefee was the president
and general manager, and ( is well
known in this county, having been
prosecuting attorney for this dis
trict at one time.
M. A. Lehman was a Prineville
visitor from Terrebonne yesterday.
Jefferson County Wins
In State Supreme Court
Salem. Or.. March 2 In a sar
catitic opinion, written by Justice
McBride, supreme court today pro
nounced valid an election held last
fall to create Jeff arson county from
a portion of Crook county, affirm
ing Circuit Judge Bradshaw of
Crook county.
Contending that the election was
void, A. D. Russell instituted the
proceedings to review the action of
the county court in ordering the
election, in addition alleging it in
valid because the electors at the
same election voted on the question
to create Deschutes county from a
portion of Crook; also he contended
that the 1913 law providing for the
organization of counties was void,
and that tho session of the court at
which the order for tho election
was made was not legal, because,
although the county judge was
present when the order was made,
he was absent the first two days of
the term, and that county judge's
failure to appear the first two days
automatically adjourned court until
the next term, he contended.
Justice McBride ruled against
all contentions, and with relation to
the latter, after referring to the
constitutional provision cited by the
attorneys for Russell, said, in part:
"It is contended that the words
providing that two commissioners
may lie elected to sit with the coun
ty judge while transacting county
business by implication exclude the
idea that the county commissioners
can transact business in his absence.
In our judgment this is giving too
narrow and technical a'meaning to
the word 'sit,' and in effect limiting
it to the mere physical presence of
two commissioners upon the bench
He would be Jupiter, and they but
satellites and even less, because
they would not be authorized to
even give light their function
would be to 'sit.' Unless they are
to have equal authority with the
countv judge in matters pertaining
to their functions, the framers of
the constitution might as well have
provided that the county julge
should sit with two joints of stove
pipe." The decision means that all
questions as to the legality of the
steps leading to the formation of
the new county have been disposed
of. !
MAP
The Section marked Deschutes is
i (
""rj .l-. . it 7"" rt"Tf"' f 'oao "I -
r str T ""5 J3,V ' 1 T- 'I' I
y Jr rkz J '
and Uereated last November, at the same time Jefferson
The court upholds the form of
ballot used, fin. Is no merit in the
contention that the absence of the
county judge during two days at
the opening of the term invalidated
any proceedings, and says that the
term "county business" is broad
enough to include proceedings such
as were had. The court finds noth
ing to uphold the claim that the
legislature intended that only one
proposition to divide a county
should be submitted at an election.
It was claimed that the fact that
there was a proposition also to
create the new county of Deschutes.
which was defeated, invalidated the
proceedings.
"Nothing that can be suggested
is more vital to a county in its
corporate and business capacity
than a proposition to take from it
a large portion of its taxpaying
area and population," says Justice
McBride in his decision. "Under
the constitution, the proposed coun
ty must have an area of at least
400 square miles, and under the act
of 1913 it must contain taxable
property amounting to the sum of
$2,000,000. So it would appear
that any proposition to depirve a
county of this valuable part of its
domain was preeminently county
business.
"No good reason has been given
why an'order made by the county
court, sitting in probate, or for the
trial of civil cases, would in any
way be more beneficial or efficacious
than one made by it for the trans
action of county business."
The case came before the supreme
court on an appeal from Judge W.
L. Bradshaw of the Crook county
circuit court, who refused to grant
a writ of review to revise the action
of the county court. Judge Brad
shaw is upheld.
Canadians Pleased Too
"I have heard a number of
colored troops, but I consider the
California Jubilee's among the
best." E. S. Whittaker, general
secretary Y. M. C. A., New West
minister, B. C.
See this unusual troop at the
Commercial Club Hall, Wednesday,
March 17.
C. J. Johnson returned
Portland yesterday.
from
SHOWING JEFFERSON COUNTY
j t s 6 J 7 tar 9
that part of Crook County which was
JUDGE T. E. J. DUFFY
Y -'.
f SR-1
1
wm. ' r mil
Lower Bridge Chalk
Banks Are Valuable
The chalk deposits at Lower
Bridge are to be developed by V.
L. Holt of Portland. Mr. Holt has
secured holdings there covering
some 200 acres and says tha; the
chalk beds will average twenty feet
in depth over that area.
He has found that the chalk as it
is commonly called, is pure silica,
and is valuable for more than forty
different purposes, including silver
polish, fire brick, soap filler, the
manufacture of dynamite and other
explosives, and is used in practically
all face powder.
The material is being minei and
shipped to Portland from where it
will be sent to New York in large
nunntitioa Ku u.atar Tka Jnn,m
is considered worth about $5,000,-
000.
Another Bend Man
Drew a Juicy Plum
C. S. Hudson of Bend secured an
important appointment during the
last week of the legislature when
he was selected by the House,1 to
gether with L. Lair Thompson of
Lakeview, as members of the
congress for development of water
power throughout the West- Edgar
B. Piper, of the Oregonian, and S.
B. Huston, of Portland, with
Governor Wythecombe, make up
the remainder of the board.
Road Changes Considered
County court is holding regular
meeting this week. A number of
I important road changes are being
considered at this term.
o , e es
proposed as Deschutes County,
County was created.
WILL TRY OUT
FIRE SIGNAL
Ordinance Passed by Council
Regulating Stoves
John Malech Nightwatch
Important Ordinances Are Given
First Reading at Regular
Monthly Meeting
The regular meeting of the city
council was held in the city hall
Tuesday evening. Present Mayor
Edwards, Councilmen Noble, Pan
cake, Foster, Reams, Still, Marshal
Pollard, Treasurer Bechtell and
Recorder Hyde.
Four ordinances were presented
to the council and read for the first
time. Three of them, one regu
lating the electric wiring within the
city, another the plumbing, and a
third the repealing a section of
Ordinance 185, regulating the num
ber of motion picture shows, were
laid over until the April meeting
for second reading.
An ordinance which was passed
and is number 220 carried an
emergency clause and went into
effect at once. It provides that all
stoves U3ed in barber shops or other
establishments to heat water and
stoves and furnaces used in meat
markets for trying lard shall be
properly enclosed in brick, stone or
concrete walls to prevent danger
from fire.
The Fire Amd Water committee
was instructed to order a fire siren
or signal which is to be installed
and tried out on approval.
A building permit was granted
to C. E. Harrison for the construc
tion of a corrugated iron ware
house 30x60 feet, on the corner
south of the Ford garage.
John Malech was hired as night
watch at a salary of $75 per month.
The matter of drilling an artesian
well in the city park was mentioned
by Councilman Reams, but the pre
vailing opinion was that the city
was not financially able to drill the
well unless a flow of water was
guaranteed by the drillers at a
reasonable price.
Petitions were presented by A. P.
Mackey and Glenn Hendrickson,
each asking for the job of driving
the water wagon for the coming
summer. The job was granted to
Hendrickson, the council figuring
that he did successful work last
year and was entitled to the place
again if he wanted it
Councilman Foster reported that
he had ordered the water wagon
given two coats of paint and that
A. B. Roller was doing the work,
consideration to be $28-
A motion by Councilman Foster
was passed, requiring the marshal
to take up all stray stock, the own
ers of which live outside the city,
care for and advertise the same,
and permit their owners to take
them out of the pound by paying
feed and advertising charges.
The following bills were allowed:
John Malech, 17 nights $42 50
Jack Curtis, meals 50
R S Price, hauling 1 75
W H VVlrtz, drawing papers... 5 00
Crook County Bank, Interest
on bonds 60 00
First National Bank, Interest
on bonds 90 00
L M Bechtell, treus. salary 25 00
W B Pollard, salary 75 00
" "4 dogs, 2 arrests.. 6 00
beschntes Power Co 159 20
Johu Templeton, special pollce"17 50
Henry Seeliale " " 17 50
C VV Elklns, padlock for jail...... ' 1 50
E O Hyde, tees 14 35
Marshal Pollard reported $10
Continued on page 8