American Agriculturist, January 19, 1924 
49 
E. M. A. Meets Opposition 
Some Forceful and Interesting Letters About the State Police 
Editors’ Note: —A few issues ago, we printed a letter 
against the rural state police signed by E. M. A., who is a 
farmer’s wife in western New York. We asked for a discussion 
by our readers, and we certainly got it in the form of many 
comebacks from our folks, most of whom seemed to be enthusi¬ 
astically in favor of the troopers. Among the letters, however, 
were some who agreed with E. M. A., that the rural police 
were not always what they should be. You will be interested 
in the best of these letters which follow on this page. 
T HE letter of E. M. A. in regard to the 
State Troopers seems to me a lot more 
interesting than instructive. I should 
judge from it that someone had been 
indulging in Mexican athletics at the expense of 
E. M. A. (Throwing the bull.) I should like to 
know what record the celebrated revolver case 
was on and who put it on it. I do not believe more 
than half I hear and only 
a quarter of what I read, 
and I do not believe this 
unless there was some other 
reason for arresting the 
woman in the case, and 
they took her on the tech¬ 
nical charge of having the 
revolver. 
Now for some facts which 
I know of at first hand. 
My next door neighbor, 
Percy Parker, keeps chick¬ 
ens. He works in Water- 
town and his wife teaches 
school. They sold some 
cockerels to an Italian. 
Later when both were ab¬ 
sent a bunch of chickens 
were stolen and neighbors 
saw the truck of the Italian 
or a similar one standing 
in front of the place. As it 
was a Ford truck they coidd 
not be sure that it was the 
same one. They then hired 
a married couple to stay in 
the house when they were 
away. One day the same 
Italian came to the door 
and wished to buy more 
chickens. He was told that 
none were for sale. A little 
while later the man looked 
out and saw that the hasp on the door was hang¬ 
ing down. He went out and found the Italian and 
his son bagging hens as fast as possible. Of course 
they dropped the bags and beat it with celerity. 
They had left the truck up the road out of sight 
and when they came back some time later they 
were going so fast that the couple could only get 
two or three figures of the license plate. When 
Parker came home and heard of the occurrence he 
said he w r ould notify the mounted police. His 
wife had evidently heard similar reports to those 
heard by E. M. A. for she advised against it. 
She thought it would amount to nothing. How¬ 
ever Percy made the report and two troopers in 
plain clothes spent about four days on the case. 
They went to every place in Watertown where 
they might find the thief. At last they found 
him, and he was identified by the man on 
Parker’s place. He got seventy days in jail if I 
remember correctly. He wanted to turn in a 
watch as part payment, on the fine but was not 
allowed to do so. The troopers told Parker in the 
presence qf the Italian that if he ever caught any 
more Italians or other thieves in his chicken 
house to shoot to kill. They said that they 
guessed there ’would be no trouble if one did get 
killed. So much for arresting a farmer for possess¬ 
ing a weapon. The thieves could not be held 
for larceny as they dropped the chickens, but they 
got the limit for illegal entry. 
The troopers have rounded up several other 
gangs of chicken thieves. They take in more 
booze runners than the regular prohibition officers, 
although this is not just in their line. I have met 
and talked with a lot of the troopers and I find 
them to be a good deal superior to the average 
By A. A. READERS 
man you will meet. They are picked men who 
have served at least one enlistment in the U. S. 
service and hold an honorable discharge. They 
have been without exception courteous to me, 
and to others I know. I think a farmer is in poor 
business knocking them.—A. H. D. G., Jefferson 
Co., N. Y. 1 
* * * 
Pennsylvanians Proud of Their Men 
AM VERY GLAD to say that the decent 
citizens of Pennsylvania are proud of our 
State Police, and what thugs and criminals think 
of them does not amount to very much. 
I 
“On Monday evening, December 10, about five o’clock a 
disgraceful scene occurred at Frank L. Rogers’ Garage. Two 
mounted State Policemen named Lynch and [Morehouse, both 
apparently under the influence of liquor, rode up [to Mr. 
Rogers' place of business, dismounted and tied their horses 
to the fire gong, which is located near the office door. 
“Morehouse then proceeded to the office of the garage, 
where seated were three men, A. Osborne, Chauncey Smith 
and William Mack. Mr. Mack attends to the office in Mr. 
Rogers’ absence. On entering the office Morehouse at once 
began abusing these three men without cause, of any kind, 
told them he should arrest them for vagrants, and even 
threatened to strike Mr. Smith, who is an elderly man, 
saying your age is what saves you. 
“At this time Mr. Rogers appeared. Morehouse at once 
turned his venom upon him, with threats of blackjack and 
other kinds of abuse. Mr. Rogers is not the kind easily 
frightened and advised Morehouse to move on about his 
business, that he would attend to him later. 
“With some difficulty both men mounted, then running their 
horses through Lake Street, which 
was full of pedestrians at the time, 
endangering the lives and limbs 
of many. The two had proceeded 
on the State highway as far as 
Ralph Durland’s when Morehouse 
fell from his horse, injuring his 
head so seriously that it was neces¬ 
sary to call a physician. 
“The injured man was taken to 
the home of Ralph Durland, 
nearby, and word sent to the bar¬ 
racks at Monroe for medical assis¬ 
tance. One of the State Police 
from Monroe brought Dr. C. H. 
Hall in an automobile. The doctor 
rendered what aid was necessary 
and ordered) the injured man 
taken to the Goshen Emergency 
Hospital. 
“On leaving they did not even 
thank Mrs. Durland for the accom¬ 
modation she had accorded them, 
but filed out of the house, leaving 
the doctor to clean up their muss 
and get back to Monroe as best he 
could, about miles in pitch 
dark. Is it any wonder we hear 
complaints about this organiza¬ 
tion?” 
\K7 E think this is the best picture that has come to American Agriculturist in years. This family 
* V group is Mr. and Mrs. O. D. Eisenhart, of Horseheads, New York, and their sixteen children. The 
youngest child is two years old and the oldest is twenty-nine. They are being reared in the best atmos¬ 
phere in the world, that of a good farm home. Notice the hereditary resemblances and the strong 
evidences of character in every face. The foundations of America were built by large family groups 
like this. 
Friends of the Farmer 
I 
HAVE read with interest 
a letter by a farmer’s 
wife in the last American 
Agriculturist, who strong¬ 
ly criticises the New York 
State Troopers. I believe 
I have never known them to exceed their that the writer intends to be fair, but that 
authority but once and that was a case where her information is incorrect. It is absurd to 
rioting strikers (foreigners) had been shooting at think that a trooper stood by and encouraged law- 
guards at a mine. They entered the settlement, breakers in their destructive lawlessness. How 
searched all strikers for firearms, entered the long would a coward and knave of that kind re¬ 
houses and when they had gathered up all arms main under the command of Major Chandler or 
and ammunition they retired from the scene to his successor? It is true there might be men in 
their barracks there to await orders from their the troop who are not what they should be, but 
captain to proceed to some other scene of activity, their time there would be very short. 
This squad was arrested and the court held that Perhaps there has never been a large organiza- 
they were justified in their action. tion of men formed for the purpose of upholding 
During a street car strike in Philadelphia a 
company of militia was called out to quell a 
disturbance but they were jeered, hooted and 
struck with stones and some of the mill girls ran 
into the street and cut buttons from the uniforms 
the law into which some unfit men did not work 
their way, but they are soon eliminated. Even 
the world famous Canadian Mounted Police had 
their unfit members. The also famous State 
Police of Pennsylvania had their unworthy mem- 
as souvenirs. The next day the State Police were bers, but will anyone say that these organizations 
on the job. They also were treated to hoots and did not justify their existence? 
jeers and at last some one threw a stone from the The New York police is a later “experiment,” 
steps of a church. later, I believe, than it should have been. I am 
The captain wdiirled his horse, rode him through imbued with a justified pride in our old Empire 
the crowd and up the stone steps and came back State, and believe that they can and will “do 
w ith his man. That is the kind of men our State 
Police are.—W. B. S., Pennsylvania. 
* * * 
Disgraceful Conduct 
I N response to your inquiry in last w 7 eek’s paper 
as to w r hat the people thought, I am enclosing 
tw T o clippings from Orange County papers, one 
from the “Independent Republican” of December 
18th, and the other from the “Chester Press” of 
December 25th.—S. R., Orange County, N. Y. 
Editor’s Note: —We have room to print only part of one of 
the clippings which follows. It is from the “Independent Re¬ 
publican,” of Orange County. 
things” just as w'ell as their neighbors, and that 
our Black Horse Riders have more than justified 
their existence, and that they will in the future be 
classed at least on a par with any of the noted 
bodies of law-enforcement men. We knew their 
enemies, but these should not be found in a 
law r -abiding farm community. 
There could be volumes written in their favor, 
but your order is a short letter. Kindly allow me 
say that their enemies wall need to bring forward 
episodes with more resemblance of probability 
than these advanced by your correspondent E. M. 
A. of Chautauqua County.—N. L. R., Lewis Co., 
New 7 York. 
