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£ L>vh • . s Belt Valley Tines n sr BELT, MONTANA, THUftSDAY. JANUARY 26, 1922 VOLUME 28. NUMBER 32 $2.00 A YEAR IN ADVANCE Death Comes to Geo. Bratley From Blow From Man He Had Befriended r George W. Bratley, son of Mr. and Mrs. Wm. M. Bratley of Belt, died at the Columbus hospital in Great Falls from pneumonia Monday evening, having been taken to that city last Friday following an allegeg attack up on him a week ago yesterday at Stan ford by one Ed. Hall. Hall, who is a former service man and a laborer at Stanford, is being held by the sheriffI of Judith Basin county . According to the story told by the dead man to his , father, who was called to Great Falls last Saturday, Hall had been staying with Bratley and his wife at their ranch 19 miles west of Stanford in the Little Belt mountains. Hall was broke and Brat ley went to Stanford for supplies, That night Bratley stayed at town home alone. Hall spending the night somewhere else in town. Bratley regained consciousness fol lowing the encounter £pd told the sforiff that he had opened the door to his house just about daybreak Wed nesday morning in response to a knock. Immediately he was struck over the right eye with what he thought was a revolver. When ques tioned about the affair, Hall said he would "let George tell it," according to Sheriff KeHey. Whether there t had been previous trouble, whether r the alleged attack on Bratley grew - -- j j ! " r Beaudry Bros. Get Ranch Judgment As an aftermath of the high finance tactics of J. E. Mason and M. L. Ma son, of several years ago, judgment for $56,326.21 was allowed in a decree signed Friday by Judge J. B. Leslie in favor of Valmore Beaudry and Al bert Beaudry and against John A. Niles. Phoebe Niles, Ben R, Comings, Comie Comings, Adolph Aman, Cas cade county, the Cascade bank of Great Fails, the A m e ric a n Rank and Trust company, the Conrad Banking company, J. E. Mason and M. L. Ma. . The decree ordered the sale of wh^t has ben known for years as the Beaudry Bros, ranch, comprising 3, 114.86 acres of land, situated near * r Riceville, to satisfy the judgment, According to the nleadimrs in the case Niles and his wife December 3 1918 executed two promissory notes aggregating $45 0000. The decree pro vides for counsel fees of $3 000 and vraes w>r wunsei lees 01 M,wv and entrai tJlZ* h St Î ft not brin The «nip tu k . ' ^ n1 ranch " as on one former occasion the cause of a suit in S t, H wh i e ? Tr H*hl ' a PT 1 Falh ^ th b S fp h pf S fh r° r ^.°T' ♦T"'Sr™ ° f tne Mason Drotners. ine neaudry brothers won this suit. The Masons, shortly after their deal for the Beau dry ranch, negotiated for the pur chase of the Buchanan ranch on Wil low creek, but this dea 1 dropped through when the high finance meth ods of the Masons again became evi dentdent. Mixed feed at $1.00 per ciwt. Also Cascade flour at $1.80 tor 49's or $3.50 per cwt. This is the flour which in the past gave such good satisfac P tion in this community. TFy a sack and be convinced that it is as good as it used to be. G, W, Merkle Coal Co. I Bon —Adv. Court Dismisses Charge of Theft Against the W lisons r Holding that the evidence submit-, ted was not sufficient to sustain the day dismissed the case against Wade and Nahun Wilson , brought on the complaint of David Graham, charg-i - . , , . , . . i t i. n|r a e . e a s na sto en a number of chickens from the Graham coop. A number of local persons tended the trial during the day. The defendants were represented by J. W. Speer of Great Falls while Asssistant County Attorney Julius Wuerthner conducted the prosecution. Howard Graham, son of he com plaining _ witness, testified in direct. examination that he and his father, , after discovering the loss of the chickms. traced three pairs of foot steps, two of which were evidently made by men, while the third were those of a woman, across the field to the county road, where the thieves jumped into an automobile and drove f away. This car was equipped with ✓ tires of a distinguishable tread and had a chain on the left rear wheel, ac- ; cordig to hi« testimony, and by foL lowing this trail be and his father reached the Wilson ranch. On cross - examination by the defense young Graham testified that he had accom- ; panied his father on the trail of the . automobile only as far as the Cath- ; charge, Justice of the Peace P. • J « Shields of Great Falls, late last Thurs V > Matinee Friday at 4 p. m. Evenings at 8 p. m. Prices: 30c A 55c 44 Greatest Story of a Mother's Love Ever Produced In Films Over the Hill ^Pythian Tonight and Tomorrow a out of revenge or the aftermath of a night's drunk on the part of Hull, still remains a mystery. Hall re-! fused to discuss the matter and was held by Sheriff Kelley. flail was said to have been drink-} mg and had the appearance of having been intoxicated when he was ar- 1 rested. Sheriff ^elley said. He is «1-1 leged to have talked boastingly of [ the encounter with Bratley following his arrest, according to Mr. Bratley, Sr. - Bratley*» right eye is said to have ; been destroyed by the blow. He was conscious at intervals until Friday, ! when his condition became so serious that he was brought to the Columbus hospital in Great Falls. His condi-, his»tion was such that it was impossible to take an X-ray photograph of his head, .the physicians said. Tuesday evening an inquest was held the coroners jury rendering a verdict to the effect that Bratley came to his death as the result of a blow or blows inflicted early last Thursday mom mg by Ed. Hall while Bratley was standing in the door of his home at Stanford. Alfred Chester, deputy sheriff of Judith Basin county, who placed Hall under arrest, was the principal wit ness at the inquest. He testified that he had been called to the Bratley home early Thursday morning. When i he arrived he found Bratley lying on a bed, his body bruised and battered and covered with blood. Hall was still in the house when the officer arrived. A broken c hair was found in a comer j back of a stove, he said, and Hall is ! alleged to have told Chester that he had struck Bratley with it. Hall also pointed to a rifle standing in the same cor n er ar >d admitted using it in the as ®?,^ on Brandy, according to Chester, Neither Hall nor the wounded man W(, uld give any explanation of the al ■ tercation and since arrest Hall has refusedi to^ make any statement. ^ r ; '*• Macaulay, who attended Hatley, said the man's skull had been fractured by a blow oyer the right eye ' an< ^ ** ** assumption that the butt ■rifle was otad, W M Bratley.-] fibber of the dead man, told the jury story his son had related to him befiw being removed to Great Falls, is being held in jail in Stanford, Bratley was 39 years old and is survived by a widow, his father and mother and three brothers, J. M. Brat ey .• * * a u^ e Bratley who is m,w a ' Malern, Oregon, and F'rank P rat,e >'' whose whereabouts are un. j <nuwn - an d bas two sisters, Mrs. Hal * ec ^ ^ < ' ra bline and Mrs. Carl ReminRton of Bi cT andy Tht> body was shipped to Belt yea te ^y afternoon and the funeral will be held this aft ^ r noon at 2 o'clock from the M. E. church, Rev A P ARon officiatinR . _ foreclosure is ordered FAVORING LONG COMPANY _ . . . Judgment and foreclosure has been allowed in the district court in favor 0 f the J. B. Long company in the sum of $21.163, on a note and mort gage, the land ordered sold being 1 % 120 acres in section 1 and 2, town ship !6 north, range 5 east, and in sections 26, 27 and 36, townships 17 north, of range 5 east. Thi defendants in the action were Louise Vetter, Frank L. Howard, Sam Kurth, Mary Kurth, the Amer ican Bank and Trust company and Roy W. Graham. The American Bank and Trust com pany and Graham were named de fendants because of their interest in the mortgaged property. olic church, stopping there and going up town. Returning to town after Deputy Sheriff J. W. Lcland, and accompanied by him. the witness and his father re turned to the Wilson ranch and after a search of the premises, he said, tb< r y discovered approximately 17 chickens lucked up in a coop. They identified the chickens as those that had been stolen. On the floor of the at-.coop, according to the witness, he found three chicken heads, one ofthem belonging to a rooster which, he said, he could identify. This particular head preserved by the plaintiff, was entered as a state exhibit and the wit ;.ess sa d he was confident that it be longed to a Graham rooster. The witness further testified Wade Wilson had appeared in the yard wearing white rubber boots that were spotted with blood. After he and his father were convinced that they had located the stolen chickens, the witness said that Wilson asked how much the fowls could be bought for. Mr. Graham was quoted as hav-! ing replied that he could settle on a charge of burglary. Deputy Sheriff Leland was called and corroborated the Graham testimony as to the find ing of the chicken* in the Wilson coop, and the offer of Wade Wilson to par chase them. Witnesses for the de fe»*e a mi the defendants denied any knowledge of the theft {0 G A Dangerous Curve - a B IxjBQBitfMHI PO'NT H U/L y 1 , * mm ^Ê^^UêBÊêÊ*Sê^s J* ' ? 9 Rp** ' . 'yStîx ! ? JKêŒ S / i \ fP jT 1 f ) \ j i / L { I ,, * * ' / j Ik. < / '* / 7 i . j>i s' * I Sjk . ^ ; I '■''w..,., .... --'-'j,.; ^ ! V T* ! i \ ... ^****^~ C, » \. , . / jî - *' f _Sji | vrv. s'* ~~~~~ v ~--J L s# | jsSfe -- L— »H» if \. tx ttjUeL £ ^_ *n/^ lUU' % . ' , '■* IV* ' * " " --—— ----— : - ' - ~ POiHT 7 ' avi / r i , ^ ll.rt.jL.. A » mfîî. RnHIf 2)rTnV A$Kf\ Tnt mldl m «UHI IIIJ HOBO >Ui «• ■ 1* I J """ g YPPIIf 10(1 Illfl (T fTlPIlT ,lgH LÄÖÜU1IÜII JUU^IIIOIM — M rs . Cl ara McCarthy of Rayneaford . fi Li suit i n the district court of i Ï, s . ul tne aisinct cown « * »scade county, asking that an ln , junction be issued restraining C. H. Kelley, sheriff of Judith Basin coun ty, and Matilda Lindsay of this cfty from selling: 240 acres of land lying near Raynesford. in which she holds a one-half interest. Mrs. Lindsay, in November last, brought suit against Mrs. McCarthy, who is a for. daughter-in-law, to enforce the payment of three promissory notes of $],000 each. The defendant admitted signing the notes but she declared that her mind was so disturbed by the death of her husband that she was not responsible for her actions. How ever, judgment for the full amount ' was returned in favor of Mrs. Lind say. Mrs. McrarfRy T s complaint reads that Sheriff Kelley has advertised the land for sale February 4. by vir-i the of the writ of execution that wu issued on the day that the judgment was returned. The plaintiff alleges that the land she now occupies homestead property and as such is exenifft from execution or forced e le She claims that it is worth only $2, 400 . She asks that the defendants be cited into court to give reasons why a permanent injunction should not . V . _1_ . - _ _ O h Aff Pniiroo lion uHufl (jUlirdU Hufl WIIÜII UUUIUU IflUII — Dninfr Cnrr Qirori 06 I II H, L II R d t, U U HWIIIb hllgUgVU - - W ith fh„ th» R„it v-m, 7 " e ' iates ° f Belt ers ' Short Course, which comes this year March 9-11, only a little more than a month away, plans are being raï >i d ly laid whereby a good list of , ... , ' . . . speakers^ will De assured * or ^ event. The extension service of the State College, realizing the value of j |hese meetings, is cooperating heart jjy* ®L date they have promised six specialists for the Belt short course, Supt. George Morgan of the Havre | experimental substation, haa express ^ a willingness to come down and translate into common language for the farmers of this section the results of the experimental work at Havre. From the state>department of agri culture at Helena, Commissioner Dav is has assured at least one speaker, The program for the farm women will occupy as important place as that for the men. Miss Gräber and Miss occupy as important place as that for the men. Miss Gräber and Miss Milam of the state college, will be in Belt the entire three (lays of the course and will conduct special courses for the ladies. Though a good start has been made, several speakers are still to be se cured in order to assure the well bal anced. constructive course that is to be held here this winter. To lay plans for the course and t<> name committees to handle the dif feront features, a meeting of the business men of the city and tho"< of the country who are interested in the welfare of the course, will be held at the High school next Tuesday even ing, January 31. It is hoped there will be a good attendance at thif' meeting in order that the plan* may be promptly gotten under way. that-for BELT VALLEY GRADUATE MARRIED IN OKLAHOMA - Clarence Knight, a graduate of the Belt Valley High school, with therb" of some six years ago. was married on January 10. at Nowata, Okla., to Miss Mabel Garrett of Great Falls ar cording to word received by fnem) of the bride in Great Falls Mr Knight is now in business at Coffey ville, Kan., where the young people will make their home. He was form erly a resident of Geyser, when- his family now reside«, and Mr- Knipti» is a former teacher iti 'ho Geyser school, rtl r a_, IkflnflDfi iflf TO UIIOIH/C IÜI iVIUIIIOlO IU A 1 fl* 1 r NPP llfPîlî r IPlIITP r TfiP UCÖ UIOQI I IU1UID I IOÖ J - One of the greatest pictures ever filmed—Iby some critics named as the j ^ , g w ow _ ,, p.r+hi»n j theater today and tomorrow. We i tyant every mother in Belt or vicinity to see this picture and have made ar. ! rangements with the management of j the theater by which we can present every mother over 60 vears old with ' a ticket to this great presentation, ' ' 4< Over the Hill." We regret that a, longer notice could not be given, but | unfortunately the contract was not | ; closed until the first of this week and the only open dates are those named, j : "Over the Hill" is a story of mother love and plumbs the very depths of i emotion, with enough smiles for re- 1 -lief, a pleasing romance and a most ) satisfactory ending. In our own and(^ possibly crude opinion, it is a picture fhnr goes far to nullify tim unmy hml pictures the film companies have been guilty of. We invite every mother, step-moth er or mother-in-law of Belt and vicin ity to call at the New Drug Co. store today or tomorrow, between the hours isjof 1 and 6 o'clock, when they will be presented with a free ticket to this .Now by a representative of the Belt Valley Times. There will be no pub-| licity and no embarrasing features; : just see Mr Bemis at the drug store | and he will give you your ticket. We, .. to 7 y«u_all_tocora^_ _ „ - , . ^ Coroufoll Do fill for | Q | U vif O I i I OllY lui I UIUV9UII I UIIJ IUI ... _ n o Irufin [otniltf UlllC II Will I dlllllf WMIW fl.II u,,M, J* The home of Mr and Mrs Ollie home of Mr. and wu* Irwin was a lively scene last Saturday evening when almost the entire Tiger, Butte community turned ^ut to give *bem a surprise in the nature of a farewell party, as the Irwin's intend leaving for Washington in the near future. A cheery welcome greeted them and after the guests had warmed and chatted a short time, the large kitchen wag cleared of table and chairs and dancing was enjoyed by the younger folk* and many of the older ones, while those who did not dance enjoyed themselves at cards and music. Ex-i cellent music was furnished by Ras mug Ndson and the Paulson brothers a nd a most enjoyable evening was spen t. About midnight the' ladies served an excellent lunch and after wan j c .,g a rs for the gentlemen and candy for the women and children were passed. Roy A. Johnson then asked the as sernbled guests for their attention a nd upon behalf of the gathering pro reeded to tell the Irwin's how sorry their neighbors were to see them leave the community, and wished them pros tterity and happiness in their new home, ending with the presentation of a beautiful set of heavy silver knives forks and spoons as a token of the high esteem in which the Irwin* are Id by those who know them best, Mr. Johnson was followed by ('has. F. Anderson who also expressed re ^ret -at the departure of the Irwins, by Ted Johnson, who thanked Mr. Ir w j B j n behalf of the Tigy Butte Dra matic club, and by several others. Mr. Irwin feelingly responded, 'hanking the guests for coining and the remembrance given him and his family and assur*d them that their kindness through 14 years' residence among them would always remain one of his and his wife's most cherished memories. Dancing was later resumed and it was six o'clock in the morning when -he guests departed with many ex. pressions of best wishes for th- futur happm«*** of the Irwin*. ..— -Shannon Good baking results require good flour. Many housewives are going back to the old standby, f*a*eade fhmr. no* that it i* back on the local mar ket. $1.80 for 49's, $3 60 per cwt G. W. Merkle Coal Co, Adv. Judith Basin County Debt to Old Counties Increased Court Ruling Bridge funds amounting to $160.000 and hl [ d by Cascade county at the i county cannot be considered assets of the county but are public fund held jin trust by the county, the state su prenie court rules in the opinion hand ed down December 19, 1921, affirm-1 ing the judgment signed by Judge J. 8* Leslie June 17, 1921, in which the findings of the commission named to adjust the indebtedness existing be tween Cascade, Fergus and Judith Ba sin count ' es were sustained. A copy of the opinion was received Friday by 1 County Attorney W. J. Tighe. 1 The opinion similarly ruled that ! Fergus county road funds amounting to $129,000 are not assets of that I county and also that county record books are not county property because ithey cannot be sold and have no mar. 1 ketable value, Considerig the inter ; pretation that the state supreme | court has placed on the question of what is county property, it is main tamed that the commission of ad j U8tor , acting erroneously in includ ; ' n ^ bridge and road funds as as s * ts Fergus and Cascade counties anrf therefore a greater debt is owing the old counties by Judith Basin ^URty than that determined by the commission. Because of this apparent error In 11 *"' commission's report. William M. Blackford, senior counsel for Fergus fpunty in a letter to the firm of Nor r,t » Rhoades A Hurd, who represented * county, advocates that the * wo .°' < * ™>u n ties join in an action to i^uire the board of adjustment to re assemble and modify their report in j conformity with the findings of the supreme court. It is the contention of counsel that the withdrawal of the bridge funds as assets of ( aacade county would increase the indebted-j n ess of Judith Basin to this county by between $H.OOO and $10,000. The i commission decided that $44,000 was , ue Cascade county and that approxt uiately $250,000 was du e ^ F 1 ergus county . The- increase-m tnrhdTteitnPKS would proportionately be greater in r, 'î£t ct Fergus county. "'/J , ** 0 ^ n, îl' S w Ol i', coni P os ^ " G. Poland, B, P. McNair and V. F. Baroch. made their report, with Bar dissenting, Judith Basin county, refused to accept it as an accurate statement of the obligations existing, between the new and the old counties. Lidith Basin county instituted pro ceedmga to secure n writ of mandate compel the board to reconvene »nd , correct^certain alleged errors but the proceedings were dismissed by Judge fa-slie. An appeal was then taken to the supreme court. ' Judith Basin county raises! Objection to tb<> a< 't'°n of the commission in ex k)dmy Firat Avenue north and, Tenth street bridges in (treat Falls fr ° mth< * uRK ' >t *° fth< ' c ° unt y HnH <"* satisfaction was also aroused by the 1 r b.ssific« t ,on of county record books DE| AMANTE IS , N JAIL AWAITING TRIAL IN COURT - John Delamante of Belt is held at the county jail, unable to furnish $500 bail, the amount fixed by Justice of the Peace Charles A, Wilson of Great Falls. Delamante is charged with transporting liquor and entered a plea of not guilty when arraigned. He was bound over to the district court for trial. Delamante was pinched Dec. 24, to-( gether with five gallons of moonshine i which he is accused of having in his possession. j Belt High Wins Stockett Game, Lose to Fergus Co. 1 Defeating the fast Stocket» -Sand j (xmlee team last Saturday night by a score of 21 to 12. the Belt Valley High school basketball team played their first winning game of the sea-• son, and easily showed the effects of, < fficient coaching during the past month. The defensive work of the team was all that could be hoped for. while a vast improvement was noted in the offensive. The visiting team proved a foe worthy of the best efforts of the locals and- kept them ion fhejr toes at ail times. Belt started in to win their game and at no time were they in danger of losing it, the score being in their favor from the first, the the first half ending with a score 12 to 4 in j their favor In the second half the visitors came back stronger, and } while they could not prevent the Belt High from running up a total of 8 ' points, making the final score 21 to 12. The lineup was a* follows: Belt— R.-S. C.—• Goasack L f. Centoni Butts r f. Bywater« McCoy c. Curran* Pattsner r, g. Whitehead f. g. Wood The scoring for Belt was done by (iossiick with one field basket and thfe.- free throw* out of a possible! six; Butte, five field throws; Paris-1 ner, one tyeW basket; Shannon, free throws, with a perfect score;! as public property. Like objections ! wt " re raised in aspect to the 1350,000 of road bonds in Fergus county, It was contended by Judith Basin j cour jty that the bridge* could not be I considered public property because they were not in use at the time of the creation of the new county. A re duct ion in the amount of the indebted - With practically the entire stock of the State Bank of Belt represented, the annual meeting of that institution was held Tuesday, about the only change from the present orgaruza tion being the cutting of the number f directors from five to three, the resi|piations of V, Beaudry and -J. E TTeuTey. which were put before the board last July, effective Dec. SI, be (ng accepted. L. B. Lockhart was elected chairman Q f t t K , ar( j the other directors being ^ £ McOy and E. E. Dawson. Of fj C( , ra w<?n . <>lected a* follows: Î. B. l^ckhart president; E. E. Dawson, cai | 1 j #ri an( j Messelt, «sustain ra shi«r. . , ■ .. institution ir in the^ur . , f ' ' P v „_ r ,L „„u -l,« n «howe.i ^ yf* r - though the report showed I** the bank had enjoyed a pro.per out year, considering the conditions the reorganization of the mstitu 8 t*t«ment as of PeqWlb t gJit 1821, showed undivided profits Mill carried under that head T* 1 * a* r r ier t * and . I Mi,,e,: " 1 j**J* and th * F,r>t Nation« 1 Bank of **"■ the.r annual meetings on .January 10, there being no changes m either the board of directors or in the iRt of officerg at eHh „ in>titutio)1 . Neither bank made any change in the amount of capital stock or surplus and neither declared a dividend, though the stockholders in each ex pressed themselves as being very well pleased with the showing made under the conditions they have operated un der during the past year. The Farm ers & Miners bank, in its statement the last day of the o!d year, showed undivided profits of $5,031.33. All three institutions «re looking forward to a continued return to ward normal conditions and a more nés» established by the commission was demanded on the basis of this contention. In defining the term "county prop erty", the supreme court went back to early day interpretations. County property, according to the opinion, is property that a county can hold and •ell; a highway or bridge is not coun ty property because it cannot be sold, and funds held by the county for the purpose of building roads or bridges are not public funds, the county act ing only as an agent in expending them The application of this defi nition to the facts in the case involv ing the three countie« made it cleay that the judgment of the lower court must be affirmed, the opinion says. The opinion was signed Dy all mem bers of the supreme bench. The remittitur, or return on the ap peal in affirmation of Judge Leslie's decision, has been filed in the office of Clerk of the Court Alex Remneas. The memorandum shows the costs of the appeal have amounted to $50.60. Belt Banks Hold Annual Meetings prosperous business. Johnson, relieving Cossack in the sec ond half, one fieki basket. For Stock ett-Sand Coulee Bywater* and Cen j toni did the scoring, the former with one field basket and six free throws out of a possible 14; the latter center, ing the hoop two times from the field, Fourteen fouL« were called on Belt and eight on Stockett Leo Spogen refereed the game, while Sederholm of Tracy, was the umpire, both officials giving excellent satisfaction, a return game with the Choteau County High is scheduled for the lo- ■ ca j floor a week from tomorrow night. February 3, and the locals are look- * m>r f f)rward to their revenge for the | ngg 0 f game to Fort Benton early j n ty,,, gt . aaon . | Last night's game with the Kr-rus County High resulted in a score of 40 to 8 in favor of Lewiatown. Iti the fir-r half the locals played the game with the idea the* possibly they had a eht.nce to make s showing at least against a superior team, and held the score down to 12-6. But in the laat half they seemed m lose all hope* with the result that Fergus scored 28 points to Belt's 2. Belt scores were made on free throws Tomorrow the locals leave for Ubo two'teau for a return game, and Satur day night play Cascade at Cascade. o Fergus 40. Belt 8