Last week’s column outlined some of the events in the 1924 campaign of Fergus newspaper editor Hugh Templin to secure more complete information and accounting of the personal expenses charged by county councillors.
In the 1923 financial statements those expenses had topped $15,000 but were only noted as a single aggregate sum in the statements of that year.
Templin had been a thorn in the side of county council for a couple of years, but had found a few committed allies who supported his ideas for reforms.
In 1924 things were different. When county council voted down a motion to provide more information to the public, W.O. Mendell, of Elora, wrote to all the newspapers in the county, giving a breakdown of the amounts claimed by each councillor.
Mendell certainly had a source inside the county government. The amounts he reported were accurate to the penny, though initially some councillors disputed his facts.
After Mendell’s revelations, Templin said little on the matter for several weeks, other than reporting the words and actions of a few county councillors who offered public comments.
Only one other editor, Rixon Rafter of Arthur, fully supported Templin, calling for a full scale investigation into the costs claimed by councillors, to be conducted by the provincial attorney general’s office. Other newspapers merely printed comments from county councillors, but took no stand on the matter.
Initially, several county councillors claimed that their expenses were not as large as reported by Mendell. When Mendell’s numbers were confirmed, councillors switched tactics, arguing that their expenses were quite reasonable. Typical were the comments of Mount Forest reeve John Campbell, who wrote a letter to the Confederate that was reprinted by several other papers.
Campbell argued that his expenses would have been much larger had he kept track of all the hours he spent on county business. He claimed the cost of hiring someone to look after his own business exceeded what he could claim in expenses.
Finally, he switched his approach to revealing information, proclaiming that his expenses would be available at the clerk’s office for anyone to examine at any time. Finally, he announced that in the future he would claim every penny that the law entitled him to.
Other councillors soon claimed they had voted against the original motion to reveal amounts because the motion did not go far enough. On Aug. 4, in an editorial, Templin brought up the subject again after letting matters settle for a few weeks.
He argued he was not saying councillors acted illegally, but merely that their actions were not transparent, and in some cases, exploited loopholes.
One such case was councillors who claimed mileage and per diems for two meetings held in the same place on the same day. He also stated some councillors received commissions from road machinery manufacturers. Another abuse, he noted, were mileage and per diems claimed by municipal employees who were already being paid by their municipalities.
Templin stated he intended to publish everything written on the matter, whether or not the writers supported his position. He reprinted Jon Campbell’s letter from the Confederate.
Then, in an editorial, he castigated the reeve, disbelieving that holding municipal office was costing the Mount Forest reeve money. He noted Campbell had submitted expenses of almost $700 in 1923.
Templin also reported that he had discussed county expenses with several former reeves. All agreed that in former years county councillors’ expenses were far below the present levels.
Templin kept the pot stirred for the rest of the summer and into the fall. His campaign kept the issue alive. He noted county council expenses had become the topic of street corner talk, and the matter seems to have alarmed some county councillors as the annual elections approached.
County council met for the fall session in mid October. On Oct. 13 council again considered the motion from the spring session to publish a detailed account of expenses. Originally, back in June, it had lost by a vote of 13-8. This time the motion sailed through the chamber unanimously with little discussion.
The reversal in the position of county council caused Templin to crow a little. He took credit for keeping the issue alive, but he extended most of he credit to W.O. Mendell of Elora, the political gadfly and village councillor, for his efforts at bringing the facts to the public.
Templin stated those who initially opposed disclosure did so to protect themselves, but Mendell’s revelations had backfired on them.
“Two of those who were foremost in opposing the original motion were the mover and seconder of the more recent one,” Templin noted.
“They were in such a hurry to prove it that we are told they could hardly wait until the warden’s address was read to move it. And others were in just as great a hurry to pass it.”
Templin concluded his remarks by noting that had the public not been aroused over the issue over the summer, the matter would not have been heard of again after the original motion lost in June.
Credit for the unanimous vote in October, noted Templin, was entirely the result of the force of public opinion, and especially by the few newspapers in the county that expressed strong opinions on the matter.
Some people had expressed the opinion that Templin had made too much out of a small matter. The Fergus editor did not think so. He stated the issue had shown county councillors that public opinion could not be discounted or ignored.
His ultimate vindication, he said, would come in the next election if the electors defeated the 13 men who had initially voted for secrecy.
“The public has a right to know how its money is being spent,” Templin concluded, and public officials had a duty “to resist the lure of ‘extras’ and other kinds of ‘easy money.’”
After winning the battle, Templin could not help returning to the issue two weeks later. He quoted an editorial published in the Elmira Signet, which praised the work of the Fergus News Record and the Arthur Enterprise in pushing the issue of council expenses, citing their work as an example of the power of the press.
Hugh Templin might have campaigned for other county council reforms, but his plate was overflowing in 1924. In fact, it is amazing that he was able to devote as much time to the council expenses issue as he did. He was not yet 30 years old at the time, and many people were happy to dismiss him as a naive and over active youngster.
With the official title of assistant editor, he was taking over more and more of the duties at the News Record from his aging father.
In addition to reporting duties, he wrote the editorials and a column of personal opinion. As well, he was a radio enthusiast, and wrote a radio column, describing sets he built and his habit of sitting up half the night listening to distant stations. And in the 1924 he spent much time researching and writing local history.
Templin had continuing doubts through the 1920s about devoting his energies to a small town weekly. He had a sideline as a stringer for the Toronto Star, supplying Canada’s largest daily with feature articles. He could have become a full-time staff member there at any time.
On top of all that, he was an amateur photographer, and regularly took part in press junkets by airplane.
Hugh Templin’s victory over county council can be viewed as a triumph of his editorial career, and an example of the power of the press to achieve reform and public accountability.