FRAUD AT A CAUCUS.
Swarms of Democrats Helping Rufus T. Peck
to win in Cortland—Rallied at so Much a Head—The Qualifications by Which They
were Permitted to Swear in—A Formal Protest Being Prepared.
(Special
Dispatch to the Syracuse Standard.)
CORTLAND,
N. Y., Aug. 22.—Since 1882, the year of the "spring bottom hat caucus,"
no political gathering has awakened such strong indignation among the respectable
element of the Republican party in this village as that which exists here
to-day over the disreputable methods by which Assemblyman Rufus T. Peck packed the Republican caucus here yesterday and
secured the election of delegates to the Senatorial convention favorable to his
candidacy.
Nothing
has been talked of here to-day among politicians and business men but the
proceedings at yesterday's caucus. Prominent Democrats, who are of course not
actively interested in the contest between Wayland D. Tisdale and Mr. Peck for
the delegates from Cortland county, could not help shaking their heads and
indulging in exclamations of surprise when they heard that 1,077 votes had been polled
at the caucus. "There is something queer about it" they said.
There was
something queer about it to those on the outside, but to the people familiar
with Mr. Peck's tactics in the campaign, there was nothing so mysterious that
the magic word "money" could not explain. Mr. Tisdale's friends state
in the most positive terms that Mr. Peck hired between 300 and 400 Democrats,
minors and non-residents to go to the caucus and vote for his delegates. It
cost Mr. Peck a lot of money to get these men to the ballot box, and Cortland politicians
who know the [marked] value of individual members of the rabble that Mr. Peck
gathered together at the caucus, estimate that it cost him between $3,000 to
$4,000 to elect his delegates.
The
caucus was held in the rooms of the Republican League from 4 o'clock in the
afternoon until 9 o'clock in the evening. The crowd of voters was so great that
the room where the ballot box was located, the passageway leading thereto and
the street in front of the building, were seriously blocked. As soon as Mr.
Tisdale's friends discovered that the caucus was packed with Democrats, they
stationed watchers and challengers near the ballot box for the purpose of
preventing any man whose Republicanism was not proved, from voting. Webster
Young acted as challenger, but after he had challenged some 50 suspicious
persons, who promptly swore in their votes, it was seen that the attempt to
prevent fraud would prove useless. There was nothing to be accomplished by
challenging a Democrat who had been paid to swear that he was a Republican and
intended to vote the Republican ticket at the next election.
There
were, however, a few Democrats who did not have the nerve to swear in their
votes after they had been challenged, but this band of timid ones did not
exceed five in number. One of these was John Garrity, a 'bus driver, known here
as a lifelong Democrat. He was challenged and declined to swear in his vote and
it was not received.
The test
adopted by the caucus to entitle a man to vote was that he had voted for the Republican
nominees for State officers and for member of Congress at the last election, and
that he intended to vote the Republican ticket this fall. Mr. Tisdale's friends
wanted to limit the right to vote to those who had voted for Harrison in 1888 and
intended to vote the Republican ticket this fall, but Mr. Peck would not hear
to this, and as he controlled the caucus committee, he had no difficulty in
having this matter fixed as he desired. "Under this rule a great many
Democrats were enabled to vote without straining their consciences very much as
they had generally supported Congressman Belden last fall.
Many
others got their votes in by saying they did not remember whether they voted
last fall or not. One of the forgetful ones was C. W. Smith, the editor of the
Cortland Journal. Mr. Smith used to publish a Democratic paper in
Flushing, L. I., and was a delegate to the Democratic State convention held in
Syracuse. He pretends to publish an independent paper, but he has been working
for Mr. Peck all summer and played the part of a Peck heeler in yesterday's
caucus.
The fact
that 1,077 votes were polled in a Republican caucus in the two districts of the
town of Cortlandville is enough in itself to make honest people think that
there was something fraudulent about it. The usual caucus vote is about 600 and
it did not exceed this number by many votes last fall, when there was
considerable strife. The part of the town known as McGrawville holds its own
caucus. In 1888 the town of Cortlandville, exclusive of the McGrawville
district, cast 1,600 and some odd votes for Harrison. The vote in the whole
town, Republican and Democrat combined, did not exceed 3,000 in 1888, and yet a
Republican caucus in the town, exclusive of McGrawviile, polled yesterday 1,077
votes.
At the
notorious "spring bottom hat caucus" in 1882, 1,300 votes were polled. The
result of the shameful proceeding was that every candidate on the Republican
ticket was defeated, with the exception of sheriff, who pulled through with a
plurality of 64 votes. The honest Republicans sat down very hard on fraud that
year, and they will do it again this year if yesterday's misdoings are not corrected.
Mr.
Tisdale's friends have decided to present a formal protest to the Senatorial
convention against the practices of yesterday. They will demand that admission
to the convention be refused to the delegates chosen yesterday and granted to
the delegates for whom they voted. This protest is being prepared to-day and
will be circulated for signatures on Monday morning. There will be no trouble
about getting signatures. The protest will be accompanied by affidavits that
will tell a story of fraud and caucus-packing unparalleled in the history of
Cortland county politics.
Edward
Keator, president of the First National bank, a life-long resident of Cortland,
said to-night that the caucus was controlled by Mr. Peck through the aid of purchasable
Democrats.
"I
know the people of this town and county pretty well," said Mr. Keator,
"for I have been in the banking business for 23 years. I have always been
in politics and I know the drift of political affairs here. I know that if Mr.
Peck should secure the nomination that he would be buried in this county. When
he ran for Assembly for a second term his majority was about 1,200. Last fall
when he ran for the third time his majority was only 87. Last year his majority
in his own town was only 90. I think if he ran for Senator the majority against
him in Cortland would be 2,000. In case he is nominated, which seems an impossibility,
the Democrats will nominate William B. Kirk, of Syracuse. Kirk would of course
be elected, for it is absurd to think that the city of Syracuse and the county
of Onondaga would not want such an important office filled by a man identified
with its interests. Onondaga county has one industry alone that requires a
brilliant man as Senator at Albany. I refer to the salt business. We do not
expect to get a Senator from our county, and it would be unreasonable and
absurd to indulge such expectations."
Returning
to the subject of yesterday's caucus, Mr. Keator said that when the Democrats
began to press toward the ballot box he went to Mr. Peck and told him that if
he did not call them off he (Mr. Keator and his friends) would withdraw from
the caucus and hold one of their own.
"For
a short time," said Mr. Keator, "after I spoke to Mr. Peck there was
a break in the line of Democrats and we held our own with the other side. But when
Peck discovered that we were catching up the word was passed to the street and
the Democrats swarmed in again. We will go to the convention with a protest that
will command the attention of that body. We are satisfied that we will get justice,
for we will not be appealing to Peck's heelers. There were a large number of
Republicans who did not go to the caucus at all. I think I do not exaggerate
when I place the number absent at 500. The heavy rains in the afternoon kept
the Republican farmers away. Then there are a large number of Republicans in
the village, business men, who never take any active part in fights, and who never
go to caucuses. They are the ones who on election day vote against fraud."
Mr.
Keator's view of the caucus is also the view of these gentlemen, who are the leading
Republicans of this town and county: Fitz Boynton, president of the Second National bank; Theodore H. Wickwire, of
Wickwire Bros., wire cloth manufacturers; Henry Gleason, treasurer of the
Hitchcock Manufacturing company; Frederick Kingsbury, of the Cortland Chair
company; Curtis L. Kinney, of the Cortland Forging company; H. M. Kellogg,
hardware dealer; Prof. S. J. Sornberger; J. A. Jayne, dealer in boots and
shoes; Ernest M. Hulbert, of the Cortland Screen company; A. S. Brown, grocer,
and Webster Young, who has large mining interests in Georgia. They all say that
between 300 and 400 Democrats voted in the caucus and that their names will be
on the protest that will go to the Senatorial convention. These gentlemen stand
for honesty in politics as well as in business, and the fact that they are
united in denouncing the Peck methods in yesterday's caucus may be interpreted
as representing the feeling here in the respectable element of the Republican
party.
(Prof.
Sornberger and Mr. Kingsbury, we understand, will fall into line and their dose
of Peck straight and without making up very bad faces.—Ed. Democrat.)
REPUBLICAN CONVENTION.
Peck's Hand In the County Convention—A Weak
Ticket Nominated—It Ought to be Floored in November.
The
Republican County Convention was held in Wells' Hall in this village, last Tuesday afternoon. Every town in the county was
fully represented. C. O. Newton, Esq., chairman of the County Committee called the
convention to order and nominated Riley Hammond of Virgil for chairman and the
nomination was ratified by the convention. Dr. Leonard of Harford, and A. V.
Stevens of Truxton were elected secretaries, and W. J. Foster of Homer, and Dr.
C. B. Trafford of Marathon were appointed tellers.
Mr. B. A.
Benedict of Cortland offered a set of resolutions asking the Republicans of
Onondaga county to give the nomination for State Senator to Hon. R. T. Peck, which
were adopted.
On motion
of F. T. Newcomb of Homer, the convention proceeded to take an informal ballot
for a candidate for Member of Assembly.
Mr. F. M.
Beardsley of Marathon arose and addressed the convention. He called the
attention of the delegates to the fact that within the past three or four
months he had called upon nearly every one of them at their elegant mansions in
the country, where the perfumed breezes from their barnyards had toyed fondly
with the sparce and yellow locks that adorned his brow, as they were wafted
from the ruddy cheeks of the beautiful farm maiden while she stood in the
gloaming, wrestling with the festive milk pan and hoydenish butter tub. The
modest daisy turned its head in mute surprise as he passed by, while the pond
lily closed its petals as if fearing that some vandal was abroad seeking to rob
it of its sweetness. The yellow sun flower turned its round head towards the
setting sun at close of day, while the cowslip of the marshes, plucked in the
early morn from its soft and dewy bed, shed its effulgent rays on the cold and
impassible hunk of pork resting placidly beside it in the turnip pot.
The
contemplation of these beauties and various other considerations, while quietly
perambulating the agricultural portions of the county had led him to believe,
that no citizen within its confines could represent the poor down trodden
farmer in the halls of the State Calamity half so well as one James H. Tripp of
Marathon. He insisted that Mr. Tripp fully understood Mr. Blaine's idea of
re-cip-er-ros-ity and that he was the one, and only man for the place.
Mr. Thos.
E. Courtney presented the name of John C. Barry, Esq., of this place, in a few well chosen words. Henry
Knickerbocker of Cincinnatus seconded the nomination of Mr. Tripp.
Capt. S.
M. Byram presented the name of Chas. O. Newton of Homer, and set forth the
claims of Homer to recognition by the convention. F. T. Newcomb of that village,
seconded the nomination.
Mr. B. A.
Benedict made a speech in seconding the nomination of Newton, wherein he
announced that the party did not want a workingman's candidate. Mr. Benedict
evidently succeeded in convincing the Cortland delegates that they should not vote
for Newton or else they had been instructed by Peck to vote for some other candidate.
Newton did not receive a single vote from Cortland.
An
informal ballot was taken which resulted as follows:
Whole
number of votes cast 90, of which James H. Tripp received 62; Chas. O. Newton, 22;
John C. Barry, 4; Enos E. Mellon, 2.
On motion
of S. M. Byram, the nomination of Mr. Tripp was made unanimous.
Mr. Tripp
being called before the convention made a short speech in which he announced
that he was entirely in accord with the principles of the Republican party and
that upon strict party questions if elected, he would vote with the party and
on other questions he would consult with the leading members of the same.
On motion
an informal ballot was taken for a candidate for the office of Sheriff.
B. T.
Wright, Esq., who was a little bit of a soldier himself, presented the name of his
comrade-in-arms, Mr. John Miller of Cortland, in a very good but rather grand-dilloquent
[sic] speech. It must have been quite apparent to those present that the country
was saved in its hour of peril by brother Wright and comrade Miller.
Mr. B. A.
Benedict, one of Peck's henchmen, proceeded to second the nomination of Miller
after which an informal ballot was ordered, which resulted as follows:
Whole
number of votes cast 90, of which John Miller, received 30; Henry Howes, 21;
John O. Reid, 12; A R. Overton, 9; Adam Hillsinger, 12; R. L. Cass, 6.
Mr. C. E. Boyden of Marathon here moved that
the following delegates be selected to attend the State Convention, viz: R. T.
Peck, C. O. Newton, F. M. Beardsley, W. H. Crane, Wilbur Holmes and E. W.
Childs. After considerable confusion and the putting of several amendments all
of which were voted down, the delegates named were chosen unanimously.
A formal ballot for a candidate for sheriff
was then ordered with the following result:
Whole number of votes cast 90, of which Miller
received 56; Howes, 25; Reid, 9.
Mr. Howes moved that Mr. Miller's nomination
be declared unanimous. Carried.
The nomination of a candidate for County Clerk
was next declared in order.
Mr. F. E. Price of Virgil presented the name
of Stephen K. Jones of the same place.
Henry Knickerbocker of Cincinnatus presented
the name of Hubert T. Bushnell of Cortland, and Jas. T. Steele presented the
name of Frank J. Collier of Preble.
On the informal ballot the vote stood as follows:
Whole number of votes cast 90, of which
Stephen K. Jones received 34; Frank J. Collier, 33; Hubert T. Bushnell, 20; A.J.
Fuller, 3.
The convention then proceeded to take a
formal ballot with the following result:
Whole number of votes cast 89, of which
Jones received 40; Collier, 31; Bushnell, 15; Fuller, 3.
A second formal ballot resulted as follows:
Whole number of votes cast 90, of which
Jones received 44; Collier, 37; Bushnell, 9.
Mr. Bushnell withdrew his name and a third
formal ballot was ordered with the following result:
Whole number of votes cast 90, of which
Jones received 48; Collier, 42.
Mr. H. L. Bronson presented the name of
Jerome Squires of Cortland, as a candidate for District Attorney, and Hon. M. M.
Brown of Freetown performed the same service for Miles E. Burlingame of Willett.
An informal ballot decided the question:
Whole number of votes cast 89, of which
Jerome Squires received 50; Miles E. Burlingame, 37; S. K. Jones, 1; My Yaller
Dog, 1.
The last candidate was badly handicapped in
the race from the fact that his name had not been presented to the convention.
Had his name been properly presented there is no telling what the result might
have been. The nomination of Squires was made unanimous.
B. T. Wright, Esq., presented the name of
Almon W. Angel of Cortland for the nomination for Superintendent of the Poor. His
name was the only one presented and the informal ballot resulted as follows:
Whole number of votes cast 89, of which
Almon W. Angel received 55; Dwight K. Cutler, 34.
On motion J. B. Hills of Cuyler was nominated
for Justice of Sessions and Drs. Geo. D.
Bradford of Homer, and Philip N. Neary of Taylor were nominated for Coroners.
B. A. Benedict, Esq., was elected delegate to
the Judiciary convention to be hold in Binghamton next month.
The following constitute the new County Committee:
Cuyler—Henry Howes.
Cincinnatus—Dr. M. L. Halbert.
Cortland—H. L. Bronson, C. P. Walrad, T. E.
Courtney, Arthur Stillson, C. A. Jones.
Freetown—Harvey Tuttle.
Homer—C. O. Newton, S. M. Byram, Wm. J.
Smith.
Harford—Burt Sessions.
Lapeer—Millard Parker.
Marathon—F. M. Beardsley, W. A. Brink.
Preble—James T. Steele.
Solon—Wm. H. Atkins.
Scott—John L. Vincent.
Truxton—D. M. Patrick.
Taylor—Lucius Birdlebough.
Virgil—Frank Chrisman.
Willett—C. J. Harris.
R. T. Peck,
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