Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1871-09-15

the charges were brought by political en-.
emies and so not entitled to an answer
but nowhere has there been straightfor-
ward, positive refutation nowhere de-
nial even of any sort.
UNDoUBTFD GUILT OF THE CITY Off
GALS.
That they are guilty no man who has
read the statements doubts for moment
and no one believes that any such sums
were ever expended on the court house.
Nevertheless have been informed that
this building, instead oil costing S3,C00,-
900 or S5,000,000, as is alleged, the lat
ter being supposed to be the extreme lin
it, has actually cost over S12,000,000.
To prove this have been shown the fig
ures purporting to have been taken from
the Controllers books, but / hope | was
deceived and that they were eXaggera-
tions. But of the facts distinctly alleged
in the public press there can be no ques-
tion; it is admitted by default that mil
lions on millions of the public money
have been paid to few obscure individ-
uals for which they neither did nor could
have performed equivalent labor; while
little printing company of s25,O00 CAPT
tai has received 81 100000 from the
country alone in one year.
Nevertheless, shocking as are these ac-
cusations, they are but trivial in compar
ison with the real crimes of the accused.
Money, is after all, trivial affair we
are wealthy nation, growing with i'm
mense rapidity, rolling up capital and
adding to our resources daily; we can
endure limitless speculations in our Off
cials, and still survive; out they have
stolen from US something dearer and
more sacred than our wealth-they have
stolen our rights, our liberties, our very
national institutions. Such wrongs as
have enumerated would never have been
submitted to by the democratic party had
the individuals composing that party not
been first deprived of the free expression
of their will. These, our masters have
stolen our ballots, have falsifed the will
of the people, and have pulled away the
very keystone of the arch of liberty.
What am about to tell you hardly
expect you to believe; yet | will fur
nish you with every detail and all the
minutie of the mode of operations, and,
large as is this meeting, were to call
my witnesses together | could fill this
building as full as it is now / know
whereof | speak, and in exposing these
shameless iniquilies rather in defense of
dem ocracy than in arraignment of it, /
rather extenuate and set down naught in
malice. BY combination of certain
democratic and republican office-holders
in this city the votes of the people no
longer express their will They are fal-
sified in three different ways, so that no
matter how honest the mass of voters
might be, the corrupt ring would appar-
emily be retained in power. To effect
this, three forces are brought into play
There is the use of repeaters at the polls,
the manipulation of ballots as they are
deposited, and the false counting of them
in making up the canvass. Precisely
how these schemes are managed / will ex
plain to you.
THE MYSTERIES OF REPEATING.
Heretofore there has been registry of
all legal voters in this city. can only
speak of the past. | cannot tell what
Tammany will do hereafter, and now
that this registry law has been repealed
we may be sure that matters will not be
improved. There were three registers to
supervise these lists, three inspectors to
receive these votes, and three canvassers
to count them. One of each of these
boards was a republican, and could stop
all frauds if he pleased, but as the par
ties to be defeated were only those demo-
Gratis who were opposed to Tammany he
shut his eyes with resolute determination.
To begin with, gangs of repeaters were
organized whose first duty was to have
their names recorded in as many different
districts as possible, usually from dozen
to fifty; and 1t was curious with what
childlike innocence the republican regis
ter would receive the names of 100 men
who assumed to reside at the private
dwelling of some leading Tanmany ward
politician, and who pretended to camp out
on some vacant lot The repeaters are
enrolled, and / have had lists of them of
fered me for sale at SO much a vote when
Tammany did not need them.
On election day these men went to the
polls in gangs, with their captains, and
marched from district to district like COM
panies of soldiers. If one of them was
challenged, the result depended upon the
locality in disreputable neighborhood,
tie challenger was knocked into the gut
tar and nrohahlv locked nm nv the no.