Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1871-10-11

of wealth, although in the meantimi
they have lived in the most unboun
ded extravaganza. Men on a salary
of g, 500 sporting costly diamonds
driving fast horses. living at the rat
| of so, 900 year. Men on salaries o
$1,000 as though there was no limit t.
their wealth.
For two and half years there ha
been no statement published of tht
annual receipts and Outgoes of thu
city government, although the Law
/ requires such a statement every year
nothing has been published, but ever
thing held back. Once, indeed. in /
while, some leading citizens are in
] duced to go and certify, in a genera
way, "that all is right" at the Comp
troller's office, every thing going or
well, till some thirty or forty million
of dollars have been added to the deb
of the city, for which there is no pos
sible benefit derived. When thest
statements were first made public,
thought that these men had furnished
a certain amount of property or labol
to the city, and had been induced tC
make out their bill for a large amount
paying back a certain amount to the
Off1ce-holders, splitting the difference
This has been done before in New
York, and there are, am sorry tt
say, other localities in which it is done
But the case is made worse than this
There must be some fifteen or twenty
millions of bills for which nothing
was ever furnished; bills made out
for $50, 900 or 500, 900 for carpets, ,plas.
tering, plumbing, lumber and materi'
ais which never existed, or were new
er supplied at all.
CAN RoGUEs BE KEPT FROM OFFICE
Now what of all this? Men in pow
er have proved false, as all parties, all
governments, occasionally have done.
There never was any party so pure, SO
upright, so righteous, so vigilant that
rogues did not creep into power under
its rule, and fill their pockets at the
public expense. The simple fact that
large amount of public money has
been stolen is not, unfortunately, a
novelty, but the fact that men thro'
whom,-I will not say by whum, be-
cause the facts are not all C5:a'l ished
judicially,-but the men through
whom this money has been stolen, the
men who had to approve these bills,
and certify them to be correct and
proper and pass them over and pay
them, these men stay in Office, defying
public sentiment. refusing TO surren :
der their trust, and insisting that
they are going to hold on to the end
of the present term, and then take a
public verdict in race for another
election. I venture TO say that no
such case as this has happened in the
history Of the world, where the men,
who If they are not thieves and rob-
bers, have been the conveniences OF
thieves; and men who, if they have
not stolen the money themselves, have
allowed others to steal it when it was
their duty to see that it was not sto-
len. These men cling to their trust,
face the public down, and say, I'VE
have done nothing we are sorry for !;
how are you going to get US out? We
defy you" Once in a while one sug-
gests to another to go out. at does
not look well +" says one, ''fOr you to
be here; it is not good to have a bad
smell about US; you must get out TO
make things sweeter." But the 9TH
er replies. at is no worse in my cor
ner than in yours; if I go out you
ought to, and I don't mean to go."-
And they do stick, all Of them, and
thep will stick till they are perfectly
certain that they must either accept
the State prison or 60 out of the way
OF the law and justice Of New York.
WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR RTHERoeUERYf
Now is the Democratic party respon-
sible? Not IL the Democratic party
elected them not knowing they would
steal, or willing others should steal
money by the millions; but they are
so far as they sustain or
may sustain their unrighteousness-
If that party shall promptly repudl-
ate them, kick them out Of their pla-
ces follow them up by legal prosecu-
ton and punish them, it will not be
responsible before the country
for the money stolen while it was ig-
norant Of their crimes. But it is re-
sponsible before God and man for de-
frauding the people out Of their votes
when that has been plain, publish
ed, notorious fact for years; yet they
go on and the whole party profit by
it, wink at it and take the spoils-the
receiver If not the thief. The Demo-
cratic party has known just as well.
venture to say, here in Ohio, that
these frauds were going on, for they
have been developed in solemn re-
ports beforeCongress. Democrats have
been elected by votes that any man
must have known to be fraudulent
These men, whom 1t is now claimed
have defrauded the Democratic party
and disgraced 1t by their dishonesty
In money matters, are the very men
who have been defrauding the State |
Of New York out Of their honest, |
righteous votes for years, and the
whole Democratic party stood by them !
giving one word Of rebuke or
a single reproof to put an !
End to this most nefariOus and abomi- |
lable business.
1t were in vain, fellow-eitizens, for /
hat party to say, as the guilty Mac
beth said to his ghostly persecution:
9Thou canst not say I did it; never shake
Thy CORY locks at me;"
Because the facts have been so notorl- |
Dus they have been so demonstrated, |
hat no man could doubt their exist |
1nce.
ILLEGAL VOTING AND REGISTRATION. |
1t is now nearly forty years since I
lave been a voter, and thirty-odd 1
,ears since I came to have some little /
hare in advising and counseliIg how
,ublic affairs should be managed. l |
vas then a Whig, confronting the
anne party, with the same principles
md the same usages that have been
more developed since, and the very
irst act of legislation in which I ever
,ore a conspicuous part was an act
Prescribing and requiring registra-
ion of the legal voters of the city of
New York. had been for several
ears an active politician at the polls,
had seen how fraud was rampant at
hose polls; and I knew, and every
'ody must know, that so long as any
nan could come up and swear that he
vas q voter, and have his vote reeeiv-
d though ten men present knew he
vas not voter; so long as man who
Tas not challenged could put in his
'ote and go away, just so certain
Fould there be fraud. The man who
insists on leaving my door open at
light on purpose that q burglar might
axe advantage of it and come in and
teal my property, Is just as much
hief as though he took it himself
/ had seen for years that the great
Ody of those who were not citizens
nd chose to vote, did vote; and if
hev ohOsa IN vote ten times at so