, 1875-10-31


the crowd which HEsNa heads, and it de-
riyes additional strength and force from the
character Of the men who have drawn it up.
The Farweu Hall meeting was made up of
three thousand business men, who have great
interests at stake; the men who believe in
peace, Law, and order, and are bound to pre-
serve it; the men who believe in honesty in
politics as well as in trade, and who are de-
termined to break up the stealing, swindling
jobbery and bogus -contract business which
have so long disgraeed Cook County; the
men who believe in purity Of elections, and
are determined that the ballot-bo1es shnl1 not
be tampered with and stuffed The assem-
bled thousands Of merchants Of Chicago met
in Farweu Hall because they we're determined
to have fair election. There were Demo-
cratic merchants and Republican merchants,
and there were many merchants who had in
tended to vote the Opposition ticket, who
now intend to support the Republican ticket,
because they now see that HEs1sa and his
crowd have struck at their dearest liberties.
The merchants therefore, met and con-
demned the Opposition, and their condemna-
ton is sharp and explicit. They condemn
the majority Of the Board Of County Commits
sioners for packing the election precincts
with partisans Of the Opposition ticket.
They charge that the purpose Of this act is to
promote the commission Of frauds by stufing
the ballot-bo1es; that the present County
Board was nominated "by corrupt clique Of
desperate men who have robbed the people
of their revenues" that the construction of
the proposed new Courthouse will place at
the disposal Of this corrupt Board immense
sums Of money; that the success Of the Op-
position ticket involves "the loss Of many
millions of dollars to tho honest ta1-paying
community" In view Of these charges, the
truth Of which has not been and cannot be
denied by the HEs1Na gang, the merchants
denounced this corrupt action Of the County
Board as IN Infringement of the rights of
American citizens. They declared that they
would resist every attempt to desecrate the
balot-bo1 through illegal voting, repeating,
and fraudulent counting, by every lawful
measure" within their power. They boldly
brought home the attack by declaring
''that tho public money should not
be p1aced in the hands of any man
who boldly declares that he seeks office
for purposes Of personal gain," and they
pressed the charge still further home with the
declaration that, "allying himself with men,
bers OF the Board Of County Commissioners
known to be corrupt, and seeking to promote
their reelection to seats they have disgraced,
Mr. A. G. HEs1So has forfeited the respect
and confidence Of the better classes of cur
citizens, whether native or foreign-born."
The merchants not only made declarations Of
principle, but adopted other resolutions put
ting these principles into practice. The first
Of these resolutions pledges tho merchants
present to close their places Of business on
Tuesday, ITO the end, first, that the entire
legal vote Of the county shall be cast and,
second, that the purity Of tho ballot-bor
shall be insiolably maintained at every
hazard" Every merchant in the city
should observe this resolution. There
are thousands Of young men in the
employ Of wholesale houses, and thou
sands OF workingmen in the manufactures,
who CON vote with great difficulty, if at al,
if they are confined all day in their places Of
business. Every man in this city who has
another man in his employment should see
to it that that man has IN opportunity not
only to vote, but also to work at the polls.
The taxpayers need them. The ballot-box
needs them The honest, upright, and law
abiding citizens want their work and their
votes. It il almost a matter Of life and
death that the infamous gang which is con-
spring against the peaoeable oitizeus Of
Cook County should bs voted down
Tho metohnnts fill 9urthn put THAR ptin-
atta41 lnko pt1akktss BIZ dan4Az1diaR tAA4.