The Portland daily press., 1880-01-16
FRIDAY MORNING. JANUARY 1G.
Detroit Post and Tribune).
How Springer Tells 1t,

At the Gseenback- unist-free-love-and'
longhair conglomeration in Washington Fri
day, calling itself the National Greenback La
Dor Conference, one R. NJ. Springer was intro
duced as a messenger fresh from Maine; and
Mr.. Springer proceeded to tell tale which
even the marines ought to be excused from
swallowing He declared that he had been all
over Maine investigating; that eighteen per
cent. of the voters We're inundated and
bought, and that in Portland over twelve hun
dred men lost their votes in this way" How
a man could lose his vote by being "intimi-
dated and bought Mr.. Springer didn't stop to
explain. But Mr.. Springer claimed that he,
Springer was the great originator and inven-
tor of the Swan-Harrinan pretended bribery.
81 advised the leaders to induce some men,
bers to take the offered money, and in this
way secure evidence which wo1ld save the
State,' said Springer. Swan was the first man
who was induced by the leaders. HE took
one thousand dollars and brought it to us.
'Then declared that we must have another.
The second man induced" by the leaders was
Hartman. OF Hartman Springer told the
following remarkable yarn:
We were watched by spies and surrounded by Re-
publican ruffians. Hartman Cove, Pillsbury and
House as the only place where could be safe. We
locked the door and Hartman took the money from
his pocket. There were 81 ,o05-they had oyerpaid
him To save these two men from murder We locked
them up in the Stale House that night, and put
guard around them. The Associated Press has not
told the story correctly. The State House was full
of rufians, hired by the Republicans.
Springer doesn't say.who it was that Swan
and Hartman wanted to murder so that they
had to be locked up. We are free to conjecture
that it was Blaine, and that the distinguished
Senator owes Springer, Cove and Pillsbury
debt of eternal gratitude for their forethought
in locking up under guard the bloodthirsty
Swan and Hartman. 1t will further be OBJ
served that Springer says Hartman exhibited
one thousand and five dollars as the money he
claimed to have received as bride. But Har
riman, in his affidavit, and afterward in his
statement before the House, declared that he
received exactly one thousand dollars. Cove
and Springer, moreover, signed the following
certificate which was appended to Harriman's
affidavit:
We certify that Moses Hartman, of Kennebunk,
exhibited to us this (Tuesday) afternoon package
of money and req uested us to count it. We did So
and it made 81 900. which he said he had received
as set forth in his affidavit.
r. NJ. SPRINGER.
AUGUSTA, January G, $780,
This certificate says there was just one thou
sand dollars; but Springer now says there was
one thousand and five dollars. Evidently,
somebody would lie for as small price as five
dollars. The retiring to the attic, locking
themselves in a room and counting the money,
while watched by spies and surrounded by
Republican ruffians, - makes very effective
picture. 1t is almost equal in blood-curdling
effect to the celebrated meeting of the conspir-
ators in the comic opera, where the conSpira-
tors are made to appear frightfully ferocious by
wearing black clothes and big rosettes.
But Springer related something further of
thrilling interest to the world He lifted the
veil which mercfully conceals the future and
showed us what is going to be done when Jo-
seph Smith is elected Governor, in case Mr.
Smith ever reaches that position. Springer
said:
AS soon as / saw the House organized | came
away. They tried to detain me, but l said, "You
need some assistance at Washington" Joseph
Smith told me that as soon as he was elected he
would issue proclamation that the liberties of the
people were in danger from corruption and conspir-
acy.
They tried to detain Mr.. Springer in Maine.
So long as Springer remainedin Maine the con-
spiracy went on all right. But Springer left as
soon as the House was organized. From that
moment the conspiracy dropped. AS soon as
Springer left the Fusionists lost their grit, and
the plot came to pause. Springer was needed
at Washington. Congress seemed to be doing
nothing. The country was at standstill.
Springer went to Washington and everybody
knows that things began to move as soon as he
arrived, and also how everything in Maine
stood still as soon as he left. The Washington
convention duJOuTHcu idSb week, duu springer
has had time to get back to Maine. And now
things move in Maine once more, and the
world will know the reason.
But if Smith is made governor, he is going
to issue a proclamation declaring that "the
liberties of the people are in danger from cor
ruption and conspiracy" This will evidently
be astonishing news to the people of Maine.
We can conjecture how shocked they will be
by such a sudden and unexpected disclosure.
1t would not be surprising if some few would
20 hall .xyhn oil
claimed" by Joseph L. Smith, governor. We
have ourselves suspected that there was some
thing like corruption and conspiracy" going
on in Maine recently; hence, if Smith ever is
elected governor, and ever does proclaim
that such is the fact, we shall be prepared to
believe it. All the same it is kind of Springer
to warn the country in advance to be prepared
for such proclamation.