The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1880-10-11
Davenport, the Rulldozsr.

Davenport in New DIRK Indicates that the
Republicon propose to win there by the
same disgraceful and dangerous tactics
which tthey have adopted in this city
namely, by the Wholesale disfranchisement
of lawful voters who will not vote for the
candidates of the Garfield party. These
tactics appear indeed to have been geuer.
ally adopted wherever the Republican
managers have the power to put them
into use, In Indiana and Ohio "a most
desperate determination has been shown.
and il is scarcely possible that the voting
will go on 10 those states on Tuesday next
without violence. The man who attempts
to keep legal voter from depositing his
ballot will run eonse risk. not q slight one.
The great nationpl party capable OF resort
ing 10 suck measure TO save Itself from
anIiEiiaiion has already met its death.
The American people vo no further use
for 1t.
The outrages attempted by Davenport
in New York would be incredible if tney
were not exposed in open court For some
time past Davenport has kept CUT of New
York IL vas inconveuient for him to
reside there. Too many of the deputy
sheriffs were on the watch for him on be-
half of his creditors. who are numerous
enough, judging by the court records, to
defeat any candidate whom the non paying
Johnny desired to elect. His anxiety to
purify politics and raise the standard of
honesty among voters, seems to have had
the effect OF rendering him oblivlous to
the rights of tradesmen and manufacture
ers. To escape their imporfuni;ies aud
devote his entire time TO purifying the
voting system, Mr.. Davenport, has not re"
sided 10 the city, and the energetic sheriffs
could not discover that the alert supervisor
had residence anywhere on the globe.
But with the approach of the melancholy
days of November the willy Johnny was
discovered at the Republican headquar
tiers, making arrangements 10 bag the
ell ctoral vote of the Empire state for The
scrupu.ously honest man at Mentor.
Johnny's method of DISTINGUISHING lawful
voters differs from that adopted by the
soidly Republican county board in Cook
county. Here the Republicans refuse to
provide voting precincts There voters
are arrested by hundreds 90 the pretense
that they are not legally qualified; they
are thrust into Jail, bail refused-aud dis
charged after election. This extraordis
nary method of running free government
was found especially effective in the case
of uaturalized citizens. They lad no
rial ats which Davenport or HE Republican
masters felt the least need 10 respect. In
1878 he caused the arrest of oyer 5000
persons who, he alleged, had registered 90
fraudulent naturalization papers; and they
were all discharged in the United States
crurt. By bold bulldeziDg of the Germans
he succeeded 10 inducing several thousand
OF them to surrender naturalization papers
to bim, and thus rob them OF the evidence
| by which they could have sworn IL their
| ballots. On e.cplion day in that year he
caused the arrest Of over 5000 persons at
the polls on various prPtcnses, aud reie4s-
ed them the next day lie brought only
! one man to trial, and the count instantly
discharged him. But Davenpcrt's work
was done, lie had DISTINGUISHED thous-
ands of American voters entitled to vote.
and to that extent had helped the repub-
| lean party which secured his services. 1t
did not pay The whole bill however. Mr..
Davenport requested the United States
government to hand him over $l9,375 as
his fees, The total expense which the
government had 10 meet Oh account of the
work done in that one year By the super
visor of acknowledgements and his ASSISTANTS
was SIS 900.
Because of the anxiety Of the deputy
sheriffs 10 catch a glimpse OF Mr.. Daven-
purt, !thc people of New York did not
anticipate that they would enjoy a visit
| from him this year. But they were mis-
| taken. Mr. Davenport has appeared and
gone TO work in his old way. He has
| been bulldoZiDg unsuspectIng Germans
and others into giving him their naturaliZa-
ton papers They will She return
ed after the election. Dir. Daven
port is too busy to examine them
sooner, to find out whether they are
regular, Without them the natDrafzed
voter can neither register DOR vote, Should
| he attempt TO do so, the watchful deputy
dstraDchiser would clap him into Jail
Many OF Davenport's deputies were in
dictcd for interfering with the freedom of
| elections: but, like the same class of
criminals in Cook county, they have never
been put on trial
For this reason the people of New York
are organizing TO protect them selves
against Davenport in November. The
taxing of man Decentralization papers
away from him is mere theft, and the
victim shas "a right ito punish the thief
rs if his watch or pocket book were taken.
Yet Davenport's method of DISTINGUISHING
lawful voters in New York is respectable
when compared with that resorted to by
the Republicans OF Cock county The PEG
pie of New York have the means of redress
10 the courts The thousands of dis.
trapcbised wcrkingmeB in Chicago have
80 redress except to go tcgthe polls early
in the morning and lose days pay for the
chance to vote down the party that has |
conspircd to rob them of their A meriean |
CT IZ2Dship.