New-York tribune., 1884-10-24
CIETEI4NUS Defence.

The task of defending Grover Cleveands
record as an alleged rcfOrmcr is so extremely
difficult that few Democrats have undertaken
| it. The cuttlefsh method of stirring up the
mud in order to conceal their candidate is the
usual resort of his defenders. But nothing
daunts Mr.. Beecher. He says:
He [Cleveandl began public life as Sheriff. IL
has laughed ut that he charged for $50 days In
year service II there were 500 days and yet the
fools laughing d. not know that more than half
the work OF the Sheriff is done by deputies, and every
dcputy's service is counted by the day.
The fools in this case are the men who at
tempt to defend Cleveland without any knowl
edge or in utter disregard of the facts. Not
only half but almost the entire work of his
Office was performed by deputies while Clevc-
land was Sheriff 1t was only when it would
require the liberal division of large fee that
Mr. Cleveland did the work himself instea! OF
leaving it to a deputy. Thus with his own
hand he pulled the lever that sent Patrick Nor
risscy into eternity. For that work Grover
Cleveland charged the county of Erie 5000,
which was $3.50 more than his predecessors
charged for hanging q man. For Il like service
in the execution of another lrshman. Shcnf
Cleveland collected a similar fec. lie did not
care to divide with his deputies as other Shcrils
had done in such eases. But when it came to
.E3 day court service. Sheriff Cleveland almost
invariably sent his deputies.
The trouble with such defence as that set
| NE by Mr. Beech5r il that Cleveland chdrged
for the attendance Of his dcpuiy in dddifon 10 MS
| o,rn prcscpcc ia The same courts and on We same
daysl The sGJ days at FI each charged 10y
sheriff Cleveland was for his personal attend
ancc only. II we add to II the service charged
| for his deputies. then there will have 10 bc n
still tur,hcr addition Of several hundred days to
| tho Grcrorian calendar. The law allowed 80
day 10 the Shcii0 for cour; attendance. but
deputies served for Rl - and ~, The truth
| il That Grover Cleveland charged ior attendance
nt every court for every day the courts were
In session in Erie County during the year,
| regardless ol the fact that neither he nor any Ot
| his deputies were present IN the courts Tor
more than very small fraction OF the time.
BY such means Grover Cleveland increased his
charges $l3,266 80 over the amount paid his
predecessor in Office during the same length OF
time And vet when he contributed % cents TO
carrier boy or purchased n comb to smooth
| his hair, the outlay was charged to the county
without any warrant of law. What is the code
! of ethics that explains such transactions other
| than as a fraud upon the taxpayers
| 1t is also mistake to say that Grover Clevc
! land began public life rs a Sheriff. Seven years
| before, when Thomas a. Hendricks was de-
nouncing Abraham Lincoln as "a smutty old
tyrant" Grover Cleveland was an Assistant
| District Attorney of Erie County. While hold
| ing that Office he was Democratic candidate
for Supervisor in his own ward and was badly
beaten. When Hendricks and the party chiefs
were assembled in Chicago, declaring the war
failure, Grover Cleveland as a Democratic
| official of Erie County was consorting with
| traitors on the Canadian border. He was in
| such full accord with his party then that he
| was its nominee for District Attorney of Erie
County, and was defeated though a Democrat
then filed the office. Several years later when
| Tweed was the Democratic dictator, Grover
Cleveland was still in such full agreement
with his party as to become its candidate for
Sheriff. Even f1r the Office of hangnan this
statesman ran 600 votes behind his ticket.
But he was elected; though the fairness of the
count was questioned by his opponent The
| people of this State are now asked to aid the
Solid South in placing this man in the chair OF
Washington.