The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1885-10-22
THE OHIO FRAUDS AND THE PRES
IDENT.

The investigation is far from completed
but it is already evident enough that gross
frauds on the ballot box were committed in
Hamilton county at the recent election in Ohio.
In one ward it is proved that several hun
dred more votes were returned than the
whole number of voters in the ward; in
another the ballot boxes were carried off and
have not yet been found, and in several 9TH
ers there were failures to comply with the
requirements of the law in conducting the
election and making the returns. These
frauds were undoubtedly the outgrowth of a
deliberate conspiracy on the part of the Nc
Lean gang to secure a solid Democratic legis-
lative delegation from Hamilton county. A
year ago conspiracy essentially similar in
its objects was concocted in the same county,
and probably by the same men. A hundred
and fifty Republicans were arrested, locked
up all day and thus prevented from voting.
Police Officer Mullen who was the instru-
ment Of the men who planned this outrage
was arrested, pleaded guilty and was sent
to the penitentiary for one year. A few
months ago this man was pardoned by the
President at the request of Gov Hoadly
and other prominent Democrats Of Ohio.
Immediately he was restored to his former
position on the Cincinnati police force, and
there is reason to believe that he was the ac-
tive agent of the fraud conspirators in the
recent election. 1t is certain that since cleo
ton he has been actively engaged in nulli-
flying the efforts of the committee of one hun
dred to bring the conspirators to justice
The pardon of this man undoubtedly rem
! -. -
this year than it otherwise would have BEEN
The men who plan frauds are not usually
the men who commit them. They employ
others to do the work, and If they cannot
find them there is little danger that it will
be done, for they seldom have the courage to
do it themselves. Men who let themselves
to such work are too low in character to be
reached by anything short of legal suasion. AS
long as they believe they can escape punish
ment there will always be plenty of them to
be found in a great city. But the danger of
term In the penitentiary makes wonder
full impression upon them. There was not
one of this gang but was very painfully i'm
pressed when he saw Mullen on the way to
prison and there was not one of them but had
a load lifted from his shoulders when he heard
of Mullen's pardon. Mullen in the peniten
tiary was a constant warning to them that
repeating, stuffing ballot boxes and false
counting was dangerous business. But Null
len at liberty by the grace Of the Democratic
President relieved them of all their fears
The same influence that secured his pardon
they had good reason to expect would be able
to protect them in case they were caught.
The good effect which had undoubtedly
been produced by Mullen's conviction and
Imprisonment was, to large extent, if not
completely, nullifed by his pardon before his
term expired.
The President therefore is responsible in
some degree for the frauds committed at the
recent electionin Ohio. His pardon of Mullen
made it easy to obtain men to commit them.
That he pardoned him with this object in
view we do not believe, though we do be-
leye that some of the Ohio Democrats were
alive to the fact that this would be one of
the results of the pardon when they asked it.
1t is argued in extenuation of the Presi-
dents action that he was deceived by the
Misrepresentation of Ohio Democrats. But
it must be remembered that the facts In the
case were all on record in the United States
court, and the President could have ascer-
tanned them if he had chosen to do SO. he
needed not to rely upon the representations
of anybody.