The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-10-21
MATSON MAY BE DEFEATED.
Another Look Over the Counties Shows
a Probability of Chase's Success.
IOme of the Causes that Tend to Weaken the
Democratic Candidate-Col. Robertson De-
liVers an Effective Speech at Muncie.

Correspondence Of the Indianapolis journal.
MARTINsvILLE, Oct. l8-When the last cen
Tressional gerrymander was made the Fifth dig
trict was shaped up in such a manner that the
Democrats were sure the Republicans never
would have a Representative from it so long as
they held the Legislature. But the best-lald
plans sometimes fail, and it looks like the Dem
ocrats Of the Fifth district will have to mourn
when the election is over because they did not
tack on another Democratic county. Martins
vile, geographically speaking, is in the center of
the district, and it is also the center of political
news and gossip from over the district. Your
correspondent recently gathered up some facts
IN regard to the outlook In the Dem
0cratic- ridden district. Colonel" Eb Hen
derson has his home in this district,
and as a matter Of pride takes more interest in
It giving a big majority than in any other dis
trict. Since the campaign opened, four weeks
ago, Matson has found it a lively chase, and he
Is not at all pleased with the outlook. although
he carried the district two years ago by eleven
hundred majority. He spoke at Martinsville,
last Saturday, to less than one hundred people.
and the very cold reception he received there,
and has been receiving at other points in the
district, has made him uneasy. He remained in
Martinsville over Sunday, in close consultation
with Boss Henderson. Whether any panacea
for the existing frigidity was invented is not
known, but IL 10 known that the situation was
discussed as a very gloomy one.
Since the first year Matson was in Congress
he has been losing ground with the people of the
district, and there isn't to-day a more unpopular
man in the district. but the overwhelming Dem
ocratic majority has been SUCCESSFULLY returning
him. At the last two nominating conventions
there were strong efforts made to defeat him,
but he has always outgeneraled the enemy.
Especially at the convention this year was there
bitter opposition to him. but he rallied his fed
sral appOintees and political henchmen. and, as
usual, completely routed the undisciplined oppo-
sition. The opposition then gave up their hope
OF ever beating him in convention. and silently
resolved to slaughter him at the polls, and that
resolve will be kept.
In Morgan county, the home of j. V. Mitchell,
who was his strongest opponent in the Gosport
convention, there is open opposition to Matson.
Two years ago there was dissatisfaction among
the Democrats of this county over the nomina-
zion, but Matson finally brought all the kickers
lnto line. He did it by promising every man who
Was sore an Office, and 1t is a notorious fact that
nearly every able-bodied Democrat in Martins
vile was closely watching the postofice after
congress aSSemOl6O, Win the EXPECTATION OF re-
eelvlng a commission to some fat place. Of
course they were doomed to disappointment,
and the result Is they denounce Matson as a
hypocrite. Out of all the number whom he prom
Ised positions he kept his word with but two.
He secured a position for VIM. Henderson. the
son of his father, Col" Eb Henderson, AS as
sistant superintendent Of Yellowstone Park, and
sent Squire John Ray, a broken-down politician,
out among the Indians as q carpenter. These
were sweet-scented appointments. and fair sam
MIA IF nl h q h 0C a ~ fhn Atn he 49,
Sco;red the district with a ine-tooth CONT he
aould not have found much worse material. In
She appointment of Henderson he overlooked all
She sober. Industrious, deserving young Demo
Gratis, and selected a young man who, when the
papers came to the town announcing his appoint
ment, was drunk. riding o mule up
the sidewalk, and was shortly ar
rested by the marshal of. the place.
The soldiers, whom he always claimed as his
special friends, have found him a fawning hypo-
critic as far as doing anything in their interest is
concerned, and almost to a unit are going to sup
port the private, Ira j. Chase.
In Monroe county, the opposition to Colonel
Matson has not lessened from what it was on the
day of the nominating convention, when Sam
Ralston denounced him as a ~"fawnine hypocrite
of the deepest dye, and a man who had ignored
every wish and want of his constituents, and one
supremely UNFIT to represent the people of the
district in Congress" In one township in Mon
zoe count there are twelve old soldiers who
have always supported Matson who say he
shall not have their votes this year. They will
not support him because of his record in pension
legislation. IS chairman of the pension COM
mittee they say he WAS in q position to be of
service to the soldiers of the county, and yet not
a single good thing has he done for them. Os-
tensibly In favor of the private pension bills, his
committee approved them, and yet, when the
President vetoed them he defended him in n
speech in the House. All the tafy-giving and
wise talking Mr.. Matson can do will never con.
vince a great many Monroe county Democrats
that he is not a fraud.
Brown county is the Democratic stronghold.
A county next to the smallest in the State, and
yet one that, by virtue of the infamous gerry
mander, elects three Representatives to the Leg
islature, and two Senators. 1t is the county
that Matson counts on to bring in his majority.
In the county ere a good many soldiers, and Mr..
Matson has been making a great effort to con-
vince them that be is their steadfast friend. He
has been in the habit of writing these soldiers,
who have pension claims pending, letters in
which he figures as taking great interest in their
claims: but the whole affair WAS given away the
other day when he wrote an old Republican sol
der that when he was in Washington, recently.
ne lacked up his claim and his pension would be
forthcoming soon, wnen, in fact, the old soldier
had received his certificate two months before.
Iu Bartholomew county many stanch Demo
Gratis are using all the means at their command
to defeat him. When he appointed George w.
Cooper postmaster az Columbus, three fourths
of the Democrats in the county said he should
never have their votes again; but by appoint
ing Finney when Cooper resigned, he IN a meas
ure healed the 1isaffeclion. But few old soldiers
in the county will support him., for they have
utterly failed to get him to render them any
assistance in pension matters.
johnson county Democracy was a unit in
opposing Mr.. Matson in the nominating conven-
tion, and many of them are equally as anxious
TO see him defeated at the polls. In Hendricks
county, Chase's home, Matson will not get a
smell" to use a common express
sion. The Democrats Of that county
are thoroughly disguised with him.
In filling the Danville posIofice he ignored the
wishes of all the prominent Democrats and ap-
pointed q man whom no one wanted. 1t was the
same in the Plain6eld Office. The man who was
appointed was opposed by every decent Demo
erat in the community. and by Professor Ch.rl-
ton and avery employee of the Reform School,
but Matson ignored them and had Douglass APP
pointed. The Republican leaders are deter