St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-05-18
WAS THERE BRIBERY?
Honest Republican Aldermen Who Gould
Not be Bought for Low
License.
They Say They Were Offered Big Money,
But Indignantly spurned the
Bride.
The Wholesale Liquor Men Stirred up
and Pronounce the Statement
Clear Lie.
A Probable Demand for Further In
formation From Some of These
Discreet Gentlemen,

A sensation of very pronounced type
was created yesterday by the statement
from Aid. w. w. Sly that he had been
offered $500 for his vote for low license,
which he, of course, refused. He followed
it up by saying Aid. Phelps had been offered
s., 900 and that at the Republican caucus
on Friday last, it was developed that every
alderman except Cal w. Clark had been
offered money to vote for a reduction of
license. Every one of them had refused,
with appropriate and righteous indigna-
ton. though Aid. Sly seemed to regard the
entire affair as the widest kind of joke, and
refused to say who had offered the bride or
to give the name of 1.-The high license MEM
Der of the council, who votes before he does
and who stayed with him all day Friday to
induce him to vote for low license.
The question of license came before the
council on Friday night, twenty-three alder
men being present and only Aid. Cooley
being absent. On the motion to adopt an
ordinance reducing the license to $3.50,
Messrs. Sly and Fleetham, Republicans,
voted with the ten Democrats, making
twelve affirmative votes, or one less than
the number requisite to pass the ordinance.
Since that time it has frequently been
said by high license Republicans
that by the next meeting of
votes would be ''fiXed" for low license.
Nothing direct was charged, however. until
Aid. Sly yesterday made the statement
given above. He added that he was for low
license on principle, and his former votes
for high license and the patrol line were
given against his convictions. A prom
inent Democrat said, last night, in relation
to this:
-. n. Mind told me that Aid. Sly came
to him the day before election, when they
were all sure of Mayor Pillsbury's election,
and said he was going to try and amend the
patrol line SO as to shut out all Western
avenue saloons"
Aid. Sly's declaration created widespread
comment, all of which, it may be said, was
decidedly uncOmplimentary to him, and not
only doubted his statement, but severely
criticised the manner of making it. The
end is not yet, by any means. The Liquor
Dealers association considered the state
ment an imputaton upon it, and resented it
in the warmest kind of style. George G.
Jacoby said last night:
sit is an insinuation that the wholesale
liquor dealers have been engaged in a bribery
scheme, and as such L denounce 1t as an
Infamous lie. We have all Of US frequently
gone TO council, but we never even attempted
to speak with aldermen to ask them to
vote against their convictions. They must
not forget that when liquor dealers ask for q
lower license they are only asking what is due
the trade. For the past year majority of
the saloons have been running on a starva-
ton basis. Not over twenty of them are on
money-making basis, and the other 260 are
heavily in debt. They will be obliged to get
reduction to live. A $500 license makes
them dishonest because they cannot pay
their actual debts; it makes them dishonest
to live. That is the only reason why we ask
a reduction"
1t was said by a prominent Democrat last
light that Capt. Bobb, speaking of the
license matter, made the following remark:
1.-The Democrats botched this thing. They
ought to have taken Phelps out in the
country and kept him there all day, bringing
him back just in time to vote. He would
have voted all right them"
The Phelps referred to is the Republican
alderman from the Seventh ward who
voted against the $3.50 license. Babb's
intimation probably is that Phelps con-
victions were for low license, but he was
bound. gagged and delivered by the caucus
The worst broken up man last night was
j. Newton Mind. Tearfully, he said:
''Why, brought out Sly for alderman, and
now look at him. I am his political father, but
he is changeling. I disown him and cast
him off forever. Oak Lake repudiates him,
and the Fourth ward will cast him up