The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1886-07-29

also have desired the votes Of that eau
Gus kept secret, after 1t had Venally
declared In favor Of Henry B. Payne.
maintain this simply to be an unfortu-
nate coincidence. Your reasons may be
good and satisfactory to yourself, but
unless you can give them to the people
Of Ohio, not in secret, but by open and
OutspOken words, justified by good
and sufficient reasons, they will not hes
itate to condemn you and leave upon
you the suspicion of undue influence
You were to q great number Of people Of
Ohio a political idol, and they would
have hailed your elevation with delight,
but do not believe that your nOmina-
ti0n would meet with hearty endorse
ment, and doubt If 1t would be pOssi-
BILE for you, II nominated, to carry the
election In this Republican State, so
thoroughly do the honest people Of this
State condemn and despise fraud of
every description that they are not In
any mood to Justify or excuse those who
are patient with or ready to overlook or
paIliate II. This untold infRmy has 80
cried out for punishment, and the peO-
pie of the State have become so much
iDflamed by such open, notorious, and
boasting frauds, that their patience has
been entirely exhausted. l do not
know what could be said In defence Of a
man who holds bis seat In the face Of
open and formulated charges Of bribery
and corruption, and those charges made
not only by his political opponents but
by members and newspapers OF his own
party, and who has neither demanded
inquiry nor cOurted Investigation, so
that he might show them to be false and
demonstrate his own honesty and ihteg-
rity, and the honesty and integrity of
his seat, but who contents himself un
der such charges to remain silent while
his hireliDgs are moving heaven and
earth to put an end to all inquiry and
investigation. A sensitive man, and
one thoroughly imbued with knowl
edge of his own innocence, would have
been the first to demand speedy H.
vestigatiOn and justification, and would
have scOrned to hold a seat tainted by
fraud. But this man, whether by his
his own election or by the advice of
those who know of the lnfamy sur
rounding the purchase Of his seat,
chooses to remain silent, and thus tacit
ly admit to the world his guilt. Is it
wonderful that under such circum-
stances the people OF Ohio are not en-
thused over your vote, and are question
ing Its justification and the reasons
that impelled itp challenge any man
to find single Republican In Ohio who
will indOrse your action, unless that man
has been In some manner purchased by
the frauds of the most infamous grade
of political knsVes this OF any State
ever knew, and | know that neither
price nor money was permitted to be
spared to accomplish those nefariOus
ends. Paid attorneys and purchased
lobbyists ere labOring for the covering
Senate to put over them the cloak of Vir-
tue. God help the country when 1t can
not depend upon such as you. This In
fanny cries out for justice, and not for
covering up Of Grim. And you are the
one to whom the people looked with as
surance Of confidence, and In this sub
lime hour you ask that your vote may
be kept secret from the people. II Henry
B. Payne was rightfully elected as q
Senator from Ohio, no harm could pos
sibly come from an Investigation into
the frauds charged against him, but
upon the contrary, he would have been
offered every opportunity to have proven
them false, and to have justified him
self and established his integrity. His
course and the course of the Senate COM
mittee are equally unjustifiable. 1t is
simply saying to fraud and infamy, no
matter how glsring, the cloak OF Sena-
tOrial courtesy, If not the cloak Of Sena-
tOrial purchase, can hide 1t from view.
1t is simply prisoner whose guilt Is
undOubted, and whose conviction Is as
sured, but who has availed himself of
the technicslities Of the law to quasb
the indictment, and has escaped by rea-
son Of infOrmality, but in the judgment
of the people Of Ohio he stands con-
demned already, and his excusers and
defenders find no sympathy with the
honest ard fair minded people of this
State. / Iregret that you have 50 shaken
my faith in your judgment, and have 80
speedily OVertbrOwn one Of my pOlitl-
cal idols. With the hope that you may
have better reasons for your vote than l
think 1t possible for you to have, with
kind regards, / am yours very truly,
ROBERT P. KENNEDY.