Omaha daily bee., 1889-12-07

VI luE DEE, anu dibeT ms HOm-
ination ] personally appealed to him
TO withdraw. And unlike Broatch,
Coburn is manly enough TO admit that
my course toward him was honorable.
But Broatch lacks every instinct of
an honorable man lie has the audac-
ity to state that he was elected mayor
in spite Of my opposition in the face of
the fact that he owed his nomination TO
my personal efforts with delegates who
were disposed TO distrust his pledges,
and in the face OF the fact that | con-
tributed over six hundred dollars
toward %defraying the expenses OF his
m%ayoralty campaign. This is, however,
OF minor Importance.
This man Broatch has been posing
as a model of integrity and a
loyal upholder of good government and
the strict enforcement OF law and order.
By cunning and duplicity he has man
aged to create the impression among
the best people of this city that he has
been a sincere and uncompromisiug OPP
pouent of everything that is disrcputa-
BILE, disorderly and lawless.
Broatch has proved himself n monu-
mental fraud. His career as mayor has
been one Of constant deception aud self
ish scheming for personal ends and am
bilious designs. During the memorable
struggle between the council and the
police commission, when he had en-
listed the active support of good citi-
zens against the combine that
sought to starve the police,
he "a constantly negotiating compro-
misses. While myself and other citizens
had raised a fund TO pay the police, and
1 had personally sacrificed thousands of
dollars by UNFOLDING the police COM
mission in the face OF threats that the
city hall would be relocated, Mr..
Broatcn stOOd ready to make terms for
~furtherirg his own ends. In the very
heat of this exciting struggle, while
the title of Chief Seavey was being
tested in the courts, he signed the ordi-
anc aud the warrant to pay Tom
Cummings his salary as city marshal.
This was practically giving away the
case. Seavey and Cummings could not
legally hold the Office of chief of
police at the same time. My
earnest remonstrance against pay
ing Cummings was met by Broatch
with the response that Cummings
was hard up and needed the money to
start q saloon!
why don't you pay Cummings out of
your own pocket?" l asked.
But Mr.. Broatch preferred that the
city pay two salaries because Cummings
needed money with which to start a sa-
loon.
A few days later, when Seavey, who
had become tired OF the fight, rendered
his resignation, Broatch promptly voted
to accept 1T and moved as u substitute
for Seavey one of his Solid Twenty
eight, who had for years kept a saloon
on the northeast corner of Douglas
and Fourteenth streets. This would
have been a complete surrender
to the a~nti-police combine, but
Broatch cared nothing about the
law and order part, SO long as the new
chief was a man who would be a polit-
ical too. Mr.. Broatch, however, was
foiled by my personal appeal to the
members of the police commission to
reconsider their action and uphold the
status in which their case stood in the
courts at that period.
But the most disgusting imposture
which Broatch has been playing upon
%credulous people who regard him as the
law n order champion has beeu sin ce
he commenced to set his pins for re.
election. The spy system which he in
augurated has been a sham and a
fraud, gotten up chiefly for the purpose
of holding clubs over the heads of sa.
l~oonkeepers. dive owners and gamblers.
Mr.. Broatch and his detectives soon
became accessories to the most scandal
Gus violations of the law. Last summer
after Duff Green was forced to resign
from the police force, [ called Mr..
Broatch's attention to the fact that
there was COLLISION between his detec-
tives and certain gambling bells. One
OF these resorts, the Diamond saloon
was then running and still continues
to run faro tables aud other
games, by and with the
tacit consent of Broatch. This saloon
has always been the trysting place Of
the bogus detectives. L asked Mr..
Broatch why he tolerated these lawless
places, especially during the fair when
strangers and visitors we're liable to be
swindled or conlidenced out OF their
money. Mr.. Broatch commended that
he was unable TO suppress these crimi-
nal resorts. But they never were dis
turbed, although Mr.. Broatch's detec-
tives have achieved renown by climb
ing transOms and breaking open doors
in private houses to ferret out men OF
women who were consorting without
marriage licenses.
While Broatch was pulling the wool
over the eyes of the goody-goody people
in suppressing Higgins saloon he was
enlisting the support of the dive keep
ers who were ten tunes as bad as Hig'
gins. In place of Higgins and in the
same building, we have McGucken and
his upper story chambers. Ed Rothery
whose resort is he%aduuarters for thugs