The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1890-06-24
REDS GRIP IN MAINE.
The Car of Congressis Powerful, but
He is Thoroughly
Hated.
Charged With Neglecting His
Friends and With Resort1ng
to Trickery.
votes Openly Battered For at the POLLS
Corporations Interested i'll the smart
Mans" Election.

Nrw YORK, June "a special to the
World from Portland Maine. says: Inere
u,as recen tly convention of delegates rep
resentino the republican party in the First
CONGRESSIONAL district in this state. Thomas
n Raed nresent speaker of the house OF
representatives, received renomlnatloh
for congress- To that nomination there
~,oa NO. a dissenting voice. This conven-
t;on. notoriouslv known as Reeds conven-
tion. met and, with a degree of solemnity
which approached the ridiculous, made the
nomination, which was cut and drled
months ago. and unless the predictions OF
democrats and republicans alike IN the dis
trict fail. Reeds nomination amounts to an
election.
The World correspondent has just spent
che better part of week in this district,
and durinp that time he could not lind an
active politician who either had the hardl-
hood to hope or the lack OF nerve to fear
that the twenty-years record OF success at
the nolls achieved by Speaker Reed would
Nc hroken by a defeat in the fail. And yet
there among his own constituents, he WHO
has become a car at Washington is not
popular Some of the younger republican
voters in the district, it Is true, become en-
They appla I'D his methods as speaker, ana
esneciaiiy his way Of counting quorum;
for. first Of all, they are pleased at anything
which Anglers a democrat, no matter what
the effect upon their own party, and then
they glory in sending 70 O., congress .he man ha
day. But though they nominate him and
vote for him, down deep in their hearts the
older republicans despise Tom Keed. HE
never kept PROMISE he Is overbearlng,
friends, is selfish and a hypocriten' He is
ambitious, avaricious and untrustworthy:'
AZ the commencement of Reeds political
career his warmest friend, his chief sup
norter and the manager of his campaigns
was Frederick N. Dow, who Is now an APP
plicant for collector of report of Portland,
backed by both senators and other strong
Now Reed is urging the president to give
the place to w. H, Milliken, man of
wealth and of good standing socially. The
republicans in the district perfectly under
stand the situation and blame Reed accord
Neither is it pleasing to local politician
who has done his best to secure congress
mans election, and considers his work of
enough importance to insure his being
treated with respect, if not with considera-
ton. by the man whom he helped to boost
into high position in political life, to re-
ceiye one of Tom Reeds Enthusiastically
sarcastic replies to civilly stated request,
The statesmen of a small town in the speak
er's district requested their representative
to use his influence to secure for use in
decorating their towns Grand Army monu-
ment several condemned cannon. Speaker
Reed forsook his habits and deigned tc
answer the request, but MS reply 10 tne Of
feet that he was not dealing in old junk
cost him not less than one hundred ano
ffv votes at the last election.
81 can't afford to be quoted said well
known republican to your correspondent,
0bnt in confidence, will tell you that there
ia not a man in this district SO thoroughly
repulsiye to his party as this Tom Reed. If
Il had not been for his national prominence
this year, doubt if he could by any means
have secured the nomination. The man is
detested. He has personally aftronted
every campaign engineer in the district, but
he is SO sensationally smart that we can't
help but return him.
The opinion was in effect reiterated by
dozens of district workers. but SO complete
is Tom Reeds power that not republican
could be prevailed upon to talk between
quotation marks. Because of Reeds ascent
to the speakership. it is only natural
that his name should be frequently heard il,
connection with the presidential bee, but.
SO far as Maine is concerned, Reeds name
won't be mentioned in the convention OF
1892, provided, of course, that Mr.. Blaine
is alive at that time. Though the latter'e
name is not in every ones mouth as fire..
quently as in times past, 1t Is sheer non
sense to mention Reed as the magnetic
mans possible rival, at least SO far as the
Maine state delegation is concerned.
The polling of Reeds convention upon
the question of the delegates choice fol
presidential nominee in '92 is laughed at by
republicans and democrats alike. 1t was
Reeds day and he was entitled to the com
pliments of the occasion.
But how does Tom Reed secure his cleo
ton to congress? That is the question
which has been agitating the minds Of
many people ever since his antics as speaker
be answered by brief sketch OF facts
Since 1880 the Maine Legislature enacted .
law making the party who accepts a trib'
equally guilty with the one who gives j
there has been no district moro rotten poll
tically than the First congressional, which
sented in congress. Voters of that distric
have for years gone to the polls and solt
their votes with the nonchalance and witt
almost the freedom with which they sci
their blueberries or their hens eggs. Fo
the past ten years there has been no sue
Countess ssnsf and YORK the eorraption e'i ha
been steadily and rapidly increasin
until now it has reached almost incredibl
proportions. Fathers leading by the han
sons who have but just attained their ma
jority go to the polls and bargain with tn
workers over the price which shall be pal
for the citizen-rights of the family. TIL
corruption is most marked in the sma
towns and the rural districts. There
scarcely farmer or a lumberman VII
thinks of voting unless he is paid, and pal
literally, too.
conservative estimate places the e:
penses of his campaign IN 1883 in Vol
county alone at $4,000. 1t is fair to SUI
pose that an equal amount was expended
Cumberland county. But where does tn
money come from? Certainly not from Il
First congressional district in the state
Maine. To locate the fund exactly is
course well nigh impossible. 1t is hinte
and rather broadly, that the Canadian p
ciic railroad company is intensely interes
ed In Congressman Reed. and other lar
corporations are spoken of as putting the
hands down deep in their pocket VIII
Thomas b. runs for member of congress.
Another source rich in votes Rum flo
as freely in Portland as it does in N
York and nearly as openly. It doesn't go
consumers in the Original package" eth
Every drug store is to all purposes a salo
and every hotel has its bar-room.
Tom Reed and the republican party p
tect these liquor sellers in order that tt
AcOUira n unrfuouo their vOfaS