New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-11-30
DAVID B. HILLS PLOT.
HOW IT WORKED IN DUTCIIESS COUNTY.
WHOLESALE THEFT OF REPUBLICAN BALLOTS BH
THE DEMOCRATIC SUPERVISORS - THE
GREAIEsT POLITICAL CRIME IN THE
HISTORY OF THE STATE.

GREAIEtT POLITICAL CRIME IN THE
HISTORY OF THE STATE.
Poughkeepsie, Nov. 20 tSpeciaD.-Thc history
of David B. Hills outrage the will of the
people as it was expressed in the election OF 3
Republican to the Senate from the XVIII Senate
District is the history of the grossest act OK
political thievery that ever has been attempted
in this State 1t WAS nothing more or less than
q well-laid plot to obtain through fraud what
had not been secured at the election. The story
has been told by The Tribune as the various acts
in the plot have been carried out, but for the
benefit Of those who are not familiar with the
many details of the scheme by which David ~
Hill tried TO obtain control of the Senate, IL
is told again.
The simple story Of itself will allow any one
to see that Hill and his gang of servie tools long
before the votes were counted on election night
had made up their minds TO steal this oena"
District if the vote on Senator was at all close.
The leader of the gang was Hill himselt anu
his chief lieutenants were "Jim" HncKey,
local political bully, and John j. Mylod, young
lawyer, whose scruples are no more pfonouhceo
than they ought to be. Before starting out on
the scheme Hill first saw to it that the Demo-
cratic majority of the Board of Supervisors OF TINS
county were men who would do as they wero
bidden. lie had no trouble on this score, ior ne
learned through Hincllley that they couid 10
controlled to a man if it only were given ouU
that tac Democratic candidate for the Senate had
been elected and that the Republicans were .ty-
inr to count him out. When Hill learned tins
he saw that the task Of securing majority oi
tbe Board would be an easy one, and he wen'
n work accordingly On election night when ne
Iearnedsthat Senator Deaue's majority would DO
= small one he had IIincklcy send out WORD thas
Osborne the Democratic candidate, had peen
elected and that an official count would prove IT,
This was the first gun that Hill fired. IL had
IFS result. Hincllley, toO did his part, ioI y"
election night he teegraphed all over 'ne ''a'.
what was absolutely untrue, that the eulCoie "
"The Poughkeepsie Eagle" who are kepuoilcahS'
had conceded Senator Deanes defeat lhese as
scrtions which were made by Hill and HlncKley
had their effect for the following day many
Of the Democrats in the Senate district declaieu
that Osborne had been elected. The returns from
Putnam and Columbia counties, the two counties
which with Dutchess County make up this senate
District. showed that Senator Deane's plurality
in tbem was not large At the same time, honest
Domocrats confessed that the plurality given ZOE
Osborne in Dutchess County was small, probably
90 small that the pluralites for his oppohent III
tho other two counties would defeat him. "heh
the returns from each election dlstrlco III .ho
county had been filed in the County clerks ONCE
paI,ort IT IIunter for ccnator Deare, with Hinck-
lev and other Democrats, representing the chlcr
consnirator went over the returns. and the
Democrats themselves were forced TO admit thab
their claim of OsborncS election was pretty shany.
The more honest Democrats in the county admitted
at once when they saw the hgures thaO oena'oi
Deane had been reelected.
But here is where Hills fine work came in!
in
in the three counties, and the Democratic In
snectors of election were ordered to watch ous
for any defective ballots that might be thrown
out against the Rerublican candidate. There
are several kinds of defective ballots that have tn
be considered by the inspectors of election In max
ing up their returns. ballot that is torn AZ
one corner may be called defective ballot De-
cause that tearing might he a sign by which some
one could tell whether or not voter who had
been bribed to vote had kept his promise Then
a ballot can be marked in various ways, either
with the intention of the voter to let IL
be known how he has voted, or uninten-
tionay while he has Deen making up
split ticket In some districts where
the inspectors of election are nearly all of one
political faith by getting the inspectors of the
opposite party out of the way for few moments
enough ballots could be marked 10 make great
difference with the result, in case the inspectors
of election alone were to judge of the honesty
Of a ballot Therefore the law wisely was
amended last winter, compelling the inspectors
and the canvasSers all to count the marked bal
lots but leaving it for the courts 10 determine
whether or not the ballots were Intentionally
marked Hill did not care for the provisions or
the law on this point All that he asked for to
steal the seat to which Republican had Dcen
elected was that sufficient number of ballots
IL lANNr IN InSfFn
the majority that the voters of this Senate Dis
trict gave to Gilbert \. Deane. The original
returns as they were fled with the County Clerks
Of the three counties did not show a sufficient
number of defective and marked ballots to insure
n majority for Osborne A little thing like that
did not discourage the gang Of seatstea!crs in
the least Hill wanted Senator Dcanes seat, and
he was bound TO have it, Law did not cut any
figure in opposing him either. So it was that
while under his instructions the Democratic heel
crs in these three counties were claiming the
election of a defeated candidate. Hill was in
Albany waiting the results of the tour of Deputy
Attorney General Maynard through the district.
They found that they could do nothing with the
Supervisors of Putnam County, so they turned
their attention TO Columbia and Dutchess coun-
ties. where the majority of the Board of Super
visors in beth instances are Democratic. In
Columbia County Samuel j. Tilden, jr., could be
depended upon to do anything that Hill would
advise. and in this county Jim" Hincl<ley was
more than anxious TO enter into the scheme that
Hill proposed. This schG,ne was nothing short OF
one TO manufacture marked ballots, through
the Democratic inspectors of election, after
the returns all had been filed with the
members Of the Board Of Supervisors.
In looking over the field, Hill found in the town
of Red Hook supervisor who once had lived in
Columbia County. This man had been a MEM
Der of the Assembly in the days of William NJ
Tweed and against him a number OF pretty seri-
Gus stories were told by the New-lork newspapers