Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1892-03-10

pressing his poignant grief over the
results of the recent legal question raised
in the chancellor's court. As reported
in the Sunday Star the address was as
follows:
"lhr. Chairman and Gentlemen: am
very glad to see you and to have this OPP
portunity of meeting you again.
III is matter of great congratulation
to the people of this city and of the
two lower counties to know of the very
strong and healthy condition of the Re-
publican party in the country districts
of New Castle county, represented by
you here to-day.
81 have always felt q great pride in
this section Of the State. It is the one 1
came from; where my closest ties and
affections are, and | feel that it can
always be called upon by the Republi-
can party and by the country, when it
has q fair chance to express its opinion.
The acute interest of the State has
recently conferred in this city. Here was
developed, upon the meeting of the Levy
Court by the return of the Democratic
assessors from the two lower districts of
this city, frauds, or contemplated frauds,
OF almost unparalleled magnitude. The
assessors lists showed thousands of
names of people that were fictitious. No
men could be found to meet or CORE
spond to those names. In addition,
there was, either through carelessness or
through purpose, the double assessment
OF great many persons. In addition to
that, there were men assessed in those
districts who did not reside in them, an
offence specifically punished by the
statute by fine and Indictment.
"These matters were brought to the
attention of the Levy Court, and, of
course, it had to deal with them-deal
with them under its responsibility,
under its duty, and under the
advice OF counsel. 1t did not
anticipate, and it could not have antici-
pated that any responsible citizen of
this city and State would have under
taken to make himself responsible for
these frauds. Who had suggested them
In the first instance, is not known, and
can be left only TO conjecture.
"We know the assessors who turned
the lists in, but we hardly anticipated
the hardihood by which these frauds
would be ratified by any responsible
men coming forward to try to make
them good. But that has been done.
and the Levy Court has been held I'M
by the restraining order issued by the
chancellor, and that restraining order
has been made into permanent iniunc-
ton against their striking those names
off.
mo taxes can be collected from these
people who did not, in fact, live here.
Nobody could be hurt by such names
being stricken off-no citizen thereby
DISTINGUISHED. The only purpose that
handing in such lists could serve. would
be to increase the pay Of the assessors
and clerk OF the peace in transcribing
such names, and in laying ground. for
the issuing of tax receipts to be used by
people who had no bona fide residence
here, and SO could not vote in their own
names.
search through the whole range Of
possible motives, and no other object
than that was to be comprised by put
ting these names on that list, and no
other object was to be accomplished by
their being stricken off by the Levy
Court than simply to prevent that fraud,
and so to make our election that is to
come, an accurate representation of the
opinion Of the people of this county
and city, as well as to make the basis Of
taxation real and not fictitious.
" am not here to criticise in any de-
gree the decision of the chancellor. |
always bow to the Judgment of the
court. / believe it is great principle
that requires us to hold the administra
ton OF the law in respect | can only
express my very sincere regret that such
u construction should have been put
upon this statute as to hold that the
Levy Court had power to drop from the
list names not legally appearing thereon
only in cases where those people who
were assessed Illegally were so assessed
illegally because they had been returned
as delinquents under the old law in that
behalf, law SO unfair, SO unjust, so
iniquitous, that it has prevented for
years the taking of the real and honest
sense of the people of this State, and
upon which we have at last the admis-
sion of the Democratic party by their
prompt repeal of it, when, by the votes
in Sussex and New Castle counties, in
the election of 1889 and 1890, they were
the ones who were to feel the results
of it.
"The construction put upon the
statute by the court was that the Levy
Court had the power and was bound in
duty to strike from the assessors lists
the name of any person who had been
dropped as delinquent within 10
months preceding the time when they SO
struck it of; but any other than that 1t
legally cannot, in the opinion of the
chancellor, be reached, and we accept
the law. What then, is the result of
the proceeding and Of the Judgment of
the courts In the first place it is not
going to allow any of those men to vote
under this fraud, for this reason, that
we can stop them all under the registra-
ton act.
"When men come up to register, if
they are not bona tide citizens and have
not resided within the time prescribed
by the constitution, we can stop them
on the registration; and while the task is
difficult in the city Of Wilmington, il is
not beyond our power to stop them.
"You gentlemen from the country,
and the people of this State can rest in
absolute assurance that the steps will be
taken to stop any such fraud.
"l3ut the other thing that has been
gained by this proceeding has been to
develop and show up the contemplated
fraud, and to fix upon the responsible
leaders of the Democratic party the re-
sponsibility for this scheme. They have
taken it upon their own shoulders, and
there, in the opinion of the honest peo-
pie of the state, it will remain while
they walk the earth. 1t has further
shown the people of the state, that the
Democratic party is still enriched here
with leadership that does rot need to
go to New York to learn lessons, but
can give points to even David b. HILL"
The lover writes sonnets to the fair