Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1892-08-04
The Ballot Burners.


at the same burning by Count Rod
man, Secretary of State. who thereupon
issued certificates giving the Office OF
Congressman to Van Horn and Circuit
10 Warner. Van Horn is now
editor of the Kansas City .JosrRat, and
recently undertook to deny that Rod
man burned the Democratic ballots
which constituted q majority against
the Republican ticket, but Judge Wm-
F. Sheffield OF Springfield, who was
burned OUT of the Circuit Attorney
ship by Rodman, gives the following
historical account of what he properly
designatess zone of the greatest outrages
up On free government the world has
ever witnessed"
The writer of the above-named edi-
torial says: s.If there is anybody that
knows about these matters referred TO,
we do" Exactly so; no one acquaint-
ed with the history of the disfranchise-
ment OF Democrats and the high-hand-
ed operations OF the Fletcher-Rodman
regime will question it for moment.
r. T Van Horn. the editor then as
now of the Kansas City Journal, was
one of the chief beneficiaries of those
infamous proceedings. and if there was
Of oh t,iY hi !,
of shame would mantle his cheek when
he recalls his part in those outrageous
proceedings. Bill Warner was simply
an incidental beneficiary. Van Horn
in 1868 was the Radical candidate for
Congress; the late General James III.
Shields was the Democratic candidate.
To elect Van Horn it was necessary to
keep up the systematic disfranchise-
ment of Democrats which had been
carried on previous to the Radical rule
of Missouri. An honest Republican,
who had been before and now is Dem
ocrat, Captain Tom Phelan, had been
appointed registering officer in jackson
county. Van Horn and his coworkers
al once commenced operations on Cap
tain Phelan to induce him to continue
the disfranchisement of Democrats.
ATTEMPT To BRIBE.
They offered the Supervisor of Reg
istration $4,000 if he would disfran-
chise enough Democrats to keep Jack
son county still reliably Republican.
Captain Phelan, like an honest man,
spurned the offer and performed his
duty faithfully my baking an honest
which gave the Democrats
about 1900 majority in the county.
An honest registration was also made
n Platte county, which was then in the
Sixth Congressional District with jack
;on. The result after election was a
.ral Shields. The disfranchisement
scheme by the registering officer hay-
I,
Ter to send Van Horn to Congress, to
AXE other measures. So when the re-
urns from Platte and Jackson counties
we're received at the Office of the Sec
'etary OF State, Mr.. Rodman, as the
most effective means of wiping out
General Shields majority and putting
he returns out of reach of legal pro-
ess, burned them, and upon the
trength of the meagre majority from
he rest of the district issued certif- |
ate of election to Van Horn, and he, |
y virtue of such proceedings, repre-
ented the Sixth District in the Forty
rst Congress, instead of General |
hields. who had been legally elected |
y several thousand majority; so who |
'ill question but that the editor of the
'oar7e0l ''knows about these matters?"
But Colonel Van Horn is veLy much t
when he says 1.-the returns of
acksOn county were not burned" He |
avs of Francis Rodman that ga more /
onest, honorable man, a more con-
cientious official never held the Office
f Secretary of State of Missouri. "
hat being so, why does Colonel Van
Iorn deny the statement of Rodman,
lade under oath, when he testified in
ne case of State of Missouri ex rel.
Vm- Wood VS.. c. p. Townsley on quo
arranto proceedings to oust Townsley
'om the Office held under this same
operation, that the
sturns We're burned and never can
assed. l have a copy of his testimony
ow. and it was given, after Rodman
ad left the State, by depositions taken
Chicago, Ill. Colonel Van Horn is {
Iuaily at fault when he says that the
,turns by which he, Townley and
Tarner were declared elected, with $
e returns from jackson and Platte
,unties, were ever before the Legisla-
re, as they had been burned before
e Legislature was in session, and the /
legislature had no more to do with :
ose returns than the Parliament OF :
agland. ;
WARMERS UsURPATIoN. IL,
But Colonel Van Horn says Warner I