Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-11-05
ALABAMA.


ago pre- sented solid front have suddenly
weakened, and it looks more than ever like
Cleveland will carry this state.
Last Sunday night Christopher L. Magee. the
shrewd Pennsylvania republican politician,
arrived here. 1t was given out that he had
brought large Doodle and had come TO stay
until after the election. In fact. Mr.. Magee said
himself that he would remain in this state until
after the election The third party. fusion and
republican leaders hocked about him. each anx-
ious to give him his particular advice to the
best line Of policy to pursue. Mr.. Magee took
trip to the northern part of the state to look
over the'stuation and then he went TO south
Alabama to see how the land lay there. On re-
turning to Birmingham he quietly left yester-
day morning for his home In Pittsburg after
having spent only three days in Alabama.
His departure early was entirely unex-
pected. Even those nearest to him sur
prised and many of the fusion leaders who had
expected to hold another conference with him
before ne left were out of the city at the time
and did not see him again.
Some Of them say that he will return again
by Sunday. but this is doubted, as the election
Is now so near at hand that it is very improb-
able that he will come south again.
DID NOT TRY TO PURCHASE VOTES.
Before leaving Mr.. Msgee published a card
in daily paper here denying that he had at
tempted to buy up or bride any voters in this
state. 1t was in reply to an article which had
been published in the same paper the day
previous setting forth the law Of Alabama rel
alive to buying votes and bribing voters Mr..
Alagee did not deny that he was here to do all
he could to carry the state for Harrison but
said that he WAS especially anxious for a fair
count and a free ballot in Alabama. His card
concludes as follows:
When any citizen of Alabama worthy of be-
lief Is found to prefer charge that have
offered or advised or procured to be offered TO
him any sum Of money to influence his vote, it
will be time TO call my attention to the statute
providing for such offenses. When such a
charge is made | promise nv kindly adviser
that 1T will need no extradition papers to bring
me to meet the ch.fge and compel my acouser
to meet ii. before jury Of your citizens. So
long. however, as the charge that am cor
ruptly di bursting campaign fund of 500. 900
rests upon naked insinuation it gives me no
concern for my reputation among the intelli-
gent people OF your state. | am not ignorant
OF the laws against corrupting the ballot. We
have such laws in Pennsylvania, more stringent
than those OF Alabama and when catch any
scoundrel violating them put him in Jail,
not in Office.
RESULT OF MAGEE's VISIT.
The result Of Mr.. Magees visit can be summed
up briefly. 1t has solidifed the white repub-
licans and third partyites peoples party; it
has caused number Of influential Kolbtes to
come back to the democratic party, and it has
stirred up the negro element to fight hard
against the Moseley faction of the
republicans. The negroes for Harrison
and intend to vote for him. but will not vote
for him as Magee wants them to do. His plan
is to elect the fusion ticket. which is q half
Weaver and q half Harrison ticket. He knows
that he can get more white men who have been
democrats, but have bolted the party with
~ rof. ~. Ill -
vote the straight republican ticket.
But the negro. who is naturally
peculiar in his ideas about politics, though
anxious for Harrison to carry Alabama APP
parently. will not support the fusion ticket.
All THE has been caused by the fight between
Moseley and Stevens over the chairmanshi,.
The negroes suspect that Mr. Magee has recog-
nized Moseley the rightfui chairman to the
detriment of Stevens, and they are mad at the
PENNSYLVANIA for that.
So the negroes will support one electoral
ticket and the white republicans the other
Ibis is just what the democrats want. They
don't want the republican party to be united
and have done all they could to keep them
apart.
In short, Mr.. Magee accomplished practi-
cally nothing in Alabama, except to distribute
more than half million fusion tickets all over
the states. Reuben Kolb. IT,. Is said to have
been one Of the chief distributors Of these
tickets.
ATTACKED BY DEMOCRATS.
The narrow escape Of p. G. Bowman, chair
man of the Kolb committee, from being killed
by enraged democrats at Lafayette, Crawford
county, yesterday we'll illustrates the bitter
feeling that now exists in this state. Bowman
kolb and Whatley, the latter congressional can
dldate on the fusion ticket in the fifth district
made speeches. Reports say that Bow
man used very severe language in his
Sneafh lpsip ua tha ng xh
Lafayette Sun, Mr.. Richards. After the speak
ing Richards and Bowman met and a personal
encounter followed. Bowman is said to have
drawn pistol just then about 100 democrats
rushed In and surrounded him with drawn
knives sand pistols and were about to end his
existence. They disarmed him and at
the point of cooked pistols compelled
him to retract all he had said and
went SO far to make him acknowledge that
the charges he had brought against Richards
were false. Bowman was fortunate to escape
alive. He WAS choked and slapped in the face,
SO it is said, and when the crowd released him
he left the town at once.
Mr.. Bowman is regarded as one of the most
courageous men IN Alabama and is not afraid
to say what he thinks when the occasion de-
msnds 1t His friends are indignant at his
treatment. 1t goes to show the bitterness of
the feeling existing in the present campaign.
CONGRESSIONAL SITUATION.
The democrats have practically given ND all
hope of carrying two congressional districts out
of the nine. These are the fifth and the seventh
W. N. Whatley. the fusion candidate in the
fifth, Is running against Congressman Cobbs
and it Is believed will defeat him.
William Wood, fusion candidate in the
seventh, is a republican. He will, it is thought,
defeat Col. ". H. benson, the democratic
nominee. The alliance men are against
benson on account Of the active fight he made
against kolb in the recent state campaign
The other close districts will be the second
and the fourth. The democratic chances for
success in both those districts have been
steadily improving. In the seventh and fifth
there are no candidates in the field except dem
ocrats and fusionists. The Stevens republicans
have Withdrawn.
THREATS OF THE DEMocRATs
The action of United States Marshal Walker
in appointing deputy marshals for large and
small polling places alike has aroused the DEM
ocrats and the latter say that il one of their
party is molested or hurt there will be no fusion
list witness left to tell the tale. Tho dem
ocratic sheriffs are appointing many special
deputies all over the state, and il Is not un- |
likely that the deputy marshals and deputy |
sherifs may come in conflict with each other
As Birmingham is the criminal as well as the |
political center of Alabama trouble is expected |
here above all other places.
Kolb has just issued very strong circular to |
his followers telling them that this will be their
last resort to the ballot before the bullet is |
brought into use to enforce their rights, or |
words to that effect, aud this has done much |
to stir up Ill feeling
si{uo tiop harDvroos H.