New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-02-15

Hobbs went OF, but the next Gay he Ualleu "o
Moss house with Sturgs, the Deooih aI,S pna
visor Hobbs asked 10 see the DluIt" 49,. -.
counted and thirty-0ne were found all Republican
Hobbs wanted 10 carry them of WIN hAi r. " Tvs
had sense enough not To permit thIl, oIInd -
Der | o. thc day the CANVASS began, ho"", S' eu ~
Moss house with a horse and wagon, anu saiL az
had been sentH 70 take Moss and me iha mar
ballots to Poughkeepsie. Moss got inc paiio.s'
iumped in Hobbs's wagon and was brought lhlo
Pour h keepsie where they met Sturgs at saloon
Sturgs took them 10 see llinck!ey, anu nc ou'ilo"
the whole party into private Once. ,;.,. ,,A;o,
70 appreciate The lowdown Ihscaiity whlch
Iincklcy and Sturgs then pcrpetIated. IL 10 heCeb
sary 10 remember that the Ballot law requires Iii1i
ballots challenged as marked for ldentlnealioh sh4t
lie, in every case. attached 10 tic return ~ Vne
Inspectors who must explain IN the DodN OF inc re-
turn why they challenged ms Is done
to supply evidence for use in quo warIan.o pro-
cccding in the courts. Moss swearS that lhe pa
lots were not marked, not chailengeu no1 ieportcu
and not attached. He had them III his possession
because he and his associates, not UNDERSTANDING
the law, had burned the unused ballots Instead oil
the need ones and had saved the used instead OF
The unused When Hlncklcy got him in the back
office he exposed the ballots and they were a9an
counted. Surgis produced the returns, which were
in his possession as supervisor, handed them TO
Mos and asked him to attach ono of the blurred
ballots 10 it as a sample =" did So says Moss
in his affidavit and at the further request OF Su-
pervsor StTgis wrote on the face 81 the oaaa
like this was thirty-onc' y Moss goes on to say
that he was not authorized to do this by the other
members of the board OF Inspectors, and that they
did not know IL, but he simply did IL al the SUI
pervisors request, thinking il was all right
" There was no pencil or pen mark or any othcr
mark" he continues except the aforesaid print
crs blur upon the sample ballot 1 attached 10
the returns or while ! saw IL.
THE MEASEsT FRAUD OF ALL.
The next day Sturgis presented himself in the
board of canvaSscrs with the returns thus out
10 L,I fIa
totals. Vail spoke up In the most incidental way,
as though it had just happened 10 occur To him.
and asked, Were any ballots matk,d for identi-
hcation in your town. SUPERVISOR We'll. yes
Sturgis replied there is a ballot appended to the
return and the statement is written OH it that
thrty.onc like it were voted in tie Hid District
of Red Hook" Tic Republican counsel immedi-
atc!v suspected Il fraud and were not long in I'M
covering it. They cross-eNamincd the old man
and ma L. Jim acknowledge then aud there that
the ballot had not been attached 70 the return
when hc originally received II. lie said. III
stupid way, that lie thought it hnd hccn put
on when he sept II Iach e. get n hAcl Da'
an even mcaucr fraud was 10 come. Wien '
cNhini:od the ballot II had ring around 1t made
by lead pencil the lmpl alton hcihs mat u''
voter mad uOnc II. and that D. was IN That cohdl-
ton wien Moss wroi. the Sta cnicAI that thirty
one Ike II bad been votcd. Moss swcaIs that ho
such ring there; that none oi the ballots had
IlHE or any hlil'i Udlh ~ H'N'it VI i'm ''f'''
Them AID of course II l. plain ~ day that mar
mark was put on the sample ballot with de-
libcmtcly criminal intent.
Ibis l., "a b autliu example OF all tie changes
that were made. but each IN liz way - gem OF
audaciit. lr one OF the polls Of flshklll Tor
Instance DcoLc ran about fifteen VOTES ahead OF
Iii, ticket and when they had d'iuurcd HIN oi
all tie votes they possibly could on III" ptetcNi
that they were marked for identification. b'lhi
still shor. 81 4 majority for Osborne th" e,nlnn'
simp 3 tmn>poScd the vote in this flShkill dls
trict and gave Dc.nc thborucs III votes anu
Osborne Dranc's ISL vot'S For tbs there was
not even the prciencc II excuse or explanation
They simply concluded that Deanc bad no bust.
ness e. run ahead 81 lis ticket. and they needed
the votes. and 80 they took them. In fouel-
kccp.e return the inspectors had said that the
whole number Of votes cast for senator was $40
but when the onspirator- added mp the aggregate
received by each candidate il amounted only 7"
31j 50 they gave Osborne the additional vote
in order Z, bring thc total mp 10 3iG. n pro-
crcdng which for utter ard shameless impudence
is unique.
The result, Of all these changes was that os-
borres majority in tie County Of Dutchcss was
mere ecd ninety-two votes. thereby erecting hun
over Dcanc bv n majority In the district OF four
teen. II the annals Of political crime. even IN
Louisiana. contain anything bacler than this n
a. no, been brought - public attention.