The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-06-17
THE SHERIFF FIGHT.
There Were Mad and Disguised Demo-
Gratis in This Town Yesterday.

The issue of the sheriff fight in the
Democratic camp was topic of univer-
sal comment about the city yesterday.
The friends of Somers and Tolman were
both mad and disguised. Tolman's
friends were disguised with the Somers
men because the latter had not been
willing to join a combination against
SWEET. Such a combination would have
swept SWEET off the board, and enabled
Tolman and Somers to divide the city
between them.
There was all the more reason why
Tolman and Somers should have Joined
hands in the fact that SWEET had them
both at disadvantage. He used to the
utmost the great power which his posi-
ton as head of the police, and his close
relations with the head of the street de-
partment gave him. The police depart
ment has been worked for all it was
worth. 1t has been long time since
men arrested for intoxication have found
itso easy to get off without being brought
before the court, as it has been under
our city marshal, who has had one eye
on the police and the other on the sher-
ifs Office ever since he was sworn in. In
the last eight or ten weeks but small
proportion ofs.the men arrested for intox-
ication have been brought before the
court. OF course the men who have es-
capped have warm side for the head of
the police department.
The use of distinguishing mark on
the SWEET ballots has occasioned about
as much Kicking among the great body
of anti-Swett Democrats as any other of
the performances of Wednesday evening.
Every SWEET ballot was printed on blue
paper, and SWEET strikers stood over every
ballot box to spot every man who failed
to throw the right colored ticket. This
distinguishing mark rendered the
influence of the police department and
the street department complete. ''Men
who were our supporters came to u.
said an anti-Swett leader yesterday, ''and
told us that they dared throw no other
than the blue ticket
The use of such blue ballot as was
used in the Democratic caucuses has
been ruled out of elections by the laws of
Maine for many years, for the express
reason that such distinguishing mark
facilitates intimidation.
Beer as well as intimidation was
potent agency in the caucuses. Of
course the whole animus of the fight
was, as Mr.. E. G. SWEET, brother of the
candidate for Sheriff, graphically ex-
pressed it to the Ward caucus, against
the so-called ''iniquities'' of the prohibit
tory law; but beer is said to have figured
actively as well as passively. No one
candidate need be singled out in connec-
ton with this feature of the fight. An
amusing incident of this beer campaign
was enacted Wednesday afternoon. Sew
eral young fellows who were much in
iterested in the Sheriff fight had invested
some of the sinews of war current in
their neighborhood, in some liquor, with
which they proceeded to open campaign
headquarters in a Green street barn.
Deputy Sheriffs Plummer and Sterling
stumbled upon these headquarters, and
seized both the spirits and the attending
politicians Yesterday considerable Gin
fiuence" was brought to bear to convince
the authorities that the Rendezvous was
political and not commercial in it's ma
t11ro