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

The newest and most recent chapter in
the history of political fraud and padding
of assessment lists is now to hand and is
presented fresh from the statements and
fgures now finally prepared for the Levy
Court by Assessor Whann of the Third
district Of this city
- 1t clearly shows to the community that
Mr.. Whann, the Republican assessed, has
been made the tool of by his party man
ayers OF padding of the Third district,
which in its totals swells up to an excess of
between 5000 and 1900 impossible voters
In that district.
HERE ARE THE FIGURES.
Assessor Whann's additions of poll taxa
bles for the Seventh ward alone, that is for
this additional year of 1892, sum up 1913.
The poll-taxables for 1891, the basis of the
court record or those already on the
Seventh ward list is 1,5l6. This gives a
total of 1904 poll-taxables in this ward
Hut as this total represents the poll-taxa-
bles alone, an addition of, say 900 for
property owners assessed in the Seventh
ward would afford grand total of 1864
voters in that ward alone.
THE GENERAL ELECTION FIGURES.
AT the last general election in 1890 when
this strong Republican Seventh ward made
its finest and bravest show for the Repub
lican nominee for governor, Harry Rich
ardson, it polled exactly 1859 votes all
told, both Democrat and Republican.
1904 VS.. 1851!
But now it blossoms ont with an increase
OF 24O5 voters very ilattering growth in
TWO years OF over $50 per cent. This
astonishes the Republicans themselves and
their unfortunate political opponents the
Democrats simply cannot understand it.
Mr.. Whann is the hero of the day and is
dubbed by his grateful admirers the Ma
poleon of political finance.
A halt is called for one moment in this
interesting story to explain that Mr.. Whann
proposes dcducting Just 372 names which
the revising committee disalowed. Then
subtracting this from the astonishing ex-
cess of 2,4O5 over the general election fig
ures, there still remains a glorious net in
crease of 2,033 voters in that ward alone.
HIS OTHER wARpsl
But the above modest figures portray the
republican assessors triumphs in the
"Gallant Seventh" only. II must he re-
membered that Assessor Whann had also
the sixth and Ninth wards IN his gentle
care. No doubt he cared for them with at
least equal solicitude to that lie betray ed
in his watchfulness over the franchise
rights of the Seventh.
To the Sixth ward he adds / 1853 new
poll taxables and to the Ninth an increase
of $50 n modest discovery of 2,ilS new
voters in these two Republican wards this
year. This will be hailed as more evil
dence of his abilities as successful man
ager for his party.
With an increase of over 1000 in the
Seventh ward, logical ratio of 1000 more
in the SIXTH and another ,O00in the Ninth,
the possible net total that the Third dis
trict the Republican stronghold of VIII
mington, thus shows is prospect Of 5000
new voters appearing there alone.
Allowing generous margin of say o.
per cent on the plea that the more exact
figures of the Sixth and Ninth Wards,
outside of the poll-taxables already given,
are not to hand, it will be seen that through
she returns ready for presentation To the
Levy Court of the Third district the lists
OF that voting region of Wilmington will
be padded" to the extent of at least be.
tween 5000 and 1900 names.
NAMES AND ENTRIES.
The assessor explains the remarkablein-
crease in his names and entries for this
year by the facts of the Kentmere addition
TO the city and his discovery of an untaxed
nugget of property in the Ninth ward
where the Field club had its old grounds
MIR. wHANN's FIGURES.
Assessor Whann's figures upon the vot.
ing capacity of Ills district would call
allowing the usual five persons to each
hOtcrs All dNcriiBt Oh over -u,uNu residents Ill
the Seventh ward, 1900 in the Sixth, and
10000 in the Ninth-a total for his assess
ment district of $4,000 inhabitants--about
two-thirds of the population of Whining
ton, and the indicated totals, based on
Assessor Whann's figures, showing an in
terrd population for the city of at least
$4,000 over double of the real figures.
The richness of these figures and Mr.
Whann's modesty in filling up his
generous Republican list may be still bet
Ter appreciated when II is commonly as.
serted that hundreds Of Democrats have
been precludcd from being placed on the
Third district assessment lists and that
these are citizens who reside in the wards
of that district
II is reported that Assessor Whann does
not personally know 100 of the poll-tax-
ablcs on his books, that the assessment
work was done by his son, and the names
transcribed Wholesale from the Republi
can headquarters block book prepared by
the party managers. These block books
were typewriter and used as the basis OF
test as to the propriety of the name, as
called out and checked, being retained on
the assessment list this year by the rcvis
ing committee.
The righteousness of the whole pro
cedure of revision may be clearly realized
by the reader. A name was called out
from the assessors list, say John Smith
whether the name is already on last years
list. Surprising the reply was negative
Then the next question was us to the iden.
tity of the person. The sole authority fol
this in the overwhelming majority Of
instances was the type-written list OF
names, each furnished with a complete
address, which Mr. Whann held in his
hand and from which he glibly called out
the address. as if it were infallible proof IN
every instance of the bona tide existence oil
that person, and that he was q resident OF
Wilmington. 1t will be remembered thai
this last court of appeal, as accepted, wa:
the Republican managers block book of the
Third district. Its origin was Seventh anc
Shipley streets, and not the result of the
assessors labors in ascertaining the tax
ables of that district.
1t should be said to the credit of tn,
members Of the committee, that Mr.. Clarl
introduced the use of city directory
That in its restricted way was a check
But in the presence of nearly 1000 pro
posed new poll taxables' names alone o.
what real use was it the ever-ready type
written list supplying an Identifying {?
address for each name offered too spe
cious solution of the difficulty and hun
dreds Of names had perforce to pass on it
authority alone. The reason of coursi
was that there existed no evidence at hant
for its contradiction. The person legal,
constituted to answer the questions OF thu
committee offered it in evidence on eacl
occasion and with the most pronounced
assurance of its verify.
1t would be impossible for Chairman
Hickman or the other members of thu
committee to take the position of critic OF
the names of the hundreds of obscure poll
taxables' names. An assessor who indi
vidually went around and gathered thu
names at the residences of the citizen:
might be expected to have . modicum Of
memory in regard to the individual names