The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1893-12-11
Essex and Hudson Republi-
cans Trying to Crowd
Out the Smaller
Counties.
SPLIT ON SAM DICKINSON.
Mercer Willing to Combine With
Anyone to Elect Hancock
ComptrOller-A Beautiful
Scrimmage.
Special to The Jerseu oftu Ns,a,. !.

Special to The Jersey City Nescs.
TRENTON, Dec II, 1893-A beautiful fight
over the offices is brewing in the Republican
party. Essex and Hudson were coouetting
with each other for the purpose of making
combination to run the Legislature and
divide the largest plums among themselves.
They have had several conferences and were
drawing very close to definite understands
ing when they split upon rock which has
more than once wrecked the peace and har-
mony of the party. This was nothing more
OF less than that cynical bundle of political
assurance known in contemporary politics as
Sam Dickinson, Postmaster of Jersey City.
A conference of Essex Senators and Assem-
blymen was held on Thursday evening and it
was agreed that, for the present at least, the
delegates would support Assemblyman Wool
sey for Speaker and George B. Swain of
Newark for State Treasurer Further
action will, Of course, depend upon the
development in the general legisla-
tive caucus. This action of the legis-
lators was something of a surprise as it
was understood quite generally that Mr..
Swain was opposed by number of anti
Sewell men, and that there was a strong
movement under way for the selection of a
more active political leader than Mr.. Swain.
However this may be, the hackers of Mr..
Swain, of whom Elijah Gaddish, SewelIs
lieutenant in Essex, is understood to be the
most active, had an easy victory A feature
of this and every other contest for State
Treasurer has been the interest taken by
banking institutions in the matter. A State
Tree aSureI selects tha 6en0CitoriQc for Sfafea
funds, which sometimes exceed $500, 900 each,
and banks have large desire to be among
the favored few.
KICK OVER DICKINSON.
An informal conference of some Essex and
Hudson members at Jersey City followed
this on Friday evening, at which the claims
of Postmaster Dickinson for State Comp
troller were presented, and the Essex men
were told that Hudson would in turn sup
port Swain and Woolsey in return for sup
port for Dickinson. The Essex members
| thought it might be good thing until they
found that Mr. Dickinson was the Speaker
| of the so-called local option Legislature and
had exceptional prominence as a Sewel
| henchman. Enthusiasm has since been
| cooling rapidly.
The candidacy of Mr.. Dickinson is not re-
ceiyed with any fattering favor in Essex.
| In fact, it might be truthfuily said that the
reverse is far nearer the truth, as this from
| the Newark Sunday Gail viii demon
| strate:-
''Sam Dickinson, of Jersey City. is pro-
posed for State Comptroller, and an incred-
| ible report has it that some Essex Assembly,
men have been induced to say they might
! vote for him. What nonsense ''Samn is
| the Jersey City Postmaster just now. He
| was probably born an Office holder At
| least he has managed to have place at the
| public crib ever since he was heard of or
known, and though Republican in
| Democratic Jersey City, the corn and
| wine of Canaan land have never failed him.
| Once he was Assemblylnan, and became
| Speaker of the House in 1888. That was
| when the Republican party attempted suicide
with local option and other class legislation,
and went to sleep for five years. Dickinson
| was a Sewell-Pennsylvania -Railroad-boss-
| -dyed-in-the-wool henchmen, and,
when he had done what he could for his
friends in the Legislature, he was made
| Postmaster of Jersey City, giving up one or
| two other local offices he had held mean
| while. He will be put out of the postoffice
soon by a democrat, and now he bobs up for
State Office. And as hungry as ever.
USEFUL TO RAILROAD SCHEMES.
"We can imagine that man like Sam
Dickinson might be very useful to railroad
schsmers as Comptroller, and that his office
would be mighty convenient headquarters
for the railroad lobby; but he would be
most melancholy product Of the peoples
such as he, and no one in Essex but politi-
cal dunderhead would think of voting for
him for any place of public trust in the
States list OF offices
"The funny feature of Dicknson's candi-
dacy and the reported combination in his
favor is that his election would make the de-
| feat of an Essex candidate for State Treas
urer dead certainty"
| SMALLER COUNTIES COMBINING
This inclination Of the Hudson and Essex
| men to combine has aroused no end of bad
| feeling in the other counties and they are
looking around for allies to assist them in
| breaking up the dual alliance Mercer has q
candidate for State Comptroller in the per-
| son of William Hancock, Trenton capital
| ST. Several of the smaller counties have
| nlisted themselves under the Hancock BAN
er and the supporters of the Trenton men
re ready to unite in any deal which will
| olect their man. They have already sent
| Tut missionaries to ascertain the feelings of
| he Essex men on the subject and the proba-
| bilities are that a combination will be made
| between the Swain and the Hancock men
| which will place those two gentlemen in the
| offices now occupied by Mr. Gray and Gem
eral Heppenheimer.
DICKINSON WILL FIGHT.
This, however, will not be accomplished
| without bitter fight. Dickinson is an old
campaigner and was brought up in the swell
| school of politics, where he learned a trick
or two which will greatly embarrass the
Essex and Mercer amateurs
TROUBLE OVER MINOR PLACES.
There will be other combinations made
that will make it doubtful if Hudson gets
the plum it covets. The Republicans Of
Essex and Hudson want number of the
minor offices, and if they get one-haH Of
what they want they will be getting more
than their share. There may be trouble
over the minor offices, because there are so
many after them. The hard times have de-
veloped many candidates, glad to make
few hundred dollars out of the session. There
is scarcely an Assemblyman but who has q
man or two that he wants to place in posi-
tion. In Cumberland County there are, by
actual count, twelve men anxious to come to
Trenton next January.
xxkE EIIEn IAIRIn HAAO