The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-11-01
BURNS AND EVANS
Their Brace Game for
Voters to Buck.
THEY WORK 1T SMOOTHLY.
One at the Hall and the Other
at the Booths.
THE ELECTION BOARD HELPLESS.
Completely Headed off by the Reg
istrar-Po!icemen i'm the Twenty
Fourth Senatorial District.

the purging of The rolls of their 5000
suffers.
A booth had been put up on hill at the
northern end of Larkin street, and Regis
trar Evans had it moved down to the base
of the elevation. Some voters who live on
the heights complained that they would
have to climb down the hill and then
climb back again if they would cast their
ballots. Registrar Evans was hauled up
on this complaint, and very plausibly said
that il would be as hard on the voters at
the bottom of the hill to crawl up and then
down as 1t would be for others to reverse
the OperatloD.
Then there followed a desultory dis
cusson, while the golden minutes flew and
the suffers walked calmly about the city
and promised their votes to innumerable
candidates.
Desult1ry discussions are the thief of
time. The proceedings of The commission
are full of them. They serve all the pur-
poses Of prOcrastination and are the bull
wark of illegality, which purisss III vain
attempt to storm.
In fact, the commission is making no
Roadway. Registrar Evans is the master
of the situation, and against anything saw
orlng OF fairness he is adamant. be is
making a name, and '-Ph9bus, what a
name!' He will go down TO municipal
political history as the arch cOnsDirator
against a fair ballot. He is working for
bro her-iu-law Dan Burns anu will be re.
warded by him In the event OF success. In
turn brother-in-law Burns is working for
The Southern Pacific Railroad and will be
rewarded by il.
There are 5000 suffers on the rolls. Nom
| Partisans and Democrats are praying that
they be taken off. The way TO take them
off is to cite those WHO are believed to be
lforr 1t-r orTis of,h hnt- faI IN re-
spond aud 10 prove their right to vote 10
| blot their names from the lists.
The Election Commissioners have Or
| dered the Registrar 10 issue the citation S,
| and provided him with twenty men, ten
! Democrats and Ten Republicans, to do the
work. lie says he Is issuing 800 citations
! a day. In response there came before the
| Commissioners good men who have lived
| and voted in this city many years. They
! furnish their proofs. which are heard be-
tween the desuitOry discussions of the
/ hoard, at the cost of many hours Of valu-
able time. Ne suffers appear.
The board grows impatient. why is
| it that none but first citizens come before
us?" they ask.
The Registrar smiles and doesn't ans wer
the QuesIion-says lie doesn't know.
j. W. Sweeney, one of the ten Demo-
Gratis employed by the Registrar, reports
! to the board that ne has nb work TO do.
"Why Is that? There are 5000 suffers
OH the roll, and you are one of the men
appointed to cite them"
Don't know" says Sweeney. 81 re-
| port for duty every day. aud Mr.. Filz-
gerald tells me there is nothing for me to
do"
Fitzgerald! Bob Fitzgerald this is. An
other name TO go on the galaxy of stars
in the Registrars office. Bob Fitzgerald.
who used to pull on the lower end of Chris
Buckley's leading string Bob Fitzgerald,
the blind mans guide, one OF the earliest
OF the Buckley l,mb<, now grown into a
Burns sheep. Yes, Bob's name has been
added to those OF Ray Falk, George Lewis
and Harry Barron, who was once di.-
charged by Street Superintendent Ash.
worth in connection with the mysterious
disappearance of large quantity of basalt
blocks. Fitzgerald has charge of the H.
formation Bureau in the Registrars office
1t is his duty TO tell voters what to do, and
incidentally to send out the men appointed
20 serve citations.
"Why is it that Mr.. FiZgerald has no
citations to give this Democratic employe
of the Registrar? ?" asks the beard.
Don't Know" says Evans.
"Call in FitZ,erald."
The Registrar sends for Bah and the
| messenger reports that the head of the In
| formation Bureau is ''not in the office at
present" A desultory discussion follows
and results in nothing. Fitzgerald never
appears before the board 10 give the de-
sired information and the matter is
| dropped.
And this is the way the rolls are being
| purged of suffers. In few days, pro b.
! ably on Saturday, the books will have to
| be packed preparatory 10 being sent out to
the booths. Practically nothing will have
| been accomplished.
| But Sweeney finally got something to do.
1t was too awkward to keep him longer 10
! idleness. So he was given some citations.
and he went tn several ludging-houses in
| the vicinity of Third and Howard stree Is
which are known To be full of suffers.
| He had two citations at the Yolo House
! Both the men were legitimate voters. II
| was tho same way at the Anita. For the
! scores of men who have recently moved
into these houses there were no citations
| 1t was the same story at the BogIe House.
The Democrat had been sent on FOOLS
GRAND.
1t is impossible for him to accomplish
ANYTHING under the Registrars direction
Over 1000 suffers will remain on the rol
in the Twenty-fourth Senatorial District
where Jerry Mahoney is running for Sen.
atnr. Brother-iD-law Burns police officer
stationed in that district carry Mahoney':
election cards. A large number of mer
who should long ago have been "vagged'
in this district have recently been "stooC
up by policemen. That is to say police
| men have gone after these men and sale
Il want you for vagraucy." The jai
stares the wretches in the face, and The
burning question is how to avoid il. Why
after all the thing is easy. "Nahoney I,
running for Senate in this district. Hell
get me out and I'll promise to vote for him
Mahonry is Burns right bower. Burns il
Police Comm Issioner"
It's no trick at all for Mahoney to gran
liberty to these men. The promises ar,
| given. The men are released, and they
sing the praises of Mahoney and will vot,
for him at the polls. A dozen active Pc
lice officers can get lot Of votes tha
| way.
The police are an awful menace to thu
fairness of this election. Ii is clear tina
the commission will do nothing. Mayo
| Ebert Is powerless. He said yesterday
IL never felt so helpless in my life." Tn,
only hope left is to arrest the suffers a
the polls. How is this going to be done
The police are the natural agents for thi
work. They should serve the warrants
They may do it II they want to; they ma,
not If they see fit to overlook an offender
Then the only other recourse is to havl
deputies of the Sheriff serve the warrants
The force is entirely inadequate TO tn,
handling OF 5000 suffers. 1t would bi
necessary for the Sheriff 10 appoint so
deputies for this duty, and he probabl,
will not do it. The Ncn-PartisaBs ant
the Democrats will have to depend on thu
police. anu as the police have TO depend
for living on the Police Commission. tn