The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1894-02-17

John y. Mckauo. tho Grayesent
Ioss. was found guilty by Brooklyn
Jury yesterday OF having last fal
ccunseIe0, induced, commanded anc
prucuied' tho inspectors OF election
10 conceal tho voting lists In Grave
end and nided and allotted them In
preventing copies being made Thit
result ia ono upon which tho pubIit
will congratulate New York, as il indi.
Gates disposition to insist upoa fair
elections. Mckane, 1t seems. is one ol
the luIGe rood Of New York politl
clans without scruple. His chief tai
ent, 1t seeris was in taking care OF the
voting lists. Grayesand mad last fnl
hardly aver 5000 Inhabitants. Yet If
Registered q 90Uvoters. The Copey,
I$lnnd district, with population o
Z COS men, women and children. regis.
tered 1895 voters anu reported | jla
votes polird. @
Naturally go largo register for so
small place excited suspicion, and
Mrkane'S political opponents tried to
get n look nv H.. They wcre prevented
from seeing lit Is alleged by Me.
kAnc's order. Some reputable friends
ct taynur. the candidate of the nupo
sitter. went one Saturday night TO get
. The fees but were arrested and
orrIsaucd rs disorderly migrants.
IN election day IN sr seeking to COPY
:" lists wero gssnultud aud the polls
we're roughrd. MckHue exhibited, in
short. all the qualities Of n successful
osS III their most brutIl aud often sivs
IolnI. hr Jury recon- mends HIN to
l!e mercy oil the court, without which
. Will Ill II Gel in this penlteatiai5'
III from two to ten Years. Justice In
as case Seems likely to get its own.
The New York Herald ia comment.
ny ON this cnso says:
Since lie conviction Of Tweed there
mas been no criminal verdict rendered
III tliis State OF more vital concern to
Ii" public lhIn that which Yesterday
toomed John y. McKane to Il felun'a
,eH.
III his masierly address to the Jury
eN,Secretnly Tracy spoke entirely
within hounds when hn dwelt upun
the enormity of IL crime against tho
Suffrage aud declared that its punish.
mHnt and prevention were essential to
the porDetudlion OF free popu ar gov.
ernment. Judge barrett has spoken
FROM the bench to the same effect
in the election fraud cases which
have been on trial before him in this
city.
! his has been tho view OF the Her.
MD IN urging that the crimes com.
mitIed by John \. Mckane touched a
vital point OF our governmental sys.
tenn and that failure 10 bring him to
Woult! be a miscarriage OF
Justice Which tho community could
not contemplate without serious
a arm.
Grave as is an ordinary crime against
10 elective franchise. Mukaue's
was worse and moro dangerous than
tLat. The common offender com mits
election fraud stel thiiy and in
ear of the law. Mekane proceed cd
Joldly and In defiance OF the law.
Nor was his an individual or isolated
oitrhch. iie set up despotism with
as dcsput. lie he'd tie town
Under hts antocratic sway and made
It's officers his lnihione. He assumed
hat an election was subject entirety
10 his pleasure ami control and re-
'ented any interference OH the part Of
candidates or the public
HIS miIlons put upon tho election
'oils the names of more voters than
he place contained inhabitants, aud
hen brutaliy assaulted and drove
rom the town law abiding citizens
who attempted to exercise their lust
lights and inspect the lists. lho cleo
Ion was held HIS IL its only one pur-
1850 were to register not the will of
no people but tile edict OF the
iesperado who held Gravesend in his
.raSp.
more llagrant outrage against
popular suffrage and the fundamental
OF our government Is not to
'e found In tue darkest annals OF the
weed regime. Even Tweed feared
he law ana sought to escape detee.
ion. Mckane did not scruple openly
o set himself above the law and bold
defy it's enforcement against his
rimes.
The conviction OF such an offender
no ordinary triumph of Justice.
'opular electious have become u farce |
nd free government failure when |
ourts and juries find themselves
owerless to punish the crimes churg- |
d against John Y McKane and his |
abilities. Failure of miscarriage OF |
lstice in case involving what this I
ne did would have been nothing
hort OF public calamity.
by tie VindlcatiOu oil the law a dan.
er to society has bsen a,erted, az
ell as an outrage against popular
uifraRe punished. Needless to say
his Is matter for congTatulation on
ne part OF all law abiding citizens.