The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-02-16
ANY ONE WANT AN IRON cAaEp
John I. Davenport's old Pen is For
Sale, Cheap.

Now that John l. Davenport has lost
the lucrative post of chief supervisor of
elections and been deprived of the de-
lightful pastime of locking up scores of
democrats on election days until the
closing of the polls, great interest is man
Tested in the question, What will become
of the iron cage2
Nobody cares the value a two penny
nail what becomes of John l. Davenport,
now that he no longer can disgrace n
national election in this city, but the iron
cage has peculiar and fascinating inter-
est TO thousands of people, mauy of whom
first experienced behind its bars the pecu-
liar sensation of being prisoner.
The iron cage has a history. 1t was
John /. Davenport's little dungeon-not
so little, either-where on election days
he confined democratic votes on the re-
diculous pretext that they were attempt
ing to vote Illegally. The closer the cleo
tion contest, the greater John /. Daven-
ports zeal and the more indignant and
protesting democrats he placed within
the iron cage.
Peculiarly, after the polls had been
closed, John 1. Davenport invariably dis
covered that his prisoners had been
leased, after John l. Davenport's outrag-
eous interference had lessene1 the demo-
cratic vote.
1t is some years since the iron cage was
used The bars and locks are now cover
ed with rust, but is still kept in its old
place on the fourth floor OF the post Office
building seldom visited, and carefully
screened from the public eye.
Probably IL will never again be used as
a prison--certainly not by John Intimi-
dating Davenport-and Postmaster Day
ton, as custodian of the building, wishes
10 get rid of it. He has had several offers
already
One is from an enterprising museum
manager, who is impressed with the fact
that he needs TO add to his curio hall
something that will excite and and won
der and impress public already satiated
with all kinds of evidences Of barbarity
and savagery.
The manager writes that IL he can Sc
cure John l. Davenport's iron cage as an
object lesson of what was possible in the
way of infamous and outrageous infringe
ment on the rights of peaceable and law
abiding democratic voters by despica-
BILE political brigand, his fortune will be
made.
The Society Of Tammany Is extremely
anxious TO add the iron cage TO its cOllec-
tion of barbarous and curious relics 1t
already has tepee where medicine men,
centuries ago. used TO conhne scofers of
other tribes, and a stake to which the
warriors used 70 bind their enemies,
throw tomahawks at their bodies, and
pay other similar delicate attentions. The
only thing they lack TO make their collec-
ton complete is the iron cage,
The Smithsonian Institution, In Wash
ington, IL is understood, wants 10 add the
iron cage TO its collection Of Chinese
cages. They have in Washington a num-
Der Of bamboo cages, In which, hundreds
Of years ago, individuals holding n
slightly different political belief from
petty mandarins were carefully tied,
weighed with stones. and dropped into
deep water. The iron cage, IL Is urged,
would be a fitting relic 10 add 10 the col
lection. II Il can be secured, the collec-
ton will b. grouped under the title