Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1894-11-08
TANMANY SWANPED
Great Political Upheaval
in New York City.

! Thousand People Unable To Vote
Dissatisfaction with the Ballot
Law-What Dir. Parkhurst Says.
New York, Nov. THE election
was remarkable for the general quie-
tude that prevailed in the city despite
the intense party feeling that ran with
great flerceness in every district from
the Battery to Spuyten Duyvil. With
the exception of a few ordinary en-
counters there was no happenings that
could be called riotous in any section.
tour of the districts by close OBJ
server resulted in no discoveries that
We're more striking than the extraor-
dinary serious determined mood the
average voter seemed to be in. Men
who never dream of taking a break
fast before o'clock in the morning
were everywhere at the polls long be-
! fore they were legally open for voters
They stood in the chilly air reading
| their papers, calmly waiting till the
| time came for business to begin. In
| the big districts on the west side
| there were long lines of men who stood
| for hours without being able to get
| anywhere near the polls till two or
three hours after they had got a place
in the single files on the sidewalk At
| one time in some of the brown stone
districts where the republican strength
| Is noted many of the voters became
| suspicious as to the real cause of the
slow movement ahead of them and at
the ballot boxes, and the feeling grew
strong that the delay was caused by
the malicious inactivity" of their enc
mics. In many instances there was
/ ha ctg 60, ii.
ton and when it became apparent to
the inspectors and the watchers that
too much time was being taken up by
the "slow coaches" there was cry
| get move on you" and things be-
| came more rustling.
In the 2lst assembly district there
was much embarrassment by long de-
lays in some of the election districts
but 1t was in large part due to the
inethciency of the inspectors and the
clerks as well as the nervousness and
| ratified condition of some of the voters
when they got a bigger pile of ballots
than they knew how to handle with
proper care. They lost time in getting
| them in order in the boxes, and it was
really laughable to see men who never
lose their nerve in a Wall street panic
emerge from the boxes with the bal
| lots in tangle and looking as If they
! had lost their senses entirely. The
release from the misery of the moment
was always speedy return to the box
after having got advice from many
quarters, official and otherwise
However, there was really in many
districts more than amusement for
the lockers on in Venice" There was
actual disfranchisement in hundreds
OF cases in various districts. Unfor-
tunate fellows, who because of their
illiteracy, and who were allowed no
| guide posts behind the screens, were
unable to make ballot ends meet le-
| gally and had to give up the job fin
ally, were very many. But they were
not the only men who had gone to the
trouble" of being registered and lost
their vote.
The cause of 1t all was unquestion-
ably the lack of booths 1t is true
that the law says there has to be
a booth for every so voters, and that
in several districts extra booths were
| quickly put in place the night before
election day; but all that did not altar
| the fact that hundreds of men in the
city stood in line and had finally to
see the polls close in their faces be
| fore they could reach the ballot boxes.
!
one election district delayed in line
| for hours before the fatal 4 o'clock
came along there would have been a
| riot in many quarters. AS it is, 1t is
generally believed that taking all the
election districts in a bunch the dis
| reimbursement because of the time
taken by SLOW coaches" in fix
ing their ballots and the lack of the
| necessary number of booths to ac-
commodate the tremendous outpour-
ing of voters, numbered at least 60, O00
| The inspectors in some of the districts
were in full sympathy with the men
| far back in line when the hands of the
clock neared the hour of 4, but they
assert that they were not to blame,
that the internal ballot system" was
at the bottom of the whole lamenable
business and the booths had little to
do with the condition of affairs in GER
tain quarters.
1t was evident as the counting of
votes began that the result was an
overwhelming defeat for Tammany
Hall.
Hugh j. Grant entered the office of
Police Commissioner Murray at police
headquarters at s p. m. Mayor-elect
Strong, with ex-Collector Joel B.
Ehrhart and number of republicans,
were present. Ex-Mayor Grant, ad-
vancing toward the mayor elect, ex-
tended his hand, which Mr.. Strong
grasped heartily, Mr. Grant said:
'I wish to congratulate you, Mr..
Strong, and wish you all possible sue
cess as mayor of New York city.
felt it my duty to tell you this"
Mr.. Strong seemed very much graft
fed with Mr. Grants graceful act. and
replied;
II thank ycu, sir, very much"
Mr.. Grant then shook hands with all
those present and withdrew.
DR.. Parkhurst came into the COM
mittee of seventy headquarters and
was Immediately surrounded and con-
graduated by those present. DR.. Park
hurst said This victory signifies
first that the people are getting their
eyes open and that their consciences
are awake. In the second place that
although our American Institutions
were put to a severe test the better
element has prevailed and good munich