The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-13
The Greater Number of Mu-
nicipal Offices Roundly
Scored.
DIVES AND SOCIAL EVILS.
Engineer Holmes and the County
Clerk Object-Juryman
Mayer Talks.


day afternoon. The document is an ex-
haustive review of municipal affairs, and
embraces every Office and department in
the City, praising few, but severely
censuring the majority.
Judge Hebbard thanked the jury for its
faithful work, dwelling at length on the
long session and consequent neglect of
business and home associations. The jury
was then dismissed, and at the same time
excused from jury duty of any kind for a
period of twelve months.
The report presented to Judge Hebbard
was not unanimous, though it was practi-
cally so. Juryman II. Mayer did not like
certain features in it, and at the last
moment refused to affix his signature. The
report, as fled with Judge Hebbard yester-
day, is substantially as follows:
SAN Francisco, June 10, 1895.
Honorable J. c. B. Hebbdrd, Acting Presiding
Judge Of the Superior Court Of the City and
County Of San Francisco:
SIR: The members of the Grand jury, i'm
paneled by you December IA, 1894, respect
fully submit the following report
Election Frauds.
were taken up in the consideration of the
frauds at the election last fall. Primarily, the
cause OF all the trouble has been in the charac-
ter OF the officers chosen, and for that the
Board of Election Commissioners are to blame
Instead of commencing the work early in the
year, and taking time to get honest and eapa-
BILE citizens, the work of selection had been de-
layed until the two months prior to the cleo
ton, and then the lists of the County Commit
tee and of Registrar, who in the past had
been appointed because his principal oualif-
cation had been TO suggle with the election re-
turns, were taken as the official lists.
The Mayor made an effort to have officers
oil ff-n0fs IONA
istrar Evans defed the power of the Election
Commissioners and appointed the men on the
list furnished by the political bosses.
The returns were juggled with and kent
back in manner which was very suspicious
10 say the least; but the boldest attempt was
made when the Registrar refused to forward
the certified returns of the Governors vote to
Sacramento; and he did not reeede from his
position until Investigated by Mayor Ebert
and committee from the Grand Jury 1t is to
be hoped that the Non-Partisan Election Com
mission which is to be appointed by Mayor
Sutro in July will deal with the question OF
election officers in business-hke manner and
appoint as members of the various election
boards the substantial citizens and taxpayers
instead OF the pothouse politicians and primary
election ballot-box suffers.
If the Judges OF the Superior Court would Co
operate with the Election Commissioners and
hold forth as an inducement for honest and
capable men TO serve on an election board ex-
emption from jury duty for the subsequent
year, competent boards could be got to serve
and the expenses of the City would be mate
u,
Bile men, who would remain sober, could do
the work in about half the time.
During the examination of this body into the
frauds in the different precincts, the officers
in a majority OF the cases, were found to be
lamentably ignorant, and did not seem, in
very many instances, to be alive to the duties
of their positions.
They worked in two shifts, and both were
positive that the frauds were not perpetrated
during the time they were on duty With
twelve men doing duty as election officers
PQPh swearing that he had EnOu1q6 doc nf
the frauds, and unable even to surmise how it
had been done, the difficulty under which this
body labored must be apparent.
However, in several instances, we succeeded
in obtaining evidences OF fraud, the most
notable one being the Fourth Precinct of the
Twenty-eighth Assembly District. There we
County Clerk showed that eighty-seven votes
had been stolen from one candidate and given
TO another; and, further, that persons directly
interested in the successful candidate for
County Clerk, and not members Of the election
board, had hustled the regularly appointed
election officers out of the booth and had taken
their places and counted the votes
Indictments were returned, and the Or and
Jury had performed IFS duty.
The presiding Judge OF the Superior Court as
signed the cases of the two most directly in
terested in the frauds, one of whom had been
rewarded by deputyship in the County Clerks
ONCE to Judge Bahrs, who had just been
the election, should not have tried election
fraud cases. a demurrer to the Indictment was
sustained, and the doctrine was judieally put
forth that person not regularly sworn officer
of election could perpetrate almost any fraud
and he could not be punished. Feeling that
this was most fragrant case of law-breaking,
and that 1t violated one of the fundamental
principles of our Government, the Jury returned
another indictment, and it was assigned to an
other department. What the influence was
which caused Judge Belcher to dismiss it with
out hearing any of the evidence cannot be dis
covered, but it would certainly appear by the
contlnuances which are granted in election
q S1o
power which seems to be effective enough to
almost paralyZe the courts.
Another branch of election frauds in which
this body took considerable interest was the
cases OF hotel stuffing, in which Steinberger, a
deputy registrar, took a prominent part. He
was indicted with his accomplish Cohen, and
their cases were assigned to Judge WaIlace's
department. There political pull or outside
interference did not seem to work, the indict-
ments were held to be good, aud the persons
charged were found guilty. Several attempts
were made to obtain q confession from Stein
berger, and two or three times, through the eff
forts of his friends, he was on the point of tell
were perpetrated; but at the last moment, on
q promise of reliefto come from the Supreme
Court, and that he would be admitted to bail
and the cases would be allowed TO drag until
they had been forgotten, ne refused to make
the confession. Singular to relate, about two
s Se
application for bail was made to Judge Wal
lace. representative of the District Attor-
neyS ONCE appeared Wiling 10 dllOW COnell,
the accomplice of Steinberger, to be admitted
TO bail in the sum of $4,000, and the applica-
ton was taken under consideration by Judge
Wallace. The matter was brought to the at
tention of the Grand Jury, and this body re-
quested Mr.. Barnes to resist the application to
admit TO bail.
The knowledge of Steinberger as to what the
Supreme Courts action would be might be
only coincidence, but it is one which appears
TO be rather singular. 1t is fact which has
come to the notice of this jury that person
who had been convicted of crime in 1888
was released on a writ of probable cause issued
by the Supreme Court, and he is still under
bonds. His case has neither been dismissed
nor retired. With this case in mind it can be
readily understood how the cases OF Stein
berger ana Cohen, once they were admitted to
bail, might be allowed to run on for years.
OF course, such people are only the tools of
crafty masters, who manipulate elections and
thwart the will OF the people, but they do their
work so carefully and seemingly have such
great influence in the courts that it is an i'm
possibility 10 catch them. Their tools know or
are eyldently satisfied with the representations
OF such influence, for they would rather suffer
the disgrace OF an Indictment than give away
any of their superiors.
We had much TO satisfy us that the bosses
visited various booths in different parts of the
City after the polls had closed, but we were
unable to obtain sufficient evidence on which
to base an Indictment. 1t also seems a pity
that fhe dunes of such men should en-,