Mexico weekly ledger., 1896-06-18
Hanna Turned Filley Down.
BIG REPUBLICANS CONFER WITH
BEN. CLARK, A DEMOCRATIC
POLITICIAN.
Filley's Fatal Interview McKinley's
Men Can No Longer Deny That
they Threw Filley Because
They Could Not
Trust Him.
From the st, Louis Republic

E1lley machine IN MISSOURI!
Are they responsible for the defeat
of Boss Filley for National Commit
teeman?
These are questions which have be-
gun to be freely asked by politicians
not only in Missouri, but from all over
the United States, who are gathered
here to take a hand in the big con-
vention, which held its first session
yesterday. Everything seems to point
to a fight all along the line on the old
bosses, and it is evidently McKinley's
intention to make his race with an en-
tirely new set of men in charge of the
Republican party all over the country.
Mark Hanna has tickled Platt and is
making every effort to put an end to
the steasy boss" rule in the Empire
State. There is nothing covert or
hidden about this fight. 1t is a square
out, open-and- above-board struggle
for the mastery, and it begins to look
as though Hanna would win, although
there is nc telling what may happen
in November.
If the Mckinley people can afford
to fight Plat they certainly can afford
to sail in and smash FIlley's machine
in this State. 1t is claimed now that
Kerens' victory over Filley in the
race for election to the National COM
mittee vas due entirely to the inter-
eannrna - HANNA Tho Pon1thTSn hao
the story from an entirely reliable
source hat a conference was held on
Sunday which was attended by several
of the most prominent men who have
been behind Kerens in this fight and
that Filley's downfall was planned and
carried into execution then and there.
Mark Hanna is said to have attended
that conference.
FILLEY's ENEMIES COMBINE.
Whether Mr.. Hanna was present or
not the Republicans of Missouri have
been given to understand that the
Mckinley people are with Kerens;
that they have no faith and are afraid
to trust him as the leader of their
forces in this State. So it is a matter
of little or no consequence whether
Mr.. Hanna actually lent his presence
to the conference OF not. The result
would have been the same whether he
attended or stayed away. Filley was
doomed and 1t is hardly possible that
anything could have been done to
save him from defeat. Matt G. Rey-
nolds, Assistant United States Attor-
ney in the Court of Claims; ID. p.
Dyer, Major John L. Bittinger, of st.
Joe, ex-Congressman Nathan Frank,
ex-Representative Morse, of Clay
County, Frank Obear and other equal
ly bitter opponents of Filley are the
men who brought about the re-elec-
ton of Kerens at a time when Filley
felt confident that all the powers of
the earth could not defeat HIM.
CoUNsELED WITH A DEMOCRAT.
The story as the Republic has it is
that while the conference was in ses-
sion Ben F. Clark, attorney, who has
an Office in the same room with Mr..
Reynolds, opened the door and walk
ed in. He had no sooner taken his
first step than he realized that he had
taken the party by surprise, and,
apologizing, started to withdraw. Mr..
Reynolds said: "Come in, Mr.. Clark"
Mr.. Clark said that he did not wish
to intrude; that he had merely come
down to the office on a little matter of
business, and would prefer to not in
terrupt them.
Somebody said, "Come in; you are
not intruding."
Clark said: "Why, l am a Demo-
crat. / have no business in there"
"But you are wanted" said Mr..
Reynolds; 1--WE need your assistance,
and would like to have your advice as
to what we should do about a certain
matter"
This assured MI. Clark, and ne
walked in and took his seat with the
others.
AS the story goes, Hanna went to
Reynolds Office in the Insurance Ex-
change building, upon the latter's in
vitation, to meet some parties who
were in position to give him absolute
information, going to show that
Filley's intentions toward Mckinley
were not the best, and that he could
not be relied upon to take care of Nc
KiuIaNfo Sntororto In Niooourf 1uri,r
the coming campaign. Filley's record
is said to have been gone over clear
back to Grant, and it establishes the
fact that he has not hesitated in at
least three conventions to disobey the
instructions of the State convention
that elected him. The notable cases
were when he threw Sherman and
went over to Alger, and when he re-
fused to vote for Harrison because he
did not get the st. Louis Post Office.
FILLEY DARE NOT DESERT.
Then the question arose as to
whether it would be a dangerous mat
ter to pass FilIey up. The strength of
HE vi SdulAdtioI III nv DIabc Woo uAS
cussed, and the possibility of his being
able to carry Missouri against the Re-
publican party was gone over. The
stand was taken that the Filley organ
ization in Missouri had not the real
strength that is attributed to it, and
that the blow and buster and norm
blowing and that sort of thing, while
it attracted the attention of the casual
observer, does not really constitute
strength. 1t was further urged that
his followers were the toughest of all
the Republicans.
In order to demonstrate as conelus-
lively as possible that Filiey is not the
entire Republican party in Missouri
and that in reality his strength de-
pended almost entirely upon his al
legiance to Mckinley, a number of
prominent Republicans were sent for
one by one and their opinions asked
on the subject. All agreed thatif Filley
should come ont against Mckinley he
would have little more than q corpor- |
ala guard at his back that his chief
lieutenant, Mr.. Brownell, is an earnest
and ardent supporter of Mckinley, |
and that If he could be induced to be-