Kansas City daily journal., 1896-10-19
TOLD BY THOMAS J. cANNY.
How the Ballot Box In the Notorious
Fifty-second Precinct Was Stuffed
Two Years Ago.

Fifty-second Precinct Was Stuffed
Two Years Ago.
While the same old gang bosses persist
in taking charge of the campaigns of the
Democratic party of Kansas City and Jack
son county, the record made by them in the
line of padding the registration lists, stuff
fing ballot boxes. forging returns. herding
hundreds of repeaters at the polls and ap-
pointing tkieving judges and clerks will be
of interest to all honest citizens, here and
elsewhere.
The testimony given in the Van Horn
Tarsney contest tells the whole story Of the
election robbery two years ago. Thomas
]. Canny was a judge in the notorious
Fifty-second precinct, better known as the
Shannon precinct" After telling of his
appointment. Canny said that he went to
the home of Ed Findley the Sunday even
ing preceding the election in November,
1884, in response to message from Findley.
He was asked by Mr.. George A. Neal, who
was one of the attorneys for the contestant,
to state the conversation he had with
Findley. He replied:
well, Ed said he had me appointed
judge of election"
well. what old he say about it,"
He said that Owsley and Johnny
O'Neill and Tommy MCGEE and himself
had fixed it all up that Sunday afternoon
down at OReilley's drug store, between
Ninth and Tenth, on Main street. He said
that they had fixed 1t all up and agreed on
it that should be a judge of election; and
he went on and said: Johnny O'Neill Is a
good friend of yours, and he said, Tommy
MCGEE is a good friend of yours. and they
have decided that you are good man for
the place. and he said. Will you act
Judge Of election?" and said, Yes don't
remember, of course, the exact, precise
language that was used, but that is about
as near as can remember. Well, after he
told me this, I think it was. he said, I
brought up the Shannon boys and l put
them in the position they are in in this
city, That, 1 think, is about the words
he used in reference to that matter"
In response to another question as to the
conversation with Findley, Canny con-
tinued:
"He F'indley) said. we can get lots Of
cheap guys to act as judges and clerks of
election. and we don't want that kind Of
men; and said he, If you will go over
there on election day and act as judge Of
election, Johnny O'Neill says he may have
place for you in his Office, but If he has
not a place for you in his office. he will
see that you get a job paying SIPS MONTH
. =. He said, We going to have
| 1900 majority in the Second ward. 700 from
| the First ward, and we are going to carry
| this ward (meaning the Ninth), and the
boys will put up 275 majority in this pre-
cinct (mean1ng the t1fty-Second precinCt).
| and he said, Alexander Mckinney would
| be out in the Fifty-seventh precinct, and
| he would take care of that all right; and
1 said, is that the same Mckinney who
was down with Owsley in the recorders 8
| Office? and he said, That is the same man;
he is with US, and he is going to take care
| of the Fffty-seventh precinct and he said,
| You go down tomorrow at 10 o'clock to
| Owsley's Office and be sworn in, and after
you are sworn in, go over to Christie's
and see me-; and so on Monday morning
| went down and was sworn in
| well, now, wait minute: was there
anything said about what political party
you should representa-
"oh. yes; he asked me If I wanted to go
| in as Democrat or a Republican, and
| told him I would like to go in as voted,
and did not know whether could go in
| as a Democrat or Republican. I know
that was appointed as judge simply, and
| that is all 1 know about the political COM
| plexion of it,
Canny was asked who he had seen in the
! polling booth while the voting was going
| on and the ballots were being counted. He
| said: IT had seen Findley in there and Joe
| Shannon, and l did not think thaukt was
| right but this that I refer to now, about
going to dinner, is the first marked irregu-
| larity that I noticed. Well, when told
| them that wanted to go to dinner, and
| they agreed to 1t, I went to dinner. live
| only a short distance from the polling
| booth and was not gone very long-only
about forty minutes, possibly not that long
| but when came back they had lis DEM
| ocratic ballots all prepared-well, they were
not all Of them prepared, but the largest