New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-08-16
SHAMEFUL WORK IN ONEIDA COUNTY

CORRlPT METHODS or THE MACHINE IN ITS
DESPERATE EFFORTS TO WIN.
To the Editor OF The Tribune.
Sir: The primaries held in Oneida County on the
18th were in utter disregard Of the Law ana were
bare-faced open violation Of the rights of the peope
to be heard against the machine
An inspection Of the pay-rols OF the canal. which
will be published later shows an unusual necessity
for just where the machine needed
workers In Oneida County 200 extra men receiver
places The pay of sxty-eight of them Is s''4- Il
month. These men were put on simply TO s'rehs'he"
the machine number of them hod slnecureS'
Some of the Aldermen Of the city Of Utica are car
ried as watchers the canal at $50 month some
are ex-convicts which fact should dsqualiiy them
from holding office under the State Many are Denio-
Gratis, showing the same combination between the
machine and the Democracy that was exposed III
New-York City b. the Committee Of Twenty-Five.
great many of them ex-saloonkeepers. friends OIL
the notorious Dave" Disher. All pals Of Tom
Wheeler whose record is 50 notorious that Governor
Merton would not appoint MIN superintendent or
Buildings Two State tied up in Rome
the day of the primaries and 1t is rumored that their
pay-rolls were largely increased. The State money
has been squandored 10 aid the machine. The
farmers had been promised that their field stone
would be purchased for canal walls but this was
gold brick" il Is well known that only quarry
stone Is available for this purpose and that the work
Is let by contract
but all these shameless preparations tand the num-
dredth part has not been told eclipsed by the
methods employed the primaries. Watchers GER
tncdtes were regularly served the polling officers
ana utterly disTegarded. and in some instances the
watchers were forcbly elected, with the remark that
the machine was running things In other places
votes were taken and torn up when the person pre-
seniing them was recognized anti-machne
man. In some wards where watchers were not al
IOWeu ana anii-machine men were not permitted TO
vote, separate caucuses were held. The machine
nounced that they could send watchers.
In the Fourth Ward. WAcIe the machine thought
thcy had things their OWE way and would have the
were outwitted and when they that they must
play fali, the machine, under the direction Of
Tom Wheeler, VINO riding around in a buggy
directing things. bOtel and held separate caucus
IT was only through great effort the part OF anti
machine leaders that blood was not shed pentifully
The worst feature OF this whole business is
that affects the individual rights of all. 1t Is the
rock on which the li machine struck and sunk, the
use OF the bench for political purposes. one of the
City Judges and the Coroner We're candidates, and
working hard their ward caucuses for the ma
chine IT open boast OF the machine that
the Judge was with them and that would give them
immunity from punishment, even If they were ar
rested.
In Rome the sight was presented Of a Supreme
Court Judge running around I'm his shirsleeves
peddling ballots for the machine, even then ne
defeated by lg1 TO 20 in his ward The peoples
only hope and chance for redress Is at the polls In
November. and in Oneida County there will be such
a pOllei against the machine and its candidates
will wipe them out of existence The machine
arc in desperate straits. and have resorted 10 every
method to keep their men in line. But the hand
writing is seen on the wall and they cannot get
away from IT, REPUBLICAN.
Utica y y August H. 1896