Omaha daily bee., 1897-08-28
UNITED AGAINST THE RING
Anti-kschine Delegates Hold Rousing
Meeting and Denounce Herdman Gang.
SOME SENSATIONAL cHAss-s ARE MADE
one Machine Leader Accused of
Accepting Bribe to Defeat
Measure TO Which HIS
Party was Pledged.

Judging from the enthusiastic meeting OF
the ant-Herdman delegates to the county
convention held last night in Arlington hall.
the attempts Of the Herdmaa gang to buy
over or club into lire the opposition which
won in the primaries Thursday. had no, hesu
very successful.
The meeting was presided over by Fred
II. Cosgrove and all Of the sixty-four dele
gates present pledged themselves TO a u1ited
effort to overthrow ring rule in the local
democracy. Not only were the speeches
made strong in denounciag the Herdmaa-
Gallagher machine but a number OF charges
were made against the machine leaders
which are sensational in the extreme.
Register Of Deeds Peter Elsasser In a ring
lag speech said that he would insist upon
Robert z. Lee Herdman accounting for the
money which had been placed In his hands
for the conduct OF last falls campaign, for
which as yet he had rendered 40 account
He charged upon his leadership the dem0ral-
ization in the democratic ranks and promised
to demand Herdman's resignation, so that be
should 10 longer disgrace the democratic
party in this city and county.
Ex-Councilman T. J. Flynn accused the
Herdmsn gang OF conniving al fraud at the
Second ward primaries and preventing a fair
count in all contested wards. He wanted
new county central committee with the
exclusion of the entire rotten gang that
trained in Herdmans wake.
John Reagan of the Fifth ward denounced
Herdman and his followers in unsparing
terms and accused them OF trying to force
Rosewaters name into the democratic fight
against ring rule to mislead the public ana
cover up Sheir own corrupt politics, which
he scored in emphatic language.
CHARGES OF BRIBERY.
J. J. O'Connor took occasion to dsnounce
the high-handed proceedings Of the Heriman
crowd at the democratic primaries of Thurs
day. He SAID he would make a statement
of the facts only as he himself knew them
At the primaries in the Seventh ward
twenty-one Illegal votes were stuffed into the
ballot box before his very eyes, and Nr
OConnor asserted that he had other wit
nesses who would bear him out. The same
ring. he said, went down to Lincoln last win
ter and betrayed the trust of the democratic
party. One Of their representatives, had ac-
cepted a check for 800 to kill the bill max
ing the clerk Of the district court OF Douglas
county sslaried office, which democratic
candidates were pledged by their platform
TO exert their utmost efforts to pass. In
substantation OF this charge he said he
knew and could name the parties in Omaha
who have the check in their possession to-
day.
Continuing. he said that on Tuesday night
last Ian tfOIil. notorious fterunldn Strlk or,
came to him and agreed to divide the Fourth
ward delegation even. After pledging him
self to the agreement, and having the proper
number Of names signed, Honin, before fl
ing the petition. struck out the five names
put on by Mr.. OConnor, and substituted men
controlled by Hsrdman. Now, gentlemen.
! is not that ring rule?" asked Mr. O'Connor
This ring has had the democratic party by
the throat VIII you come to its rescue
Wednesday evening Con Gallagher came TO
me and told me that his friends were on both
sides Of this controversy, and as for me
Chief-elect Gallagher said: I have been ap-
| pointed. My bond has been confirmed, and
now I am not worrying. You can depSd
upon me not taking sides in the fight But
now We see the entire police used by the
ring to continue itself in power. 1t remains
for US to turn the ringsters out"
Other rousing speeches were made by Del
| egates Hockworth, Gus Carey, Dan Butler
Walter Noise and Tom Lee, sll expressing
their condemnation of the methods OF the
Herdman ring and urging the delegates to
make clean sweep Of the Herdman- Howell
Gallagher combination