Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1897-10-06
CRIMES OF '85.
Election Frauds and Forgeries
In McLean's Interest.
THE STORY TERSELY TOLD.
The Cincinnati Editors Early At
tempt to Become a Senator.
TELL TALE MINES" AND "FIVES."
Allen O'Mysrs Connects His Boss Name
With Three Crimes-Their
History.
ZE2Spsas,l.s ..I~y
TELL TALE MINES" AND "FIVES.

Allen o. Myers. who is now Nc
Leans confidential man at Demo-
cratic headquarters in Columbus, writes
| the following in his sNool, Bosses and
Boodle," concerning the election frauds
in Cincinnati and Columbus in 1885.
"The most outrageous frauds had
| been committed in Cincinnati and
were charged to Mr.. John r. Mclean,
and when the legislature met, the Nc
Lean delegation from Hamilton coun-
ty was promptly unseated in the house
and later the same was done in the
senate.
after the election Tin Columbus)
and before the count was completed,
the official returns were taken out of
the safe on Sunday and a number of
votes, over 200, were added to those
recorded as having been cast for the
Democratic candidates. The
forgery in Columbus was wrongfully
laid at the door of Mr.. John r. Nc
Lean"
Thus does Myers connect with elec-
ton crimes of 1885 the man who is
again trying to climb into the United
States senate. Myers says that Nc
Lean believes every man has his
price" when he, Mclean, can get or
has got what he wants, he pays for it
promptly and literally"
Now, what were the details of the
crimes of 1885, by which John r. Nc
Lean was to profit to the extent of be-
ing sent to the United States senate il
those crimes remained undetected? 1t
Is certainly pertinent to inquire into
the record of such a man and lay be.
fore the people the details of any
crimes with which his name has been
associated and for whom very weak de-
tense is made by his present manager.
The following from the Cincinnati
Commercial-Gazette of November IA
1885, gives the details of these two
crimes, by which Mclean at that time
hoped to reach the senate:
A TALE OF Two CITIES.
Cincinnati and Columbus are rivals
In the fame that arises from the for
gerry of election returns, and it is a
coincidence that the competition is in
the alteration Of figures in the total
and the addition of tallies so as to in
crease the Democratic vote by hun
dreds. The Cincinnati forgery was un-
doubtedly perpetrated on the night of
the election; the Columbus forgery not
until few days later.
During the time that elapsed be-
tween the commission of the two for
geries a number Of Democratic states
men from Cincinnati had visited Co.
lumbus, among them Mr.. Cogan and
Mr.. Alex. Sands, the proprietor of the
Sun, who made hasty survey OF the
field, carrying information to and
from the Democratic state committee.
But they, of course, did not find out
anything about the fine work with a
pen. The two forgeries looked like
parts of the same game, and might
well have been suggested by the same
mind. They are alike in that they
both raise the figure in the hundreds
place to one of higher denomination.
In the Cincinnati forgery was rails
ed to nine; in the Columbus forgery
2 was raised to 5-a form of forgery
that in their general character suggest
the same lineage, though brought into
life by different hands.
On the night of the election, while
the count was in progress, prominent
Democratic officials kept watch in Re.
publican precincts, and as soon as the
result could be approxlmated it was
conveyed to headquarters, and orders
were given out for the manipulation of
returns in Democratic precincts. To
make this possible, the election boards
in several precincts were composed en-.
tirely of Democrats. This was the
case in the Fourth ward, Precinct A..
1t is this precinct whose returns show
the forgery of into a 8, but at what
hour and by whom has not been es-
tablished.
| Evidently 1t was supposed tnat when
over one hundred and forty Republi.
can ballots had been thrown away or
! destroyed, and Democratic ballots had
! Deel ouDSllIuISui NuuS luCItdoluS JHe
anticipated Democratic majority by 2SC
votes, a sufficiently gross fraud had
been perpetrated in the name OF De
mocracy, and the tallies and total!
were made up, giving the Democratic
candidates 726 and the Republican can
didates 48 votes. But after the book
had been made up with these tallie
and totals and signed by the judges
and clerks, 1t was discovered that ad
ditional Democratic votes were need
ed. AS to the returns from Fourth
ward, Precinct A, there was one Of tw'
things to be done-raise 726 to 1.726 o.
to 926. The former was too gross |
fraud even for Gang Democrats at Gin
cinnati's high water mark Of fraud. 81
the was made into a 8 in bunglini
way, and two hundred tallies were add