Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1898-09-08
Republican Methods.

Republican Methods. ,
Under the above caption the Albu
querque Democrat, a paper owned anc
controlled by A. A. Grant, Il rich rail
road contractor and reputed to be il Re
publican and a goldbug of the g~oldbugs
although his paper, for the sake OF
doodle. il must be supposed, is a rank
free silver sheet, publishes the follow.
ing:
Hon, II. b. FERGUSON returned last
| nigh from Santa Fe, where he yesterday
| appeared as attorney for Dolores Rome
70, one of the commissioners of Union
county, against whom charges had been
preferred. After going carefully into
all the charges Governor Otero was
forced to admit that Mr.. Romero had
done nothing for which he conld be re-
moved. The charges were prosecuted
by Solicitor General Bartlett. There
seems to be a good deal of Republican
politics mixed up in the effort to replace
the commissioners of Union county with
men to be named by Governor Otero.
In 1896 Union county gave Delegate Fer
gusson a good majority and at the same
time elected three commissioners on a
union ticket. One of these men proved
easy to handle and a short time ago re-
signed and allowed the governor to put
a good Republican politician in his place.
| Messrs. Romero and Thomas B. James.
the two remaining commissioners, proved
less tractable and it became necessary
for a number of the Republican politi-
clans and federal o%ficeholdcrs to get
together and formulate lot of technical
charges which would afford the governor
a chance to remove them in order to
secure control of the county machinery
before the coming elections. MIR. Ro-
nero has appeared and was successfully
defended against removal by Mr.. Fer
gusson. Mr.. James has also been cited
to appear and will reach Santa Fe this
evening. His case will be looked after
by Judge Laughlin and will probably
come up tomorrow. The charges against
him are identical with those which were
preferred against Mr.. Romero, with one
important exception: the Republican
bosses claim that Mr.. James bond Is
faulty and it is upon that one fact thai
they base their hopes of being able tt
GUST him. 1t is an almost foregone con
clusion that MI. James will be arbitrari
ly removed and his place filled by some
subservient tool of the present territorial
administration. This, if accomplished
will give the machine the majority OF
the commissioners in Union county anC
will render Mr.. Romero powerless. BY
| e,,oI bnppna hIa ~otbn1c thn pnnph1inor
party of New Mexico expects to cutdowl
the Democratic majority this fall. Thu
end is not yet, however.
The article is ascribed to Delegate II
B. FERGUSON The New MEXICAN doe
not know if this is a fact. 1t prefers t.
give him the benefit of the doubt. If /
emanated from him, he made a politica
mistake, which will cost him votes an
will hurt him in the election and afte
| the election in the next session of con
gress.
The facts are simply these:
Charges were preferred by leading
citizens of Union county against County
Commissioners James and Romero; some
OF these were based upon the report of
grand jury and others upon the offcia
records of Union county.
1t was the solemn and bounden duty o
Governor OterO under the law to in
vestigate these charges. He did so in
fair, just and impartial n and dis
missed them as against Romero, simply
to be rewarded by the publication of
mean and dirty item in a Democratic
paper, charging him with bad faith ant
insinuating that he was and will be &C
tuated by unworthy political motive:
and will remove County COMMISSIONS
James whether he ought to be removed
or not.
All the appreciation Governor Otert
receives for his straightforward and i'm
partial conduct in this matter, is thu
quoted item from the columns of thu
Democrat, which contains partly a per
version of facts and partly downright
Misrepresentation and %falsehoods.
OF course the Democrat judges Gov
ernor Otero by Democratic predecessors
in office, who removed honest and eff
cient territorial and county officials
honestly elected by the people, withou'
hesitancy, but with nc warrant in law
and upon no Investigations, when it wa.
thought such action would benefit theil
party. The Democrat evidently judge!
Republican officials by the standard o.
Democratic officials, who stole legisla
lures and seated men, who were moi
elected by the people, knowing such tt
be the case.
No, ohe end is not yet as the Demo
craft and the Democratic candidates fol
Office will find out before they are two
| 49, IL,