The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-01-10


improve il. The trap was act for the op-
70 ,ition and worked through ollie sf the
members OF the combine wn.t Is ttA Ing
to get away from Senator Hanna. Some
of The opposition kept trying to get an
audience with this member until 1t was
decided to accommodate them. Accord
ingly, an interview was arranged
in certain room in GER
tain hotel, but in advance the precaution
had been taken by members to conceal a
stenographer in the room, who took down
every word of the interview an impor-
tant part of which was an offer of $o,OO0
in cash made to the member If he would
vote against Senator Hanna. Just what
use will be made of the stenographer s
notes will be governed by the course OF
the anti-Hanna people.
1t is stated on good authority that the
opposition threatened soon after their Or
ganization to make a sensational publ
cation about the grand jury being called
upon to investigate the action OF several
workers for Senator Hanna. At any rate
there has been nothing said about the
grand jury's work since last Wednes-
day.
The notes of the secret stenographer
have been written out, and they comprise
several pages of matter that is in the pos
session of a very prominent Republican.
The two men who are accused OF oner-
ing the 5000 are as we'll known in Ohio
politics as either the senator or the jun
ior senator or the governor. One of them
holds an important state office, and the
other has been an important official In
this city.
These two prominent workers against
Senator Hanna were not the ones in the
room with the member of the legislature
and his concealed stenographer, but they
sent their man to the legislators room
an, lyA Atxrt11 u
who authorized the offer the names or
these parties were named as the author
of the offer of $1,000
The Democratic steering committee re-
ported to Mr.. Kurtz this afternoon that
they must have assurances from him that
the dissenting Republicans will hold out
before they can give him a guarantee OF
a solid Democratic vote of So. IL is SAID
that the Democratic steering committee
finally gave Mr.. Kurtz until Monday at
midnight to produce affidavits of at least
eight Republican members that they would
vote against Senator Hanna. The Hanna
members claim that Mr.. Kurtz cannot Sc
cure the requisite number of athdavits, and
that the contest will be over Monday night.
1t is learned that the eight atfldavits re-
quested of Mr.. KurtZ are wanted for the
purpose of holding the siXty-five Demo-
Gratis in line. There is some opposition to
voting for any Republican for senator,
and about a dozen Democratic members
have signifed their desire to vote for
Congressman John Lentz.
s. w Cramer of Paulding county, one
of the siXty-fve Democratic members, Is
sick at his room, and his physicians say
he may not be able to be out for week
or more. His vote will not be needed 10
defeat Hanna on the claims Of the oppo-
sition tonight.
1t is rumored that Gov BUSHNELL has de-
clined TO stand for senator for either or
both terms, and that he Is for kurtz Tor
both the long and short terms for sena-
tor, and against Hanna.
While the gold standard Democrats have
all along been opposing this combine, the
ultra silver Democrats are the ones who
are now giving the combine" the post
trouble.
In connection with the bribery stories,
it is known that the stenographer's notes
are in the possession of Hon. 10. Grath-
bone formerly Assistant Postmaster Cen
eral under the Harrison administration,
and one of the Hanna managers in the
present contest.
The following was given out tonight
by the Hanna men: Some new develop
ments regarding the early history of the
present senatorial campaign are espec-
tally pertinent to the present moment, be-
cause they fully Justify the course of
thOsG men VINO are aHhlhS " HihhpA a
any agreement which they may have made
to support any other candidate than Sen
ator Hanna 1t is now known that the
plan 10 elect Gov Bushnell or Chairman
Kurtz TO the Senate was developed imme-
diately after the appointment of Mr.
Hanna on March A. March 10 pledges on
behalf of Gov. Bushnell were being OBJ
tained from various parts of the state
from men ambitious to become members
of the legislature.
''The managers who outlined this plan
knew who they would be likely to be, and
in cases where it was necessary to make
combines did so, requiring the candidates
in return for their support to pledge
themselves to vote for Gov. Bushnell for
the Senate.
at is now known that in a number of
cases agreements of this kind were con-
sidered In March and April long prior to
the meeting of the state and county con-
ventions which, when held, declared
unanimously for Senator Hanna.
THAT the existence of these pledges
became a matter of temporary embar-
rassment to the men who had made them
without knowledge of what the conVen-
tons would declare in favor of any indi-
%idual goes without saying, but that their
first duty after accepting nomination and
election under these circumstances was to
withdraw the pledges before these new
conditions arose is equally apparent.
Those pledges were made upon the suppo-
sition that the election of a senator would
follow its usual course, and that each
member would be entirely free to vote
for the candidate which his Judgment
might dictate. IL developed later, how
ever, that the state and county delega-
tons declared unequivocally for a single
Individual, and that men accepting nomi-
nations under those conditions were placed
in an entirely new position. Their first
duty as Republicans was to obey the
mandate of their party.
1T Is not surprising, in view of these
facts, that many men who made these
pledges prior to the action Of the state and
county conventions have voluntarily, and
with a frankness which marks them as
men Of high sense of honor, asked to be
released from those promises. Honorable
men could not do otherwise, and the sur
prise is that the men to whom these
pledges were made should now expect or
demand that they be kept Every indiv-
ual who thus pledged himself has since
doing so been informed by the state and
county people of their dessre that ne sup
port Senator Hanna and no other and
thus every one of them is not only tusti-
fed in withdrawing that pledge, but Is in
duty bound to do So
Mr. George w. Hull tonight gave out
the following telegram from Calvin s.
Brice:
"Am taking no part in the senatorial