The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-10-21
Pat Points in
Passing Politics

was made in the state convention that
the delegates chosen at the county con-
vention were not regular. Mr.. Clark
waited. On the very morning after
the legislative ticket was nominated
Mr.. Clark threw up his hands and the
Miner bottled. Up to the very last min
ute Mr.. Clark had evidently been hop
ing that a legislative ticket might be
placed in the field which he could ''in-
fiuence." but when he saw the caliber
Of the men nominated-that was
enough-He knew hat no argument
he could make could reach any of them.
He knew that neither he nor anybody
else could buy such men as Thomas f.
Courtney. f. II. Wilson. Miles Finlen.
p. w. Murray. Guy Stapleton and the
others. II was then and not till then
that the Miner bolted the ticket.
Then. for a reason for Its bolt. the
Miner did not have the frankness to tell
the truth. II did not say that IL bolted
because the legislative tick placed in
nomination was one which could not
be bribed and was not likely to favor
Mr.. Clark for the senate. because he
had corrupted enough citizens Of Mon
tana already. 1t did not say that IL
would never have bolted had a legisla-
tive ticket been nominated which Mr..
Clark thought he could handle. 1t did
MOI confess that had the legislative
ticket been a Clark ticket IL would
have swallowed the primaries. the con
vention and all. and never said a word
about 'irregularity." Instead OF tell
ing these truths, the Miner went clear
back to the primaries for a reason and
said 1t bolted because the primaries
were irregular"
Now. the only thing irregular about
those primaries is that. for the first
time In a number of years In Butte. the
Clark primary box suffers were
thwarted. Everybody knows the names
of these primary box-stuffers. There
are a half dozen OF them and they have
always heretofore managed to work
themselves in as judges OF the prima-
ries. Then they would prepare a box
and have several hundred ballots in II
before the primary opened. They would
hav lists Of fictitious names written
out. in number the same as the number
of ballots placed in the box, no matter
how large the vote Of the precinct. BY
such methods Clark managed. year
after year. to carry any precincts in
which he placed these slick workers.
They were paid by the Clark faction
and shortly before the primaries they
were moved into the precincts IL SEEM
ed most desirable to carry. They would
get to the caucus and their sole effort
was to get themselves named as
judges. That Is the way Clark has OBJ
tanned a foothold in conventions year
after year. These suffers" have been
his for a number of years and are now
in his employ. That is the way. in 1893.
they packed a democratic convention
with friends inc supporters of the
water company and nominated John F..
Cowan, a water-bug for mayor. con-
trary to the will and wish Of the rank
and file Of the democratic party, as was
otho"h "fN 'fN,NhCf ooy
came. These half dozen suffers that
Clark has been keeping up year after
year to carry primaries with got knock
ed put last month. They had the same
game on. but the workingmen and the
citizens who have been d~isfranchised in
They went to the caucuses and they Sc
lected men for judges of the primaries
who could be depended on to see that
there was ar honest vote. None OF
these primary thieves were allowed to
get in az Judges. That is the real secret
ton at the Butte primaries. The boys
were onto the primary thieves and
when these thieves failed to get In as
judges the Clark faction was gone. 1t
had nothing but the employees OF Clark
in this city and those whom they could
influence.
How much was the entire opposition
to the winning ticket in the Butte pri-
than 900 votes. The ticket which the
Clark people put out n which was
headed 'anti-fusion ticket" received
less than 800 votes in Silver o coun-
ty. Now. does the Miner presume to
say that 800 votes is a majority Of the
democratic vote In Silver Bow county?
Does 1t mean to say that there are less
thar $500 democratic voters In Silver
Bow county? The democrats could
never carry Silver Bow county II hat
were all the votes II could muster. Yet
the Miner makes Its bolt on the ground
that these 800 voters are a majority of
the democratic vote In the county.
and because these 900 didn't carry the
day the primaries were irregular" The
primaries were carried by legitimate
voters who do not propose to be dis
f~ranchised by Clark's primary thieves