The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-04-24

Washington, April Ex-senator Chan
der, from the senate committee on
privileges and elections, today submit
ted to the senate the report OF that
committee in the case of Senator Clark
OF Montana The report is compare
lively brief, covering only about fifteen
pages of printed matter. It does not
rehearse the testimony, but simply
presents the finding of the committee
and its reasons for its course. The
finding Of the committee is stated as
/ follows:
The finding of the committee is that
the election to the senate Of William A.
Clark Of Montana is nuH and void on
account of briberies, attempted bribe-
| RES and corrupt practices by his agents
and OF violation of the laws of MOnta-
ma defining and Furnishing crimes
against the elective franchise"
In view of this finding the committee
reports and unanimously recommends
the adoption by the senate of the fol-
| lowing resolution:
Resolved, That William A. Clark
was not duly and legally elected to a
seat in the senate of the United States
| by the legislature Of the state of Mon
tana.''
The report concludes with a strong
recommendation for early consideration
Of the case, as follows:
Duty to the People.
1.-THE senate should as a duty to itself
and to the country demonstrate by it's
action in this case that seats in. the
United States senate procured as Sen
ator Clark'S has been procured. can
not be retained by the deliberate judy
mlent Of the senate. The senate also
| owes a. duty to the people of Montana,
| who, conscious of the bad repute into
which the state has fallen by reason
OF vast expenditures Of money in con-
nectiOn with its elections, manifested
| such a, public sentiment that the legis-
lature of 1895 passed a statute which, if
Obeyed, would have redeemed the state
from its bad name
For the direct and gross violations
Of that statute and the consequent dis
| credit which continues to rest upon the
state, Montana has a right TO expect a
prompt and decisive remedy from the
| action Of the senate upon the report of
this committee"
/ The committee states that it's finding
/ - made in view OF certain admitted OF
undisputed facts. with their attendant
circumstances appearing in the testi-
mony taken by the committee, and
| these are enumerated under fifteen
! headings, as follows:
! 1. The expenditures in the contest of
1895, as testified TO by Senator Clark
and Governor HauSer
! 2. Quotes the law of 1895 relative 10
crimes against the elective franchise,
/ which limited in purpose and amount
/ the political expenditures which could
| be made in any election either by pO-
/ ar a
/ cially naming a candidate for United
/ States senator who could not give
more than 1000 to any one committee
/ in county and could not pay more than
| $1,000 for his personal expenses in law
| full ways specified.
Constantly a Candidate
8. Asserts that Senator Clark has
! been constantly a candidate for Office.
! and gives his record in that respect
/ and notes the organization Of a COM
mittee in mis- interest in the summer of
/ 1898, after the consultation with his
/ friends in Butte.
To this committee, the report says, he
gave unlimited authority TO spend
money, which he agreed TO furnish, All
estimate, however, being made that
/ at least $50 600 would be necessary TO
| secure the state convention. and that
state legislature.
| In the canvass which enSued. the ap-
| prOximate expenditure admitted by the
various members of his committee and
| their assistants were as follows: By
| Charles ". Clark. S25, 900: by McDer-
mott, s22, 900; by Davidson, agent. S22.-
/ 800; by Welcome, So, 600; by Steele,
| $1,000; by Corbett, $1,000; by Whit
more, $4,000; by Cooper, $500: mainly
| furnished by Charles W. Clark and
/ the amount of these expenditures Sen
ator Clark himself paid to his son.
! The advances and payments made by
/ Senator Clark to his committee and
agents as admitted by him amounted
/ to about $139,000, of which sum Charles
/ w. Clark received on August Il, 1898,
! $35, 600; Oct, II, 10000; Nov %, $40
| 900; and Feb. IS, 1900. $40, 592: and in
addition to this 1888, 900. Senator Clark
paid $4,000 TO McDermott, one of his
agents, $1,000 to Welcome his attOr-
ney. and $4,000 TO E. c. Day, a mem
Der of the legislature.
Made No Sworn Statement.
| None Of the members of the COM
| mittee nor their assistants made the
sworn returns required by law, nor
! did Senator Clark himself make any
return.
Sections to Is deal with the bust
ness transactions of Mr.. Clark and his
representatives with members of the
| legislature including the purchase of
Representative McLaughlin's property.
the tender of $4,000 to Representative
Woods to raise the mortgage on his
ranch and the, subsequent sale of the
ranch; the establishment Of a bank
after the adjournment of the legisla-
| ture largely through the efforts of
Senator Tierney and Representatives
| Eversole and Shevlin of Broadwater
county; the sale of lots and other pro-
perty in jefferson county to a repre-
sentative Of Mr.. Clark by Senator
| Warner; the conduct of MeSSrS Carr.
Geiger, Fine, Beasley and Bywater. and
the present $4,000 to Representative
Day after the adjournment Of the leg
/ islature
Speaking of the transaction with
/ Woods, the committee says: Senator
! Clark knew of Mr.. Bickford's attempts
TO purchase the Indebtedness which
| Woods owed and the correspondence
shows that the object was to secure
Mr.. Woods for Senator Clark. Bickford
testified:
Indebtedness of Woods.
'In pursuance of that letter (the let
ter of Nov. Il, from one EctOr) and of
the invitation which I at the time. 1
tried. 1 made arrangements to obtain
for the purpose of using it to prevent
the Indebtedness OF Woods going into
the hands of Mr. Days friends. the
sum of $1,000 with which to take I'D
the Indebtedness.
ION Nov. II, 1898. Mrs. Woods mort
gagged their sheep and cattle for 81, OOO
payable in one year, and on April p,