Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1900-04-12

enue and secretary of the Republican
State Executive Committee, Edgar p.
fucker was Attorney General OF the
State, and all of them Republicans
and all of them engaged in the con-
Spiracy to elect Mr.. Scott.
The Governor, it appears, commenc-
ed the fraudulent proceedings. At the
November election, 1898, r. B. Ash,
of Marion county, a Democrat, was
elected member of the House OF
Delegates over A. N. Pritchard, a Re-
publican. On the 18th day of Novem-
Der the Governor of the State sent a
telegram in these words:
CHARLESTON, Kanawha County,
w. Va, November 20, 1898.
Capt. A. l.. Pritchard, Mannington:
Party interests demand contest in
your case. We will pay all expenses.
Please wire Kendall to proceed i'm
mediately. G. w. ATKINSON.
And on the same day the Secretary
OF State and the Collector of Internal
Revenue sent telegram in these
words:
CHARLESTON, Kanawha County,
w. Va, November 29, 1898.
Capt. A. l.. Pritchard, Mannington:
Republican State Executive Commit
tee request you to allow the use OF
your name IN contest proceedings to
protect interests OF Republican party.
All coSts anu expenses Will be paid
by us. WM. NJ. o. DAWSON,
Chairman.
A. B. WHITE, Secretary
These kilograms were addressed to
Capt. A. l.. Pritchard at the place
OF his residence, and were received
by MIN. but were intended for Mr..
A. N. Pritchard, who was defeated
by Mr.. Ash for d seat in the House
OF Delegates Opp. Sc, 81, brief OF re-
monstrants).
In the House of Delegates Logan
had the regular certificate of election,
and the committee on privileges and
elections reported that he was prima
facie entitled to be seated, though Via,
who had no certificate, was improperly
placed on the roll Of the House by
the Secretary of State, w. M. o. Daw-
son, who sent the telegram to Pritch
ard.
Attorney General Edgar P. Rucker
and United States District Attorney
Joseph H. Gaines and others repre-
sented Via in his contest with Logan
before the House committee. and in
his speech before the committee the
Attorney General. in an ill-tempered
way, charged that the committee need
not be surprised Ito see blood flow
in the capitol on the next day, be-
cause plans had been formulated look
ing to the preventing OF the seating
OF Logan, even at the cost of shedding
of blood (p. 81 OF brief of remon-
strants).
Threats were made by Republican
members OF the Senate to turn out
all OF the Democratic Senators elected
in November. 1898, if a compromise
was not made.
and many threats were made by Re-
publicans in authority to organize a
new House of Delegates out of the
Republicans then sitting and the Re-
publicans defeated at the election in
1895, if compromise was not made.
For the purpose of carrying out
these threats, the defeated candidates
for seats in the House of Delegates of
the Republican party were summoned
and came to the capital.
And for the same purpose, Republic
cans defeated in November, 1898, for
seats in the Senate were summoned
to the capital to occupy seats to which
Democrats were duly elected, and the
contests mentioned were instituted in
the Senate.
These fraudulent and revolutionary
proceedings had the active support of
the Senate, the Governor, the Secre-
tary of State, and the Attorney Gen.
eral, and all for the purpose of elect
ing Mr.. Scott to a seat in this body.
And threats were made to turn out
of the Senate all Democratic Senators
elected in November, 1898, if the COM
promise were not made.
Threats of violence were made by
Republicans against Republican mem
bers who refused to vote tor Nit.
Scott.
1t is inferred from the form of the
paper called The compromise agree
ment," in the report of the majority
of the committee, that the Democrats
in the Legislature made the PROPOSE
ton for the compromise to the Re-
publicans. This inference, though
natural from the form of the writing,
is not true as matter of fact The
Republicans in the Senate made the
proposition to the Democrats in this
way, as shown by the deposition OF
Hon. William A. Ohley. He testi-
fieS:
Very seen after the unseating of
Kidd was met by Hon. z. l. Vinson,
OF Huntington, chairman of the Gold
Democratic State Committee, at the
Hotel Ruffner, who invited me to a
conference with himself and John T.
McGraw, in John T. McGraw's room
He said that Senators Fast Marshall
and others, though they acted with
their party in unseating Kidd, did not
approve of such revolutionary tactics
and wished to make compromise fair
and just TO all concerned under which
they could break away from their
party associations and act in accord
ance with good conscience
He stated that if sufficient num-
Der OF Democrats in the House to car
ry the resolution through the House,
in conjunction with the Republicans,
would agree to the proposition ne had
to make, that enough Republicans in
the Senate would agree to such a
resolution to carry the proposition in
the upper branch of the State Legis-
lature. His proposition had the es-
sential features of the agreement as
it was finally signed.
He said at the time that should
Senator Elkins and Chairman Dawson
learn what was going ON before it
was done they would put stop to it,