Waterbury Democrat., 1901-02-13
POLITICAL PURITY
Local Republicans Stirred Up
 Over Proposed Bill.
NO MORE CAUCUS PACKING.

If the Bill Becomes a Law the Riggesr # $ Stock in Trade of Some Republican
 Politicians Will Vanish-Repphhcan;s ss
 Must Depend on Popularity and Re $
 publican Votes to Get Nominated.
 The bill drawn up by City Attorney $ John r. Kellogg for the purificatf0n or politics in general and of the fe- publican atmosphere in particular hs. in some quarters, stirred up alarm aRd ill others a hearty desire for the sue cess of the measure. Some doubt that 3 the bill will pass the legislature, others are confident that it will go through without any bother. Republican indi- vidual opinion on the bill is quite inter- esting. Some say it is Il slap at one wing of the party by the wing that has been knocked out by the caucuses. There are some who say that it is an acknowledgement of defeat at their own game and that there is Do policy like honesty after ali. even in politics. The object of the bill. as told ill the Democrat last evening. is to keep out ringers from the primaries or caucuses of both parties. While the republican party has been the chief sufferer il this respect. the democratic party has not escaped by any means. The idea of using the voting lists at a repubii- can caucus did not even occur 10. the lights of that party until Il few years ago, when they found that their gath erings We're controlled mostly by denl- ocrats of an indifferent character. | brought there by their admiration of 1 the candidates. There was nothing to | prevent them voting at the caucus. At 1 first they were somewhat Iimid. but | after repetition they grew courageous | and eventually that method of getting l votes. and generally the nomina tlon.
 became so obviously vicious that the | inStigators themselves became alarmed
 at the extent of the corruption ill their | party This method of securing dele l gates was first employed by q fe- publican candidate for assessor. ES
 erybody was amazed when they found | that he had won the nomination; they could not understand it, for he was not educated enough in the mys-
 teries of politics to know how 10 pull l a single wire or lay even clay pipe. l He did not know the political advan-s l tage there was ill treating casual | acuuaiEtance of the other party to Il | glass of beer or cigar. Pohucs Was to him a closed book. But he had
 friends who opened his eyes and when I 1.-the caucus in d certain ward was
 
 present were democrats. This eandi- date. it is said, had contracted to pay So l 10 a certain democrat for every other l democrat lie would get to vote at lhat | caucus. He never kept his contract.
 and frequently boasted of this That was the inception of packing eaucuses
 of the republican party. Pfevlous to | that time democrats used to invite the
 republicans to vote at their prlmarles- I places of business and induce them 10 l east I vote But inc wholesale franit employed by the republicans In thelr caucuSes was never attempted or even
 dreamed of by the democrats.
 The second time the republicans
 na rked their caucuSeS was when Col
 ou,l Doherty and Thomas D. Barlow
 ran for mayor. The colonel won The
 Grst ward with a remarkable major | ity Such d vote was never Polletl | there at :l caucus before. MT BaraoW
 thought of retiring from the contest.
 hnt his friends investigated and found
 that the majority of the vote cast at
 the first ward caucus was cast Dy deii-
 ocrats. The contest then became very
 intarastin". and MT Barlow $
 friends set to work and the
 result was seen in the nonhna- T. ton of MT Barlow. No one thougnt l of using the NOuuS ll'lS up '0 s-|
 time. Subsequent caucuses, however,
 developed this pernicious system 10
 such all extent that it was deemed pfu-
 dent ia use the lists as the only Way to effect a cure. But the lists faiieu
 to produce the desired effect. Ihes
 served to only refine the corruptness oI
 things. So long as ones name Was
 on inc list he could not be preyentsu voting. >The preliminary work ot sath. erins in the democrats was done III
 the factories the day of the eau
 cuses and the men responded Ill
 oroups. The leaders of the party threw up their hands: they saw then,' ,ei,i
 selves at the mercy of their more skili- ful brethren in playing their owl came. It was claimed that a certain ! attorney was the champion at H. ane inc bill published yesterday m tne
 Democratis the result. Atotrnev Duran . says he favors the bill or anything thal will purify the political atmospnerp :, Everybody seems to think it 2 gooe . bill. but there are many repu1tleeans aesat t
 who say that it will result i'll deieat | inc their own game.