The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-04-13
E" Hot-Corn Pete

| to the privilege of doing hard manual work
| on the big pipes.
1t was then that the worm turned at last
| and the very next day Pete was crying his
| succulent speciality a hundred yards away
| and the captain was beginning to wonder
| how he was TO get through the enormous
amount of work incidental 10 the canvass
| and election without his assistance.
Now Pete is gentleman of leisure from
| the first Tuesday after the first Monday in
| November until the opening OF the hot corn
season in midsummer No sooner are the
market stalls heaped high with the green
tassele6 ears than he sets up his kettle and
| devotes himself to the delightful practice
of a branch of the culinary art in which
| he has not single peer.
Politics begins with the waning of the
| hot corn season in the East Side calendar,
| and Pete's duties, which begin with the
| canvass, are of a kind that can be per-
| formed only by one who, like himself, is
| thoroughly in touch with his neighbors.
Working under the direction of mis- captain,
he must see to it that all the drunken.
careless and uncertain voters on the block
are duly registered. He must attend all
political meetings in company with his
| gang, or push as it is called in modern
slang, andsbe personally resonsible for the
| heartiness of their applause. Through his
offices the same band of patriots are in
| duced TO march in the political parades,
bearing torches and transparencies and
cheering frantically as they pass the resi-
| dences of those candidates who have had
the forethought to "see" Pete in due sea-
| son. And at the conclusion of these meet
| ings and parades it is Peter who is in
trusted with the $40 note that is TO be spent
in treating the boys. and careful he is, too.
TO do the treating in the saloon of his own
captain.
AS election day approaches, he contrives
| to see the various voters in the interest OF
| his captain and "get their promise" as the
| phrase is This part OF his labor culml-
mates in burst of unusual activity on the
Saturday night before election, when the
voters are coming home from work with
their wages in their pockets. And il is as
tonishing to learn how faithfully the prom
| ises made under these circumstances are
kept.
But it is on the day of election that Hot
Corn Pete finds himself with work of
really delicate and confidential nature on
| his hands. At the opening of the polls he
seats himself just outside the booth with
list of the voters in the district in his
hands and carefully checks off each man
| as ne enters.
AT o'clock the district captain. who has
been busy getting his followers TO the polls
since sunrise, takes a look at the list.
Has Denny Dineen voted yet?' he says.
NO" says Pete. Hes working over at
the Erie basin and l told him we'd vote
his ballot for him."
Here you, Pat" says the leader, turn
ing to one of the loungers, 'go in there and
vote Denny Dneens name for him. You.
Tom, go i'm and vote for Patty Moran. He
registered the day before he was killed.
IN this way score of votes are cast for
men who are working at some distant job,
or too drunk to appear themselves, or who
have died between the days of registration
and election
1T is Hot Corn Pete's duty to see that all
these illegal votes are cast i'm the interest
of his own party, and so long as no at
tempt is made to poll those that belong to
the other side no objection is raised the
watchers taking the ground that no fraud
is committed, the votes are cast with
the full consent and in accordance with the
! political belief of the men who registered.
II was on the strength of these and other
/
/ Corn Pete based his claim for recognition
at the hands of the United States govern
ment, and it is because of it's refusal TO
meet his demands that he started mutiny,
which might have spread through the
whole city had not the gentleman of the
distinguished mien come on from Wash
ington for the express purpose of squaring
the matter
That the matter was squared, together
with sundry others in the course of the in
terview between the two men in the district
leaders saloon. is a fact well known TO
every one at all conversant with New York
politics. At any rate, before the week was
out, Hot Corn Pete once more swore fealty
TO his party leader and returned to his old
lodging place on the tin roof OF the ex-
tension. I'm his inside pocket was an official
notification from Washington. signed by
the secretary OF the treasury, and setting
forth the fact that on the recommendation
of the collector OF the port. Hot Corn Pete
was duly appointed inspector at the rate of
s. a day And TO his credit. be il said that
those faithful ones among his push who
went out with him had their reward. too
For not one inch would Peter move his corn
pot until every man jack of them had re-
ceived his appointment as laborer at s.
a day.
And neither the inspector. Pete. nor the
| laborcrs who were appointed at his in
stance have anything whatever TO do ex-
cept to sign their names to the pay rolls
every morning and draw their wages at the
end of the month.
And often on summer evenings when the
voice of Hot Corn Pete is heard on the
Bowery lifted up in praise of the contents
of his iron pot, men familiar with the his
tory of the district will point him out to the
stranger from afar saying:
That's Hot Corn Pete, the man that
kicked up such a fuss that they couldn't
settle ii till the President of the United
States came on from Washington to square
il himself
being. He is most amiabIe and courteous in
manner. but he has a tiresome way of ap-