New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1902-11-10
A DEsCREDETABLE INTRIGUE.

Whatever NAV be the result of the promised
contest for the Attorney Generalship it will he
/ felt by most fair minded persons that the IN
! trigue which resulted in placing the name or
John Cunneen on the Prohibition ticket re-
Elected little credit on an organization pretend
/ ing 10 be animated solely by peculiarly high
moral purpose. Mr.. Cunneen had nothing IN
| common with the Prohibition party. He was
! an unwavering member of a party always Ell
jOying the favor of the liquor interests. He was
not nominated nv Prohibition convention, and
il Is doubtful if he could have been. but by
clever manipulation the convention was in
duced 10 delegate its powers TO a small com
mittee and that committee proceeded TO name
Mr.. Cunneen without regard to the ballot law
which provides:
When no nomination shall have been originally
made by political party or by an independent
body for an office. where vacancy shaIl
exist. il shall not be lawful for any committee
OF such party or independent BODY authorized 10
make nominations, or to ill vacancies. TO nomi-
nate substitute the name OF a candldale OF
another na~tv or independent body for such
Office: IL being the intention of this act that
when a candidate Of ore party is nominated and
placed On the ticket of another party or lnds-
pendent body, such nomination must he made
az the time and i'm the manner provided for MAX
ing original nominations by such party or indie
pendent body.
The work OF the committee was done in con-
junction with that eminent mOralist and friend
of temperance legislation, David B. Hill, after
the failure of attempts to intimidate Mr.. Conan
with threats to defeat him if he would not use
his official powers to promote the personal IN
terests of a Prohibitionist lawyer, who claims
a seat in the Supreme Court on the strength of
a handful of votes cast for him a year after
everybody else had voted TO fill the place which
he sought.
On August ,. 1896. Justice Calvin z. Pratt,
of the Id District. died. At the election on
November following four justices-William W.
Goodrich. Garrett J. Garretson, Michael H.
Hirschberg and Samuel T. MaddOx-were chosen
to ill that and three other vacancies They re-
ceived more than 10000 votes each. The next
year c. A. Hart an inconspicuOus lawyer, a
Prohibitionist conceived the notion that he
could crawl into the Supreme Court on a techni-
cality The constitution provides that va
cancy shall be filled at the first general election
happening not less than three months after the
vacancy occurs. Hart held that from August 3
to November was less than three months ac
cording to the legal method OF measuring the
lapse of time. So he got his friends to put
him in nomination in 1897 on the theory that
the election of 1896 was illegal. A half dozen
or more votes were cast for him by persons
who wrote on the ballot against his name
what the officials would not print, as it had no
place there even if the Office We're to be legally
fiIled-the words ito till the vacancy caused by
the death of Judge Calvin Z. Pratt" On the
strength of these votes Hart sought to displace
from the bench Justices Goodrich, Hirschberg,
GarretsOn and Maddox, the choice of 10000
people. AS they were voted for in a block, not
TO fill any particular seat, II would be impOs
sible TO say which was the successor Of Justice
Pratt so the seats of all would be vacated If
that of any one was.
We do not attempt TO decide the nice techui
cal question whether from August to Novem-
Der is legally three months or not. If it is
not the difference is only one day. In 1896 the
judges. election officials, nominating conven-
lions Of political parties, including the Pro
hibition party and Hart himself who was then
a Prohibition candidate for Justice of the Su-
preme Court, thought it was three months
More than 100000 voters, including Prohibition
lists, thought so. and chose their justices, and
whatever the technical blunder which Hart
thought he discovered after they were on the
bench and performing their duties In accord
with the popular will, in all good sense and
good morals those elections should stand
Established order is not to be lightly overthrow
and four judges unseated every time some
busybody can dig up point TO bubble over
Hart took TO court his claim to an office which
helping him lay a foundation for litigation
wanted him TO fill. He was beaten on the
merits, we believe, in the lower courts, while
in the Court of Appeals the case went off on the
question of procedure, and it was held that
Hart even If he had a claim, had not sought
the right remedy, which was a quo warranto
suit brought by the Attorney General The
Attorney General properly refused to make his
office the instrument of Harris scheme to in
validate the work of years in the Supreme
Court by four justices through invalidating
their titles TO Office. 1t was a matter OF dis
erection with him and not obligation. and no
public purpose TO be gained by bringing
suit. SO Hart was angry, and, being unable to
move Mr.. Davies or Mr.. Conan, turned for re-
venge or perhaps future aid to David B. HILL
who was his attorney in the court proceedings
and placed Mr.. Hills candidate for Attorney
General on the Prohibition ticket The legality
of that nomination may yet be tested. If Mr..
Conan is beaten it will be TO his credit that he
was defeated for refusing TO lend himself TO
promoting scheme of petty smartness
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