The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1903-10-01
The Charges Against
Him Are Dismissed.
THE HECHLER-TODD
CASE UP SATURDAY
Man Found Blameless to Get
Treasurer's Certificate.
BRAUER AFFAIR GOES
TO STATE COMMITTEE
II Will Be Heard by that Body To-Mor-
row-County COMMITTEES Denies its
tion-lrregularities at
Shoemaker's Caused by v
Lack of knowledge.
Judges to Appear.

i Z =
Before the afatrnoon closed yesterday
the Henrico Democratic Committee which
with the new Barksdale law as its stand-
ard, is setting the pace for the purity OF
the ballot in Virginia and which is lite-
rally stirring up the State with the Viz
orous and sweeping precedents 1t Is sets
ting, had disposed Of two other contested-
cotton cases and had opened the way
Ior a full investigation into alleged
frauds and Irregularities on the part OF 4
two sInore OF the candidates.
Since the sensational denouement IN
the Brauer affair. sprung Wednesday
A%ght to the still.existing amazementS OF
Ne pnominee's friends and adherents, all
EYES have been centered on the courts
house, in " hicr Size committee aits prob
ing. Each step 1t takoas in the nirherts
untraversed paths cut by the now sta
tutes, is watched and discussed and crit
icised or commended as the case may
be; and tor many days yet to come l the
same eager interest will marke its pro- :
eress For 1t IS sevluc.., now. as 1T has been
all the legal entang GLEN ents that begin y
appear, holds more In Its promise thal n
the brief past has revealed.
So far as developments Of importance Z
were concerned, apart from sensational
setting, yesterday, was we'll worthy tie Iiie T
attention devoted to it. The committee
came forward again with a pronuncin-5
mento to the effect that treating with
view to influence voters was a flat vio-
lation of the sBarksdale law. Then It
passed upon the long awaited Throckmor-
n-Wendenburg fight and found unani-s
mousy In favor of the Communicating i
attorney-elect because the evidence S
adduced did not In any measure
suffice to show that he was guilty Of the
offense alleged. In the next case 1t dis
posed OF the Wyatt contest by dismiss
ing the petition; here the committee came
perilously near jumping into condition
OF things that would have precipitated an
upheaval so far as the recent primary
ls concerned. AS 1t is. three judges OF y
election have been summoned to appear,
and there will probably be an aftermath
of some interest and a possible vast inn
portance to all the nominees. Finally, the
committee decided In the face OF opposi-
tion, to throw down the bars again and
Investigate Hechler and Todd, notwith-5 Z
standing the obstructing technicality that
the charges against them We're not
brought witrin the specified time. And
there was no evidence to connect him
Saturday morning.
All these things made the day one OF
unusual interest. 1t was full toathe brim
with developments of importance though
in point Of length. the session was the
briefest yet held.
This Several Matters.
Et First in the order Of happening was
the investigation into. the charges and
specifications filed against Mr.. L. 9,
Wendenburg. the nominee, by Mr.. G. w
Throckmorton. defeated candidate The
prosecution introduced paper citing In
stances In which 1t held that Mr.. Wen
denburg had treated voters with view
to influencing them, thereby violating the
Rprovisions{of of the Barksdale law, the spirit
of the resolution adopted by the pledging
itself to stand by the said law, and the
legalized county plan itself. But single
witness was introduced and the best
he could say was that Mr. Wenden-
burg had treated the crowd several
times at Bottoms saloon, men Of all
campaign colors. and that he always did
treat his friends and theirs when he met
them. Then the case went to the COM
mittee without argument. BY 2:35 In the
afternoon, after session extending all
told, through less than two hours, the
decision, 1t reiterated Its determination,
reached the night before, to regard treat
ing with intent to influence voters. a vic
lation of the law. but 1t pronounced ~
favor of Mr.. Wepdenburg, declaring that
there was no evidence to convict him
with any such offense.
In reaching this decision. according to
one of tho members. the committee con-
sdered an incidental point that Is rather
unique Mr.. Brauer was man generally
understood to be opposed TO drinking;
treating by him during II canvass woubs
therefore, be significant. Mr.. Wenden-
burg, on the contrary, was man whose
social inclnations led him to invite his
friends to join him at the bar; treating
by him during a canvass or any other
time would, therefore come as matter
of course This was, of course consider
alton that arose In passing; the committee
viewed the case from the evidence and
decided that 1t was not sufficient.
The petition filed by Mr.. Wyatt was dis,
missed, but the three judges who have
been guilty of an irregularity, probably
arising from ignorance OF the las, have
been summoned to appear 1t is not likely.
vet 1t is within the bounds OF possibility
that the Investigation here may Gauss
returns from shumaker's precinct
TO be thrown out, In this event che entire
face OF teh returns will be changed.
and confusion will reign. The last matter
OF importance was the decision IN thn
| Hechler-Todd affair The complit-
tee decided in effect that TO award the