Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1904-08-25
E. c. Stokes.
From Trenton True Americana

I
No one will deny the fitness of things
whereby Edward G. Stokes is put forward
as the exponent and representative Of New
Jersey Republican politics. practically adj
ministered
Nor will any one deny that.h is the en-
bodiment of that form Of political malad-
ministration which the people Of the State
would, upon confession, reproye to the
point of political defeat, if not extinction.
Mr.. Stokes has been for many years a
legislator, and, in the paucity of fitting ma
terial, leader among the Republicans, and
at no period of that era can point to an
hour when his action was animated by any
purpose to serve the State against other
masters of his own self-advancement. Ow-
ing his original nomination to suserviency
in his home town to the West Jersey Rail
road bosses, he has in every act of his legis-
lative and political career had no higher
ambition than to climb higher on the rail-
road tree, and secure higher pay and larger
rewards for his services in bolstering up
the weakening branches or training new
gratis
The legislative records will be searched
in vain for single instance among the many
contests between the railroads and the peo-
pie wherein he was not on the side of the
railroads and their congeners. The legisla-
tive history of the past eight years is replete
with the story of gratis and jobs, whereby
the public rights have been so wasted and
aborted as to bring the Legislatures into
discredit and censure. There is no friend
of Edward G. Stokes not even himself),
who can point to single instance wherein
he ever stayed the hand of greed and spolia-
ton, in the protection of the public.
While he was of the triumvirate which
ruled the Senate, the State extravagances
grew; the corporation aggressions increas-
ed; the petty partisanship, which subor-
dinated the rights Of the municipalities to
the demands of the local politicians, de-
veloped into brigandage; and the only
thing that remained as steady as the
"Stonewall Brigade" was the petty tax
paid by the railroads
Against no act of extravaganza, even that
of the Railway Reformatory or the execu-
i've manson; against no corporate aggres-
sion, even that of the surrender to the Steel
Trust; against no act of partisanship, even
that of destroying the local elections, was
the voice Of Edward G. Stokes ever raised,
or his vote ever cast.
And what was the result? By private
employment and public salary, he began to
acquire wealth; by an utter subseryency to
believe himself as the agent Of the railroads
on whom was to fall Sewell's mantle; and
by an apt sale OF his watered stock in the
United States Senatorship, he came to be
recognized as the heir apparent to the
Governship at the hands of the combined
corporations, which have seen SO much of
profit in its possession.
This is Mr.. Stokes attitude to-day, and
not even genius can make any more Of it.
His nomination has been discussed not
by the people; not even BY the politicians,
bnt has been decided upon by the Exec
utiye Committee Of the State Committee,
nearly all Of whose members are fellow
officials with eongenial tendency to serve
the railroads and corporations above every
thing else.