The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1904-10-05
BOODLER'S CONFESSION
Charles F. Kelly Relates Story
ofSt. Louis Combine.

Kelly Names a Politician Who Gave
Him $4,000 to Keep Out Of Reach
Of Grand Jury-PIots to intlmidate
and Discredlt Circuit Attorney Folk.
Price Of Votes.
st. Louis, Oct. AIN written con.
fession Charles F. Kelly, speaker OF
the house Of delegates during period
In the life of the Doodle combine, re.
lates the story Of that combine.
Kelly details the story of the city
lighting deal, for which he says
Doodle fund of $47,500 was divided be
tween the 10 members of the combine
at Julius Lehmann's birthday party.
He declares that go.between gave
him the Doodle fund and that he took
1t to Lehmann's house and that he
there divided it.
we had fixed schedule of prices
he said, for various bills, according to
the value of the franchises or privi.
leges given. We hardly ever received
less than 1000 for the combined vote
On one or two occasions, though, we
got as low as $50 each for our votes,
end some Of the boys took IS each.
Our combine was not along party
lines. Both Democrats and Repub.
licans belonged to it. My experience
has been that boodlers line up accord.
ing to their own interests and not un.
der party standards. Democrats and
Republicans in st. Louis usually nom.
mate men to go to the house of dele.
gates for the money they can make
out of it.
Each party man votes for his own
fellow and either one that gets in
serves those who rob the city of fran.
chises. | believe this has been tol.
Grated in st. Louis. because the heads
Of so many Of the large corporations
of the city used to think 1t less trouble
to buy what they wanted than to elect
honest men to the house of delegates.
There are many other things can
and will tell later on, but this will do
now. This, in brief, is My story and
the confession Of my infamy. be.
lieve, though that If the people of St
Louis allow this man Ia prominent pol.
itician is named) to go on and control
both political parties and put his men
In Office, the public will be just as
guilty as I am today.
IL am now suffering the penalty oi
my crimes, am degraded and dis.
graced. shall ondeavor for the rest
Of my life TO atcne for the wrongs
have done"
Kelly declared that the politician he
mentions paid him $4,000 of the $780,,
900 promised on condition that Kelly
would keep away from the grand jury
Kelly went to Europe, intending to re
main until after the statute of limita.
tion had run out on the lighting deal
By miscalculation, Kelly said. he
came back too soon and was arrested
Kelly added: 81 know from my own
knowledge and from the statements
made to me by those on the inside
that bribery has been going on in the
municipal assembly of St Louis for
the past 25 years. Hardly a bill
passed that body in the last quarter
of century unless It was paid for
We did not fear exposure and punish.
ment.
when the present prosecutor (Cir.
cult Attorney Folk) commenced his
war on us, we tried to intimidate him
by threats of assassination and when
this had no effect we laid all sorts OF
traps for him. without success. Then
some decided that the best plan would
be to start newspaper and libel him
so fiercely as to draw his fire by TAX.
ing up his time in libel prosecuting, or
If he did not, his influence would be
weakened and destroyed.
Although we could find nothing
after a thorough search to make at.
tack on, libels were deliberately made
up for the purpose of affecting public
sentiment. This plan was participat
ed in, not only by members of the
house of delegates under indictment
for boodling but by prominent finan.
ciers Of st. Louis who feared exposure
and by those who gave us the money"
or the combine, Kelly had this to
say:
1--WE never thought of passing bill
out of which any money could be oh.
tanned, unless we were paid for our
votes. We went about 1t in a busi
ness like way and had combine meet.
ings at stated times and fixed the
bribe price which we were to receive
for our votes, by majority vote OF
the combine Then we would select
one of the combine in whose honesty
we had confidence, to go out and get
the money.
Among ourselves, understand, we
rad high code Of morals, and 1t was
considered extremely dishonest for a
member of the combine to accept
bribe money without dividing 1t among
his fellows"