Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1904-01-20
.D[S MONIES POUT|CS
General Disgust Among Iowa
People Over Spectacle Which
Capitol City Presents
OFFICIALS ENCOURAGED FRAUD
1t is Charged That City Police Force
Knew All About the Ballot Theft and
purposely Kept Away-Many Re-
publicans Turn to Mayor Harten-
bower a. Their Hope.
.sc;ai To Times-Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines. Jan. 2O.-A resort 10
comparisons is natural in the days los-
lowing the political spree which endei
In a so-called primary election In Des
Nioines this week. The comparison is
not favorable to Des Moines and Iowa.
Now that ii is over and the people have
had time to digest its significance ana
results and to ponder over the spectacie
which the capital city of Iowa presents
10 the outside civilized world. the dis
gust is general. In almost any st'a'.
gathering of men one may near eN-
pressions of regret that political coz
dit,ons should have fallen SO low.
Just TO think of it" said state
official, "A stolen ballot box ana she
Judge of election whipping out a re-
yolyer and shooting at the heeins
thieves--and all this within three
blocks of the Iowa state capitoi. we 40
not need to point to the Tammany Oh
New York or to the southern states ior
examples OF wickedness in poiiucs.
Aside from the ballot theft ana ths
attempted murder 1t Is known that
there was much repeating. Manasers
nnenly boast that at this or that place
scores of their men voted who were hos
entitled to vote There We're hundreos
OF men permitted to cast ballots W'o
live at hotels or who were stopins ior
tha day there. Men voted from the
army most and who have not been IN tue
county a month. The count OF the votes
does not at all disclose the exact lee.'
ing Of the republicans of the city. rms
Is now conceded by all.
WAS you ever at a place where ther.'
was fraud and trickery at primary
or ca,,cus?' was asked OF Ben. Parker
owner OF a wholesale liquor bust
ness and 20 saloons.
..we,i" said the magnate, X have
been where there were some pretty oau
politics, but I never saw or nearu ..
anything that beats Des MONIES lot
dirty politics. l don't believe any
thing could be done worse In any place
/ have been down south where ,hes
shoot negroes when they try 20 sole'
hut n was no worse than this primary.
II there was anything In the way OF
fraud and corruption they failed ~
use don't know what Ii Is. am III
the whisky business and have no apoi-
opies b,lt know that when you nave u
re, down to a beer and whisky cam-
paign in any place it means fraud ana
nothing but fraud
IL the chief of police OF the city o:
Des Moines would stand up and tell
the truth about 1t, the responsibility iof
the ballot theft would be made known
in day. The city police force kne" /"
what was happening and it was not DN
accident that no policemen We're any
way near the scene of the stealing. a
certain we'll known politician was given
Il O0O nv the managers of Congressman
Hull to work against ex-Mayor Mac
vicar He went over into the ward II
question and dabbled in the ward poll
tics. When 1t was found the precihc'
In question had gone against tnls GER
tain manager he put up the Jon 10 nave
the ballots stolen and to have the pre-.
cinct thrown out. Two men We're hifea
10 go in a cab, bearing an order from
the chairman OF the city committee to
enter the booth and watch the count OF
the vote. They went in. as per ar
rangement and one of them seized n
handful of ballots and ran away. one
of the Judges who was armed folloWe',
the pair and shot at them. but they GOT
away. 1t mattered not what ballots
were stolen-the precinct will be thrown
out and not be considered and this Is
lust what the persons who stole the
ballots wanted. And all this was done
with the knowledge of the regularly
constituted primary managers and o
the officials of the city of Des Moines
This fairly illustrates the depth of de-
pravity disclosed in the recent pri-
mary election.
Col. Joseph Eiboeck. the veteran dem
ocratic editor. has been considered q
nossible democratic candidate 70:
mayor. He was asked as to his posi-
tion. 20, no." he declared, mot any
office of mayor for me. I wouldn't
know what to do with the ofice II
had II. and / certainly will not be can
didate. They couldn't give 1t TO me.
have troubles enough as 1t Is. But
say. I don't want the republicans ol
this city to ever talk to me again abou'
how bad the democrats are at election
times where they have things thei'
own way. They never can quite be as
bad as the republicans of this city
1 went down around the polls yester-
day and sized up the crowds. nevet
saw anything like 1t. One might have
believed they had emptied the peniten-
tiaries and jails to get workers at the
polling places. ! never saw such tough
looking gangs of men.
To get to the polls at this precinct
here at the city hall one would have
had to pass long line of viliainous
looking negroes wearing big badges
with the word "Mattern" printed there
on. or occasionally some other name. ]
hardly see how any self respecting man
could have voted. And it is evident a
good many did not. Bu. have lived
to a good old age without becoming
mayor and l am not going to begir
now
A great many republicans are turn
ling toward ex- Mayor Jerry" Harten-
bower as their hope. The ex-maycl