New-York tribune., 1905-01-01
COL0RADO'S CRISIS.
Contest for GoUernorship Bitter
Mach Corruption Unearthed.

tIlS state OF tO4OeduO Will race political crisis
acute rs that faced by Kentucky when Taylor and
Goebel began their tragic fight for the disputed
GovernOTship. The Republicans contend that on
account Of enormous frauds committed by the
Democrats Governor James II. Peabody was legal
ly reelected. while the Democrats assert that the
frauds unearthed by the courts are not sufficient
to overcome the majority of AIva Adams over
Peabody.
According to the election returns. Adams was
elected Governor of Colorado. by something over
10000 votes. but in course OF the last few weeks
the Supreme Court of the State has unearthed
enough fraud in Denver aIoae to overcome Adams's
heavy majority in that city ard county, TO
seat every Democratic member OF the legislature
from that district and to throw out every county
officer. 1t IS asserted that before the fraud in
vestigation is completed fully bad conditions
will be shown in other parts of the State. and that
Governor Peabody viii be shown be reelected by
a generous margin.
The Democrats are not prepared TO surrender
without n struggle however. Senator Thomas NJ.
Patterson. the leader of the Democratic party in
opening of Congress He is busily engaged in crit
icising the Supreme Court OF the State for taking
jurisdiction and throwing out the tainted precincts
in Denver and he will be In the forefront OF the
fight when the struggle for cOatroI OF tho legisat-
ure begins. Predictions freely made that there
will be trouble when the legislative fight opens 1t
is recalled that during the last fight for the Sena-
torship which was won by Senator Teller, both
houses of the Legislature filed with armed
partisans of both parties 1t would have required
only one overt act to have dyed the State Capitol
with blood, and consequently there is good reason
for apprehension to-day. inasmuch the present
contest is by far the most bitter in the history OF
Colorado politics.
All tho bitterness has been brought to head by
the action the State Supreme Court in sending to
ail tvoscore Of the ballot box suffers repeaters
and professional bulles who were hired 10 keep
down the Peabody vote IN Denver. and who did
their work boldly, but too wisely Besides
sending these men to jail. the Supreme Court has
thrown out the entire vote in those Denver wards
which were found to be heavily tainted with fraud
In so doing It established precedent In cleo
ton cases The Democrats claim the Supreme court
has exceeded it's authority and is usurpins an ex-
ecutive function in commanding the election coHi-
mission to refrain including in the Official can
vsss the entire vote of the tainted precincts But
the question OF jurisdiction is something the Su-
prer1e Court of the United States must pass on l.
the case ever gets that high and In the mean time
the ballot box suffers must rest In the Denver
County Jail confronted with the none too pleasing
prospect Of prosecution by the local courts Ior
and by the federal courts for entering INTO eOH-
spiracy under the federal statutes
The wholesale convictions in the Supreme Court
have been for contempt Just prior to the elec-
tjon On November last the Supreme Court issued
an Injunction restraining all persons from interIer
,re with Judges watchers challengers. etc. or IN
any way trying TO bring about anything otner thah
an honest election. But this injunction was not
take seriously by the big Mitt' gang Of poll
ticiaus that has ruled Denver for the last six or
eight years With the Sheriff. police and all other
county officers working in harmony with them' ana
with years Of unpunished election thievery back or
them the members of the Denver Democratic ma
chine became too bold. Word went out 10 dlsresaro
the order of the Supreme Court. and the evidence
which has been taken in the last six weeks or more
shows how cheerfulIy the hint was Obeyed- In
the lower wards of Denver Republicans had great
difficulty in voting Professional prizehghters were
on hand to use trough house" tactics when man
insisted on voting he pleased and II the injured
citizen appealed to the police he was laughed at
for his mains Indeed. the police took an active
part in the general work Of fraud as the conviction
of a police sergeant has shown The notorious
Billy Green. a gun fighting city detective VINO
has been literally king Of the lowest ward IN the
city. owing to his ability to deliver as many votes
az the party in power demanded. ran things as he
pIeased Green when summoned before the Su-
nrerne Court to explain his part In the work OF
fraud was relieved of two big revolvers before ne
entered the courtroom. and was III at ease uhIl
he got his weapons back.
The testimony on which the Supreme Court sent
the wholesale consignment of ballot box sturfers
IN iar is probabIv the most remarkable offered
in any election case. Even Boss" Butler. OF
ST Louis who recently confessed 20 having stolen
elections for thirty years never utilized Sueh
methods as the Denver Big Mitt used 10 carry
the State for ADAMS. III lIlo HISAo A4"NS~- - ~~
box stuflug one example will suffice. Tho nrst
box ordered opened by the Supreme Court Is
called ''Pandora's box" for the reason that 1t
Ioosed many troubles for Denver election theVeS-
This box held the vote Of Precinct g. Ward o-ohe
of the lower precincts of the city. After hand
writing expert was put to work on the ocx mere
is the way the legitimate vote was ngureo' as It
should have been returned:
Republican votes straight tickets, nS; scratched
tickets SO: Socialist 3; Democratic votes straight
tickets, 169: Democratic plurality, o.
But here Is the way the ballot box stoners re-
+urrad the vote after they had finished marking
the ballots to suit themselves;
Democratic votes, 2S9 Republican votes. %; So
cialist i; Democratic plurality. 30
This was a direct robbery Of l57 votes out Of s25
actually cast And such condition obtained not
only in one ballot box. but in many. So hopeless
became the tangIe when an endeavor was maze
to straighten out the votes In the stuffed ballot
boxes that the court finally decided to throw out
the boxes altogether in the precincts IN which the
pig AIitt' work was carried on In Billy
c.rean,s Drscinct the State handwriting expert re-
ported that out of total recorded vote Of S7S no
less than 256 OF the ballots were fraudulent. and
that 22s of these were in the handwriting Of one
man all but six OF the fraudulent votes being
counted for the Democratic ticket.
II was not alone by ballot box stufang that the
election thieves of Denver did their work, how
ever Every day for weeks. while hearing testi-
nonv against the big Mitt' workers. the Supreme
Court has heard stories of intimidation and OF per-
sonaI violence In one Of the lower wards Re
publican committee woman was thrown bodily out
of polling place. Her husband was one OF the
Judges. but did not dare protest against the in
dignity At the polling place another woman
who was regarded TOO ofticious IN the Repub-
Ican cause was thrown out and severely injured
A man and wife approached polling place for the
purpose OF voting. The man was known to be
Republican and his wife Democrat The wife
was told 70 go in and vote. but the husband was
ordered back and was led 20 understand that if he
approached the polls he would be severely dealt
with One of the Suffers Club" at the county