The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1905-01-12
DIANA, THURSDAY, JANUARY II 1905.
THE EX-AUGURAL MESSAGE.
Gov. Durbin Delivers His Parting
Message.

delivered 10 lllC lSS
caused quite a sensation by the 1oi-
lowing declaration:
Statistics of political debauchery
IN this state for 1904, if it were pos
sible to present them, would be moth
mo short of stunning. | am informed
that in a single county in Indiana
casting in 1902 about 5000 votes there
were in the last campaign nearly 1,2OO
voters regularly listed as purchase
BILE"
He added that within the last few
weeks instances have come to his no
tice where votes were bought for $25
and $50 apiece by candidates sor
township trustees. He insisted that
the present law penalizing political
corruption was farcical, and urged
more stringent statutes. Voting ma
chimes also were advocated as a rem
edy.
Members of the legislature, while
admitting the facts were correctly
stated, were surprised at the bold
ness of the utterances. Some ques-
tiond the advisability of placing such
charges in a state document, but
others defended the governor on the
ground that corruption of the ballot
has reached stage where few offices
are obtained without the use OF mon
ey.
The law which the governor ar
raigns as ''farcical" was presented IN
1895, and was bitterly opposed by
some. 1t was pointed out then
that the exemption of the vote buyer
from all penalty would result in great
er corruptions.
In a number of communities the
better class of citizens started in to
make the law operative. Hundreds
of floaters were bought Just before
the election and their receipts were
taken. After the election actions to
disfranchise the floaters under the
law were instituted and a number
have never since voted.
But the purchasable class soon be-
came too wary to be caught in that
way, and, while still offering their
SURFACES for sale, could not be in
duced to sign any kind of papers OF
talk with the purchaser in the pres
ence of any other person. Prosecu-
tions under the law therfor ceased and
vote buying has steadily been increas-
ing.
The evil which the governor com
plains probably reached its high water
mark in the recent campaign. For the
first time since 1892 the Democrats
were we'll provided with money and
the Republicans entered upon the
campaign feeling that they would
have to meet conditions that did not
exist either in 1896 or 1900
Republican candidates on state and
county tickets were assessed as they
never had been before. There wa,
| more confidence in Democratic ranks
than had existed for years, and their
candidates n all parts of the state
also were assessed to the limit. The
consequence was that both party com
] mittees had money to distribute liber-
ally, and thousands Of dollars went
out to counties, ostens1bly to be used
legitlmately, but really to be used in
the purchase Of votes.
1t is not known to what county
particularly the governor referred tc
when he declared 1000 votes were
regularly purchasable There are a
| number of counties in the state tha,
come within that class, and politicians
have recognized the fact for years
| that many of the men who are regu-
larly bought are well-to-do in a
worldly sense and frequently do iury
service and perform other public
functions.
Generally the comments on the
message are favorable, but there are
those who declare the executive is
abusing the system through which he
came to office
No one questions the truth of his
utterances or rejects the conclusion
that the traffic in votes has grown to
such an extent that it is a menance
to the morals of the state.
After the governors message was
read the legislature adjourned until
Monday, when Governor Hanly and
LIeutenant-Governor Miller will be
inaugurated and Governor Haniys
message will be read