Danville intelligencer. [volume] (Danville, Pa.) 1859-1907, 1905-09-29

immunity III StuIlnS Ddllot DOAeb anu
manipulating election returns.
/ He voted for the bill creating state
department OF labor.-Legislatiye Rec
ord, pages 1694-1700. This bill was op-
| posed by the United Mine Workers for
| the reason that leaders in that organi-
! zation believed that it would create a
| lot of useless offices. AS matter Of
| fact that was the exact purpose Of the
measure. A place was needed for Cap
| tain James M. Clark, Republican ma
chine boss in Lawrence county, who
was to have been the head of the de-
| partment, while the various other sine
cures and soft snaps would have made
excellent stock in trade for commerce
in politics.
Hostility to Honest Elections Revealed
He voted for the bill appropriating
to ]. II. Shaw, one of the Philadelphia
councilmen who voted for the gas lease
and boasted that he would vote to over
ride the mayors veto, $1071 for badges
furnished the legislature Of 1897 for a
junket to Philadelphia to attend the
dedication of the Washington monu-
ment-Legislative Record. page 1855.
He also voted for the bill abolishing
the circle on the official ballot-Legis-
lative Record, pages 3, 1878. The bill
was so manifestly dishonest that the
late Malcolm l.. Mcconnell, chairman
of the House Republican steering COM
mittee, voted against 1t.
As "dodger" Mr.. Plummer proved
himself quite artful, moreover, during
the session of 1908. That is he "dodg-
ed several very important measures
upon which public interest had center
ed. For example he is recorded as "ab-
sent and not voting" on the bill pro-
viding that election officers must be
residents of the districts Sr divisions
within which they act. - Legislative
Record, pages 1029-30. The bill was
notoriously designed to protect election
frauds. Its effect would have been to
legalize the phantom election officers
of which so much is now heard in con-
nection with the padded registry lists.
He also "dodged' the vote on the bill
providing that where a certificate of
nomination is not sustained by the
, courts the petitioner shall be compelled
to pay the costs.-Legislative Record,
page 2, 2029. The obvious intent of
that bill was to prevent attacks on ma
chine made tickets. With such law
in force nominations by certificate
would be hazardous and might be very
expensive.
Pummer AS An ArtfuI Dodger.
Mr.. Plummer likewise "dodged" the
vote on the resolution of Frank w.
Mohr, anti-machine Republican of
Berks county, to refer to the committee
for public hearing. the atrocious Sny-
der water works bill, which the gang"
was forced by pubic sentiment to aban-
don after orders for It's passage had
been issued. This bill was clandestine-
ly introduced into the house and was
intended to give the Penrose-Durham-
McNichol machine power to dispose of
the Philadelphia water works in the
same manner that they tried to steal
the gas works since. Plummer's rec
ord on the resolution will be found in
the Legislative Record. page 1853.
lie dlIOtlty Vi MI.
Plummer's record during the session
of 1903 was his vote for the Infamous
but useless Press MuZzler" the Salus-
Grady libel law. He had been admon-
ished against the outrage of the con-
stitution and attempt to stifle civil and
religious liberty. But Quay was smart
ing under the shame of his then recent
trio hn do r,f Lo
state and his associate gangsters prob
ably felt that the storm which has
since broken over them was then i'm
pending and hoped to avert 1t by muz-
zling the press. The expectation was
disappointment, however and the per-
fidious legislator rather than his in
tended victims is suffering the conse-
quence of his folly.
PIummer's Growing Outrage.
1t was during the session of 1903,
moreover, that Plummer made clear
his servility to the machine and treach-
cry to the people by openly opposing
personal registration. Mr.. Ikeler of
Columbia county, had introduced a
resolution to discharge from the COM
mittee on elections, of which Plummer
was chairman, the ballot bill prepared
by the Democratic state committee and
which Quay had promised to support.
1t provided for personal registration IN
the cities and in opposing the resolu-
| tion to discharge the committee and
place it on the calendar Mr. Plummer
said.
81 does not seem to me to be right
| or just because there is a cry of fraud
in Philadelphia that every city in the
state should be put to the inconveni-
ence and expense Of personal regis
| tration law to enable few reformers
| to experiment with the cure of fraud In
that city" Legislative Record, pages
| 1922
AS the claim Of patriotism is "the
| last refuge OF a scoundrel so the buga-
| boo of the cost Is the first and last
resort of corruptionist who sees re-
form approaching" Naturally Mr..
| Plummer invoked this expedient to de-
lay personal registration, but the fall
ure of it then has cost the people ten
fold more In graft since than personal
| registration would have come to In Q
generation.
[Continued Next Week.l