Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1905-01-19
Indiana Corruption.

The prospect of political death some
times has the same effect as prospects
of physical death in this, the dying per-
son is forced thereby to tell the truth.
This seems to be the case with ex-Gov-
ernor Durbin of Indiana, who very re-
Gently stepped down and out. He want
ed to be vice president and failed in
that. He desired to succeed Charles
W. Fairbanks in the senate, but failed
in that The constitution of Indiana
did not permit him to be reelected to
the governorship, so as he yanishes in
to space he shoots into his Republican
brethren a Parthian arrow which will
rankle dangerously in the G.. O. p,
alias the q o. IL.
Now. in considering Governor Dur
bins remarkable language let it not be
forgotten that he is a rampant Repub-
liean-so rampant. in fact that he
would not give Governor William S.
Taylor up to the Kentucky authorities
for trial on the charge of being impH-
Gated in the conspiracy to murder Gov
ernor Goebe Let it also be remember
ed that since 1894 a space of ten years
the Republicans have had absolute
control of Indiana and that at the last
election they carried the state by near
~ 100000 majority
In making his adieus as chief magis-
trate of HooSierdom Governor Durbin
said inter alia
rrb, time l,,e ,,cy,,, t,,,. 49, a,,,,l;,, 40,
OF drastic remedial measures TO the
plague Of corruption which is fastening
itself upon our politics. We have in In
diana advanced legislation for the pro-
lection of the purity of the ballot. but
the statistics of political debauchery in
this state for 1904 if it We're possible to
present them would be nothing short of
astounding. | am Informed by unques-
toned authority that in a single county in
Indiana casting in 1902 a little more than
5000 votes there We're in the last cam
paign nearly LOO voters regularly listed
as purchasahe and that 900 raised by
assessment from candidates and other
wise We're spent by the contending po-
litical parties in the effort. to control the
county.
Now, gentle reader, does not that jar
you from center TO circumference, from
core to skim If that does not. then
surely these words from his Republican
ex-excellency will do it:
Instances have come to my attention
during the last few weeks where, in con-
tests for township trustees, votes have
brought SIS and $50 each. Our present
need is legislation framed in the light of
a clearer conception of the enormity of the
offense involved in the purchase or sale of
a vote Our present statute is fareical. as
4Ix1x 4
believe consideration should be given to
the advisability of requiring the gradual
introduction of voting machines.
perusal of the foregoing excerpt from
Governor Durbin's farewell message
This state of corruption exists under
Republican auspices. 1t surely was
not brought about overnight or even
since the late great Republican TIL
umph in Hoosierdom. On the con
traly. the chances are that the cor
ruption of which he speaks produced
the remarkable Republican majority
in Indiana last November and has pro-
duced the Republican majorities there
for the last ten gears. How does ii
happen that Governor Durbin never
discovered this extraordinary corrup
ton until he was quitting office Was
he blind and deaf rs well as dumb ON
the subject during his four years in
the gubernatoriai chair?
Really it matters little why he did
not speak sooner His political nose
appears to be out OF soint What is