Los Angeles herald., 1906-11-01

REBUKES
BRIBERS
Bell Challenges His
Opponent to
Answer
Calls on Herrin's Man
to Explain His
Position
pemocracy's Leader Proves He Is In,
dorsed by Labor, in Spite of
Ruef, Schmitz and
"the Push"
Special to The Herald.

special 70 Inc f1eidiu'
REDDING, Oct. 31.-Theodore A.
Bell, Democratic candidate for COVER
nor, has issued the following state
ment in response to the assertions made
by James N. Gillett at public meet
ing in Modesto last Saturday night:
To the people of the state of Cali
fornia:
In few days you will be called upon
to elect a governor. AS candidate
for that high office 1 wish to say
few words before the poll is taken,
and state my position without evasion
or equivocation. The Republican NOM
inee has declared publicly at Modesto
that l. am, the creature of Abe Ruef.
Gillett knows this to be false. He
knows further that he received his
own rlonination only through d com
bination between Herrin, Ruef and
Schmitz. / desire to ask Mr.. Gillett a
few plain questions, to which the peo-
pie will demand plain replies:
Did you not, Mr.. Gillett, at noon on
the day of your nomination at Santa
Cruz and just after you had finished
your lunch, meet Mayor Schmitz at
your room in the Sea Beach hotel and
personally confirm the deal made be-
tween Herrin and Schmitz, wherein
Mayor Schmitz, in the event of your
election, was to receive certain pat
ronage of the state, and in particular
was to name two of three harbor
commissioners of San Francisco, the
only reserva ton being that such COM
missioners should also be agreeable to
Herrin?
Aid of Schmitz and Ruef
1t is not a fact that you could not
have secured your nomination with
out the aid of Ruef and Schmitz, and
that your managers, Herrin, Parker
and Hatton, brought Schmitz post
haste from San Francisco to fix up the
deal and deliver the goods?
Is 1t not also a fact that at your
special request Ruef was placed on
your campaign committee and is still
retained there Is one of your man
ayers and advisers, notwithstanding
the fact that you have assumed the
anomalous position of criticising him
in public?
Further, when the rumor reached
your headquarters at Santa Cruz that
the Sonoma delegation was baking at
the railroad program, did you not in
feverish haste dispatch a messenger to
hunt up Parker and Hatton, for the
purpose of having them rearrange the
. slate in manner satisfactory to the
Sonoma delegates? VIII you deny that
this is but one of the many instances
wherein the railroad machine in charge
of your fight brought many delega-
tions into line by trading off state
Offices, including judicial nominations?
A Word to the Public
And now to the public: My Repub-
lican opponent charges that l started
out In this campaign to abuse Ruef
and Schmitz, but desisted upon re-
ceiving a telegram from San Fran
cisco. This is not true, and will
state the facts candidly At my meet
ing In Stockton Monday evening. Sep
! tember a. in my arraignment of Her
rim and Hearst | referred to them as
political monsters" and called upon
the people OF California to eliminate
them forever from the politics of the
! state. The San Francisco Call, on the
following morning, through error. sub
stituted the name of Ruef for that of
Hearst in two or three places. 1t Is
true this elected telegram and let
ter from San Francisco stating that
| II was inadvisable to mix up the mu-
nicipal situation in San Francisco with
the state fight. These messages did
not affect my course. but / continued
at many OF my meetings to refer to the
participation Of Ruef and Schmitz In
the infamies Of the Santa Cruz con-
vention.
Conditions In San Francisco
1t is true that l have not at any OF
my meetings, from the beginning OF
the campaign until now, discussed
political conditions In San Francisco
for the reason that they are local In
character. and / have confined myself
to state questions. Mr.. Gillett and his
friends are making strained effort
to use the Labor Union nomination
against me, and assert that II means
that Ruef and Schmitz are promoting
my election. This Is but another mem
dacious attempt to prejudice my can
didacy. ! was nominated by labor
not through Ruef and Schmitz but In
spite OF them. The wage earners OF
California deeply resented The Herrin-
Schmitz deal at Santa Cruz. which
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