The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1908-04-16
.DARGIE DEFENDS
THE MACHINES
COUNTY CLERK
Discrimination Against Lincoln
Roosevelt League Arouses
a Storm
Cook Sends Deputy to Register
Chinese, but Turns Down
White Voters
Secretary Bingham Says At.
tempt Will Be Made to
Smash Rotten Combine

OtuaSn INOttCH OOiilUiuC
OAKLAND, April 15.-Bill Dargie,
owner of the notorious Oakland Trib-
une, has come to the rescue of County
Clerk Jack Cook in feeble defense of
that officials action in refusing to heed
request from former Mayor William
R. Davis and Earl S. Bingham, secre-
tary of the hfty-hrst assembly dis
trict Lincoln Roosevelt republican
league, to appoint deputy to register
voters at league meeting which was
held in East Oakland Tuesday even
ing.
PUBLISHES COOKS EXCUSE
In Dargie's paper, used tonight as a
medium of placid explanation by
Cook. appears the following:
County Clerk John P Cook refused
TO send registration deputy to the
Lincoln Roosevelt meeting held last
night in East Oakland for the pur-
pose of registering voters.
Numerous attacks were made on
Cook through his refusal and today he
said:
:" I have not been appointing regis
tration clerks unfortunately and
sending them TO every meeting that
takes place. II has been said that the
registration clerks have refused TO put
5o~y1 .Ha Tg,oaI, Doo-.,ot+ or,,A a.
party afiliation. They have refused
because the Lincoln Roosevelt club is
not considered as a political party for
the primaries i"
REFUSES TO AID VOTERS
Concerning Cooks statement Secre-
tary Bingham said tonight:
Cook begs the question absolutely.
did not ask him anything about reg
istration. except to name a deputy who
could register voters at our meeting.
1 presented letter from William r.
Davis TO Cook, introducing a man who
went with me and requesting that this
man be named for the purpose The
fact that Mr.. Davis name was ap-
RCAAC0 ~ mat ACNlCA nave cH-
titled US. I believe. TO some considera-
ton. 1t is entirely unnecessary for
me TO point out that Mr. Davis stand
ing in this community as citizen and
man of affairs should carry weight, no
matter what he might interest him
self in.
The purpose of getting this appoint
ment was to facilitate the registration
of large number of voters whose
homes are remote from the county
clerks office. and who were assem-
bled together at Tuesday evenings
meeting conveniently for registration.
Il repeat that not only did County
Clerk Cook refuse this request, which
would have involved no labor on his
part. but likewise did he refuse TO de-
tail one of his regular deputies
WILL SMASH COMBINATION
This is all the more peculiar In view
of the information which has come to
me of the action of one of his chief
deputies in attending a meeting OF
Chinese Monday night and registering
bunch of 20 odd native born men of
Chinese parentage.
1T appears to me and to hundreds
of other white men that Mr.. Cooks
explanations are not only lame but alb
surdly ridiculous IN the light of this
disclosure. We accept the county
clerks attitude in this matter as one
which will receive due attention in the
coming political battle. We purpose to
marshal the forces OF the seventh ward
and the fifty-first assembly district
against the rotten political combina-
ton Of which he is the front and CEN
ter. and we purpose to smash him as
hard as united constituency can
smash.
The insoIence of the county repub-
lican machine needs no better illustra-
tion than that afforded by County Clerk
Cook. I am convinced that IT will be
rebuked at the proper time by the
men of Oakland. who are thoroughly
aroused to the situation"