Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1908-04-23
RICHMONO'S big ROLLS"

Richmond News Leader, a short time
ago sent Mr.. Copeland to the Ninth
District to investigate conditions here
and help to purify the politics of our
mountain section. Mr.. Copeland gave
some very lurid reports as to the I'M
clean politics of the Ninth. If one
would believe his statements, the Dem
ocrats of our district are very corrupt
and the Republicans are vile. We
were very much amused at this effort
OF our Richmond contemporary and its
chosen missionary, Mr.. Copeland, to re-
form the morals of the voters of the
Southwest The amusing feature was.
that the News Leader and Mr.. Cope
land must have known that there was
ample work for them at home, even to
require and absorb all of the abundant
force and brilliancy of our Richmond
contemporary and its Democratic zealot.
Mr.. Copeland.
In our issue of the 9th inst. we re-
minded the News Leader and its mis-
sionary to the Ninth District of the
corruption that exists in their own DO
ltlcal household. right at home. And
we advised them to engage in home
mission work before they essayed to
enter foreign field. From what we
read about the Democratic primary
held at Richmond last week to nomi-
nate municipal officers for that city. we
are forced to conclude that our advice
was not only timely but based on sub
stantial fact.
1t seems that the Richmond Journal
became suspicious of the methods that
had been used by the ring politicians to
defeat Carlton Mccarthy, who was a
candidate at the primary for reelection
as mayor of Richmond. The Journal
started out one of its reporters on a
tour of investigation. When the re-
porter reached the City Hall, it appears
he found trail, which the News Leader
and Mr.. Copeland can travel upon, and,
perhaps, accomplish much in the way of
reforming the morals of their own DO
litical family.
We gather that there had been a sud-
den change in sentiment on the part of
the attaches of the City Hall, of other
employees of the city and among the
voters few hours before the primary
was held. In the Journal reporters
account of his Investigation we find the
following:
What caused the sudden change in
the City Hall on Monday? asked Jour
nal man of one of the attaches of the
City Hall this morning."
The reply of the attache is rather in
teresting. He said:
II could see no reason for such
change myself. voted for the Mayor;
and might say it has been the custom
in the City Hall to support the man who
is IN office, if there is nothing particu-
lar against him.
81 know of no reason for this. and
paid only passing attention to it, until
the next morning, when heard man
who IS well known in political circles
say there was big roll on hand which
would be used in the interests of the
opposition to Mccarthy.
''But the roll was there. "a am in
formed, and in my precinct, on the dav
of election, / knew of men who had
been up to the Saturday night meeting
strong advocates of Mccarthy, but
who that morning went to the polls and
voted and worked for Richardson"
The Journal man also says:
"Another attache of the City Hall
said this morning that certain promi- |
nent politician told him there was a bio
roll, which would be used to the best
advantage in defeating Richardson"
So, there seems to have been two big
rolls, and both sides were looking after
the venal votes. But the Journal
man In another paragraph gives some
further interesting history as to the
clean politics of Richmond. Here is
what he says:
MANY members of the Street Clean
ing Department were working at the
polls on election day. Most Of them
worked for Richardson. 1t may be re-
called that on election day several years
ago a member Of this force received a
check for s25, as a reward for working
in certain direction at the First Jeffer-