Waterbury evening Democrat., 1908-11-16
BUYING VOTES
Bribed and Brlbers Should Be
 Brought 10 Account.

That alleged bribery charge in Cheshire should be thoroughly aired and If there Is anything to 1t .he bribed and the bribers deserve all there is coming to them and thers must be somebody whose duty 1t Ia to see that they get 1t. It doesn't make any difference who Mir Fox is,. what he has been in the past and what he may be in the future; neith- CT should any attention be paid to the character of the men who accept ed the money nor to that of those who gave 1t to them. The only thing in connection with the case worth looking into is the statement that certain men were offered and received money for their votes. If this be so 1t should not be made light of, and the inference that such things are quite common now-a-days is nothing short of adding insult to injury. To be sure you find men in almost every group who look up- on the franchise as commodity to be bought and sold the same as any thing else
 My old man always voted the same ticket and he never got dol- lar out of it," remarked a bright appearing young man to few as- sociates in an Exchange Place cigaf store the day after the recent cleo tion. q made more out of politics yesterday" he added, speaking loud enough to be heard on the street, than the old gent ever got in his whole life, although he's been voting here for over twenty-five years, and this was my first trip"
 We'll" replied young man or higher ideas, probably your father never wanted anything for his vote. I suppose he was an honest man who went to the polls and cast his bal lot for the men he though best quail flied to fill the offices they were running for, and then went home about his business.
 This almost drove the first speak CT out of his wits and the way he acclaimed was a caution. He wanted to know if anybody took him for a chump, if there was anybody in the bunch who thought everybody in politics is not stealing everything he can get his hands on, and wound up | by stating that person who can | get five spotter or more on election is a d. fool not to take it.
 It was evident from the tone of the young mans speech that he be- 1 lieved a man who does not look for I the highest bidder on election day is a fool, and the bad feature of Il all is that quite considerable nnm- Der view the matter from that stand point, so that there is a sort of sym pathy for the fellow that gets caught at the game any anybody who tries to expose the yiciou3 practice is bound to meet with the severesl kind of criticism. This is mistake Every citizen. regardless of his polit, ical affiliations should have his hand raised against the business of mak ing commercial article of the fran chise and as everybody knows that not votes would be offered for salf if there were no buyers in the mar ket it goes without saying that the purchaser Is the real culprit anf should receive the full length of tho l lash Of course nobody should bt convicted on hearsay evidence neither should anybody take stoci in wild statements made by irrespon sible parties, but when an intelligent human being comes forward ant makes affidavit he sold his vote ant mentions the name of the purchaser surely every honest man and woman should be interested in seeing th' offenders punished and the practice | condemned.