The sun., 1909-11-17
HE BEAT ODELL IN EEVBURGHI
= SKIPPING II YEARS, MAYOR
M~OLUNG TELLS HOW.

The streets Freed From Mud Lifted Up
Their Voices for Him, and There was
Something 20 show for Every Dollar
spent-Nced . Gust Om House sssOn.
His Honor BENJAMIN MoClung. who is
famed all the way up the Hudson Valley
AS the political wizard who took the town
ot Newburgh out OF the vest pocket OF that
other Benjamin. to wit, ex-Boss Odell,
Two weeks ago, has come to town for a
breath OF sea air and to recuperate from
the fatigues incident to the last campaign
Tohear Mayor McClung explain it, how
ever he did not have to do anything in the
election TO tire himself out. for he Just sat
tight didn't make a speech, and let him
self be advertised by his loving friends
and the public improvements made in his
first term.
Mr. McClung is a lawyer and just a..
Heis little above medium he'll ght, smooth
shaven and the most prominent feature
Of his face is a nose that would compare
with imperial CRsar's.
How did beat Odell In his home town?
Well. IL Is q long story. and Mr.. Odell and
are one for a greater Newburgh. and be-
sides. our business and social relations
are friendly, so there is not much use in
going over II. However, the Mayor
continued. slipping glass Of b uttermilk.
.here are some OF the facts:
I'm skip seventeen years tn at inter-
vened between the election OF the last
Democratio Mayor OF the town and my
own two years ago, when the people
seemed to have got tired OF the Odell
regime. Odell was not in harness then.
hut his organization was intact. Well.
the first eighteen months OF my term more
improvements were made in the streets
than in any ten years previous and more
publio improvements were undertaken
and completed than during the term OF
any OF my predecessors. did not expect
to serve another term. The nomination
was forced upon me after had refused il
point blank. and IL was a week after the
convention before l decided that it was
up to me to accept, because the pressure
brought TO bear upon me indicated that
was rather a choice OF the people than OF
the Democratic party.
when the campaign opened Mr.. Odell
threw himself into II with all his old time
vigor. The Newburgh journal started
in TO assail the tax rate. Mr.. Odell per-
sonally investigated the city records. TO
which he had full access. wrote editorials
and personally conducted every meeting
of the district, ward and oity. He even
adopted an inquisitorial card index sys-
tenn in his endeavor TO draw into line his
old followers. You might say he worked
openly in a sense because knew every
move he was making.
Well. all l had for a campaign docu-
ment was the fact that everybody knew
that until the last eighteen months we had
had muddy streets and high taxes and
nothing to show for the money expended,
whereas in that time streets had been
paved and improvements carried on and
there was something to show for every
dollar spent. A rumor got about just be-
fore election that big lot OF money was
going to be poured into the town to de-
feat the head Of the ticket and We inn
ported fifteen New York detectives and
put them at the polling places, where 1t
was boasted that a majority OF votes
could be purchased and where the most
active heelers were usually stationed.
dation but that everybody might have a
reasonable chance TO cast his vote as he
pleased. Not an arrest was made. Every
thing was orderly and was returned by
a ma sjority OF e2s in a vote OF $500. New
burgh is usually Republican by / 200.
Odell carried it for Congress by 1.9O0
and the Republican County Clerk carried
IL this year by I,4OO.
of course one thing that helped TO
bring about my election was the attitude
nj the Nsns, which would not stand for
Odell. The latter. | understand, was a
pretty sick man after the election, and
even before it, when he realized how
things were going, However. | believe
he is Just as much Interested in a greater
Newhurgh as l am"
Just what do you mean by a greater
Newburgh?' was asked
Why, we mean a growing Newburgh.
We are not reaching out and grasping
other municipalities. But il is a fact that
there isn't a single factory in the town
that is not running at full capacity. IL
is difficult to find a to let sign in the
place and we are for spreading out. And
why shouldn't we? We have all the rail-
road advantages that New York enjoys.
We can get anything that you can. We
have water so deep that big vessels can
come up alongside the bank Of the river,
and why should not Newburgh grow to
he a great city,"