The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1910-01-27
MACHINE IN BAD SHAPE.
New York Republicans Badly Disor-
ganized.

ganized.
| Whatever the verdict of the State
Senate on the Conger-Allds bribery
charges, there is one thing certain,
and that is that the episode has pro-
duced the worst state of demoraliza-
ton that the New York Republican
machine has suffered within the men,
DRY of present-day politicians, says
a New York dispatch to the Boston
Transcript The party leaders, So
called, are running around like so
many children caught playing some
prohibited game. They cannot make
any excuses for the action of the
Senate majority in choosing as lead
er lothian Aids, against whom his
colleague, Conger, makes the bribery
charges; for whether or not these
charges be proven, the selection of
Aids was bad enough on his known
record to be thoroughly indefensible.
They cannot charge the expose to
the wicked reformers or to the Gov
ernor, for the dynamite blast was first
framed up by a regular of the regu-
lars. There is no defense whatever.
The fact that Benn Conger was the
man who did it hurts more than al
most anything else. Not that Conger
gave out to the Evening Post the story
whose publication started the public
row; but it has been noised around
Albany and New York city ever since
the Legislature met that there was
something "on" majority leader Aids
that would be sprung whenever the
appropriate time arrived. Just why
the explosion was timed at this juno
ture does not appear as yet and one
of the saddest men in the whole stu
alton is Conger himself. For he has
to take the blame of having started
it that evening, when the Republican
insurgents met at the Ten Eyck to de-
wise protest against the selection of
Aids, and Conger told his colleagues
that he knew that Aids, back in 1901,
had taken the graft in connection with
certain highway bills. From that mo-
ment it was certain that the mine
would be fired at some time or other
before the session was very old.
Now Conger is making it worse A
machine man himself, one who has
supported the machine throughout it's
opposition to the Hughes reforms, one
who has played ball with the boys
nothing hurts him so much as the
thought that he has told on a pal. 1t
didn't disturb Conger in the old days
to serve in the Assembly when he
was personally interested in one or
more bridge building concerns which
| had business with the State. The fact
of the payments alleged to have been
made to Aids, his fellow Assembly
man, by the interests with which he
was associated, if not by himself or
his agents directly. produced no such
| shock to his moral system as to move
him to say anything about it at the
| time. 1t is only now in these later
days when a new spirit has entered
politics and has even touched such
men as Conger and Aids, that the Tor
! mer becomes indignant that tie lat
ter is proposed for the leadership of
the party in the upper branch. Per-
sonally he is sorry for Aids.
AS Conger said in his latest inter-
views: THE whole thing doesn't
amount to a very great deal, and fur
Their, it all occurred eight or nine
years ago when 10 Aids and | were
in the Assembly together. We knew
each other very well. We were on
committees togther. l just knew what
sort of man he was. Why, that mat
| ter between us was a mere flea bite
in comparison with what was going
on at Albany at that time. The Black
Horse Cavalry was in the saddle then
you know it, just as | knew it then
and those days were different from
the present. Everyone knew about TIL
performances of the Black Horse
Cavalry of those days. Strike bills were
being introduced on all sides, and
the way to head them off was to pay
pay, pay. 1t was understood. No
body thought anything particular
about it in those days. Now it is all
changed. AS | say, the little matter
between Aids and me was so trifling
that it was hardly worth mentioning.
While It afforded me reason sufficient
for believing that Senator Aids was
not the best man that could be found
| for leader, it hardly seems to me that
it justifies the publicity that has been
given it,"
1t is not difficult to imagine the
feelings of Governor Hughes in read
ing that section of the Conger inter-
view down in Washington, where he
has been attending the sessions OF
the House of Governors. Here is the
| confession from the inside of the eX-
istence of the corrupt bargain to the
destruction of winch he has devot-
ed the whole three splendid years OF
his administration. Here, in what he