Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1912-05-31
ADMIT THEY
ACCEPTED BRIDES
Atlantic City counciImen Con.
fess After Evidence Is Pro-
duced by Dictagraph.
tco~ntinuea on Fourth Page,

tCOnffnueh on fOurth Page.b
cilmen. The plant he art..-ged. to
catch them was In most essentials simi-
lar to hat employed In Ohio and in the
San Francisco exposure. The wonder Is
that, In view of the recent disclosures
which have startled tlantic City, the
councilmen could have been so bold in
their operations. As a matter of fact
their actions are credited by the Burns
operatives TO fool-hardiness.
AS a commentary upon the sort of
thing that has been going on in the
city's official'life 1t is said that the four
councilmen. in making their confessions,
told of two other deals In which they
were involved, in one of which money
actually passed. This was In a garbage
contract deal in which one OF Kuehnle's
fnen Is said to rave figured.
The specific amount which each of the
couneilmen is declared to have taken is
$500. This was the initial deposit on
s., 900 which each was to receive as soon
as the ordinance granting the right TO
build the new concrete walk had been
finally passed. Each of the -four coun-
cilmen returned the $500 TO Burns when
the confession was mace.
First Payment Is Made.
Last month the ordinance was passed
by a vote of IS to 4. In the meantime
the initial payment on the bride had
been made and the ~dictagraph had don't
It's work.
But Mayor Bacharach vetoed the ordi-
nance. Thereupon Phoebus served no.
tice that the ordinance could be passed
over the mayors veto for an additional
LOCO each. Tint is where Burns clamped
on the lid. He summoned the four coun-
cilmen, who later confessed, and one by
one they broke down.
He interviewed Dougherty, and when
the latter declined to make any admis-
sion, insisting that the whole thing was
. fake a warrant was issued for his
arrest and served upon him.
1t is worthy of note that Commodore
Kuehnle is not named in connection
with the bribe-taking. From the stories
told by the accused councilmen. they
were going 1t alone"
Detective Burns began the investiga-
ton in April, 1911. He worked quietly,
as is his custom. Some discoveries were
made which, while not of great impor-
lance, justified the continuance of the
investigation. Finally, in the latter part
of last summer. the trail began to get
hot, and Burns decided that 1t was time
to begin operations in earnest.
contractor" Reaches City.
1t was in August that a MI. Harris,
looking every inch of the wealthy CON
tractor reached here and began his
part of the work. He took quarters at
one of the leading boardwalk hotels,
dressed up to the part he was maintain
ing, and began to let 1t be known that he
would like to get the job of building a
new concrete walk along the beach, to be
substituted for the present boardwalk.
was well exploited In the newspapers ut
the time.
Associated with Harris was a man who
was known as +. s. Franklin-the man, as
q matter Of fact, who was the investiga-
tor In the Ohio bribery cases. To make
the plant" more complete, the services
Of General James W. Howard, a high
New York engineer, was engaged.
Howard, who had no knowledge
Of the fact that the whole scheme was a
plan to trap the councilmen, was to pre-
pare the specifications, drawings and bids
for the walk.
Finally Harris formed the acquaintance
IL Councilman Phoebus. The two dis
pussed the concrete esplanade proposition,
and finally they reached the point where
offer was made by Phoebus and nc
cepted by Harris.
Charge $1,000 Was Wanted.
Phoebus, according to the charges based
upon the evidence obtained by the dicta-
graph, and substantiated by the confess
sion, proposed to put the ordinance
councils for Sc. 900 FOR each of the
votes that he could obtain.
Harris expressed his satisfaction with
this arrangement. Phoebus then intro
duced Harris to the other four council
men named in the present case. The
anal agreement was that Harris was to
pay $500 down to each councilman who
would agree TO vote for the ordinance
and the balance after the measure had
been finally passed,
The next step in the game was TO get
the five men on record. First they were
to a big boardwalk hotel; they
to go. Another less prominent
boardwalk hotel was then named, but
The councilmen refused to consider this
rs a proper or advisable meeting place.
the proposition was made that