The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-03-02
WALKER HANDS
 HIMSELF CLEAN
 BILL OF HEALTH
Refers In Glowing Terms to the Purity of His Polit-
 ical Ideals
Pleasantly Refers to Elm ployes of This Newspaper and Depicts Their Dark Deeds.

1 Alderman Daniel Walker of the Fourth District, responding to a sug-
 gestion that he should free himself o1
 imputations that he is secretly in alli-
 ance with the Republican administra- 1 ton, has presented a statement, 1T
 which he expresses the idea with
 some vehemence that Daniel Walker
 thinks Alderman Walker a pretty good fellow; says that he never
 touches graft, considers the political 1 conduct of some other gentlemen
 and concludes without referring in
 any way to those facts which have . been held to point to a prediction
 understanding with the Republican
 organization, or some members of it | highly advantageous to public service corporations, but not at all to the
 people or the Democratic party. l MT. Walker in his statement says: ITO begin with l want to say thai
 I have been interested in politics sev-
 eral years and that l am what can be termed a successful politician in that
 I win the primary battles and man. ] age to secure the confidence of my l constituents I attribute this success
 spurning graft of every description
 My critics oh and off the newspapers,
 l regret to say, cannot truthfully say | the same thing of themselves. Since
 1 was elected an alderman from the | Fourth district have worked for the
 success of the people and the better | ment of the city. l have aided in l securing many improvements in the western section but at the same time
 I have helped and worked for the bet torment of the whole city.
 l "1n all the years that I have been | in politics defy any man, woman or
 child, reporter or editor, to say that | l accepted one penny in the way of graft or a present of any kind that
 can be construed in the way of graft. What I have done for the people and
 my friends I have done out of the
 fullness of my heart and because l
 believed in the same.
 | "A few incidents of my political
 career may be well at this time to | illustrate the same more forcibly, to 1 wit: t:-
 1 Every vote that I have cast has
 been in the interest of the whole peo-
 pie and firmly believe that the first
 duty any public official owes is to the
 whole people, for in so doing he is do-
 ing his full duty to his party.
 "I believe such is the actual case
 with me as my experience in politics
 prove; as I have easily maintained | the confidence of the party following | as is demonstrated by my endorse l ment by the party members in every primary contest in which have parti- cipated. And I wish also to state l that in the last election I was endorse ed by the electorate of the district which I have the honor to represent by the largest majority ever given a
 democrat coming from that district. Notwithstanding the fact that the district is conceded to be a republican stronghold by a substantial majority. sSnppoSS
 'I would like to have, and openly challenge any person to come forward and truthfully state that I have ever voted, or requested any person to vote l against any nominee of the democra- tic party. Now I would like to give a few facts that will refresh the
 memory of some of the writers of the articles questioning my integrity as a Democrat. -, .,.,-
 "A few years ago the Democratic party had a little trouble in finding a candidate. to run for Senator in the 21st Senatorial district, owing to the fact that the district has Substan- tial Republican majority. James L.. McGoyern waited upon me and re- quested that I use my influence to have Major Thomas Boudren endorsed by the Democratic convention, this, notwithstanding the fact that MT. Boudren had been lifelong Repub- lican and there was no good reason for so doing other than Mir. McGov- ern's personal friendship for MT. Bou-
 dren. I refused to be a party to it. I was asked who I could get to run. I replied by saying I would nominate
 MT. John Near, a sterling Democrat,
 and I said that I would pay his ex-
 penses but never would I stand for the district endorsing a Republican, Now much has been said about so-
 called party bosses. Well let us examine my record wherein I have ever been a boss or used my inffu- cratic convention or movement with out being duly chosen as a delegate to said convention or meeting. Who are better qualified to conduct a elected by the Democrats of the sev- eral districts or those who by virtue of being employed on a newspaper try to do so.
 Now to make the foregoing state ment little plainer it will do well to recall a little incident of the last campaign.
 Just previous to the last city con- vention of the Democratic party when it was generally conceded and uni versally acknowledged that John M. Donnelly was likely to be the choice of the majority of the delegates of the said convention for the nomina- tion for mayor on the Democratic ticket, MT. Lynn W. Wilson, an .edi- torial writer on the Evening Farmer waited on MT. Donnelly and told him that if he dared to accept the nomi- nation at the hands of the delegates the paper which he represented would not support him.
 How about that for boss rule?
 Now what prompted MT. Wilson's action. was it love of principle? No.
 Alderman Walker charges that James L. McGovern had been unable to direct the legislative policy of John M. Donnelly during the latter's term in the Senate, and also that he held office under MT. Buckingham as as- sistant city clerk as well as his pres ent membership on the Board of Ap- praisal; that there is nothing in pOli- tics for him and that he would be thousands of dollars better off if he staid out of the game; that a police commissioner tried to force him to break his word at the time Judge T. c. Coughlin was candidate for judge he refused to favor Coughlin although the police commissioner threatened him; that he resisted the entreaties of persons who approached him and tried to get him to aid Lawrence J. Gill and Robert Weber against $. F. Boucher and William Thomas. MT. Walker closes his contribution in these pleasant words:
 1T realize that I am in public life and must pay the penalty that all successful men pay who make pro- gross, but I do not propose to be made the target of lying political mon- grels without defending myself.
 These attacks one me are ectuated