Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1914-11-03
MACHINE AGENTS
TRY ALL SCHEMES
TO AID PENROSE
Detectives on Trail of Fraud
Investigating Complaints
That Independents Are
Hampered by Organization

Attempts by the Penrose- -McNichol-
Ware machine to perpetrate election
frauds at the polls today are being
closely watched by the police, the Com
mittee of Seventy and the Palmer-Mc-
Cormick Committee OF One Hundred.
Preparations have been made for the
immediate arrest OF any one attempting
to cast an illegal ballot.
Detectives of the Committee of Seventy
arrested him, on a warrant sworn out
before Magistrate Beaton charging false
registration, perjury and illegal voting.
He will have hearing at Central Station
tonight
The second arrest was that Of a man
giving his name as Lester Johnson, of
1858 Market street. He was voting in the
9TH Division of the 2ith Ward at the
time, and was taken TO the 32d street and
Woodland avenue station
Twenty-Five complaints of Illegal voting
were made to the Committee of Seventy,
and arrests will be made in these cases
later. II was impossible to make arrests
at the polls in these instances, the COM
mittee's detectives said, because of the
rush of voters to the polls.
COMPLAINTS ARE VARIED.
The Committee OF Seventy has also re-
ceIved complaints charging wholesale as
sistanee of voters in the 2Sth Division of
the S6th Ward In the Sd Division Of
the 46th Ward there is no ballot box. A
soap box is being used, it is charged
In the 14th Division Of the I'd Ward
and In the 18th Division OF the 44th Ward.
1t was reported to the Committee OF
Seventy. the election boards have re-
a
minority inspectors. In the 3Oth Di-
vision of the LIST Ward an independent
Watchers certificate was not accented
and the watcher elected according to a
complaint made to the committee.
Detectives IN MACHINE WARDS.
Detectives, armed with warrants, have
been stationed I'm nearly every division in
the downtown Penrose e-McNichol-Vare
wards. ready to arrest every one who at
tempts Illegal voting today.
The detectives are acting for the Com
mittee of Seventy and the Palmer-Mc-
CormIck Committee OF One Hundred
Each man carries in his pocket a COM
plete list of the phantoms and the names
Of citizens not entitled to vote because
they changed their residence since regis
tratlon or have not lived in the division
long enough.
The names, nearly 1000 of them. were
not struck from the registration lists BY
the Board Of Registration Commissioners
following the police canvass OF the CITY.
because the Committee of Seventy re-
served them for criminal prosecution in
the event of attempts to vote under these
names.
WARRANTS READY FOR PIIANToMs.
The detectives will be stationed as
watchers inside the polling places until
the polls close at o'clock this evening.
Whenever any one calls for a ballot under
one Of the prescribed names, ne will be
permitted to receive a ballot, mark It
and then sign it.
II his signature on the ballot does not
agree with that in the registration book
he will be arrested, under the warrant
already made out for him.
The warrants were all issued yesterday
and placed in the hands OF the detectives
yesterday afternoon and last night
Policemen will be stationed outside every
polling place to preserve order and as
sist the watchers in seeing that voters
receive square treatment In the machine
wards
The policemen stationed at the polls in
the divisions where the prescribed list is
registered will assist the detectives IN
every way possible. Director Porter n
was learned today has stationed police
men at these polling places who win CO.
operate with the detectives In their EFFORT
to prevent fraudulent voting by PenFose-
AieNichol-Yare henchmen.