The Alaska citizen., 1914-04-27
TRIED AND TRUE" MACHINE

The Citizen has not endorsed
James Wickersham or any one else
as candidate for delegate to con
gress for the next election. and the
statement made by the Times last
Thursday morning to the effect that
this newspaper had endorsed Wick
ersham for the position was lie.
and everyone who has read The
Citizen knows it was lie,
There is only one way TO &C
count for such an unfounded false
hood on the part of the Times, and
that is to believe. which seems to
be the case, that the Times edi-
torial was written at the dictatiOn
of one l.. T. Erwin, WOuld-be-Demo-
cratic boss of the Tanana Valley, who
aas the only person criticised in
the editorial in this newspaper, to
which reference has been made.
II Erwin did not inspire the edi-
torial in the Times. there was alb
solutely no occasion for its appear
ance The Citizens editorial found
fault only with the men who are
endeavoring to boss the Democratic
club, and the only boss mentioned
was l.. 7. Erwin. There is con
siderable evidence at hand to prove
that Erwin was responsible. either
directly or indirectly for the Times
editorial
In the first place, The Citizens
editorial appeared last Monday
morning, but not until Thursday did
the Times attempt to criticise it.
1t was known to The Citizen that
the Times was being urged by Err
wins office force to attack the edi-
torial and thus its appearance was
expected, for the Times acts only
when directed by a boss to do so,
such as it did in the Moves con-
troversy.
AS it is not being controlled by
any IHulH lduai VI any Nlup' ho
Citizen is at liberty to attack the
efforts of the Democratic machine,
which had its origin in the rump
convention of the Dirty Dozen to
gain control of the local Democratic
organization.
Erwin vas member of the rump
convention. He was a delegate sent
by that convention to Baltimore and
which was sold out to the Champ
Clark forces there, where Erwin vot-
ed consistently for Champ Clark
from first to last.
represented locally by Erwin, was
not limited to the way it sold itself
to the Clark forces in Washington
in order to be seated by Murphy
and the general Tammany bunch but
it can be traced from that time to
this.
Notwithstanding the fact that Err
win voted against Wilson at Balti-
more, he and others of the machine
made the false representation later
that they were backed by solid
Democracy in Alaska, and thus Sc
cured four appointments. one Of
which was that of Erwin as marshal.
The appointments were made be-
fore the administration at Washing
ton discovered the misrepresenta-
ton. 1t will be noticed that since
these four appointments were made,
which We're early in the game, the
administration at Washington in
stantly turned down" the Alaska
Democratic machine, which, it is
safe to say, will get no more pat
ronage from Washington.
1t was only recently that E. c.
Bunnell. Democratic committeeman
at Valdez, secured the backing Of
the entire rump machine, including
that Of Governor Strong, for his
appointment as district attorney for
the lnlrd DIVISION. but the machine
was coolly ignored, and stranger
imported for the place.
Even the recent appointment of the
new postmaster for Fairbanks was a
slap at the machine, which had 9TH
er candidates in line. Erwin was
working for one OF these aspirants
until he returned from Washington,
where he discovered that Mr.. Deal
was to receive the appointment, and
Immediately, in order to be on the
winning side. appeared to be endors-
ing him.
The really funny part of the Deal
situation, az far as Erwin was con-