Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-11-06
Warrants Out for
Thugs at Polls

| Continued from PAGE One
| the election had been received by District
Attorney Rotan up to a late hour this
afternoon. Mr.. Rotan said that he and
his assistants would remain on duty all
day to protect the rights Of citizens. The
District Attorneys oce will remain open
until after the polls close.
SCARE IN FOURTH WARD
The gunman scare in the Fourth Ward
occurred in the fifteenth division. the
stamping ground of State Senator Sam"
Salus, leader of the Vare-Smith Organiza-
ton in that ward. report that men with
pistols were in the polling place, at 625
| South Twelfth street, caused the police to
I make a search According to William F.
Wooderd, a negro Town Meeting watcher,
of 612 South Eleventh street. a revolver
was taken from a strange negro. No pistol
was found. according to Peter Ewell an
other negro Town Meeting watcher. On
Wooderds complaint Magistrate Stevenson
issued a John Doe warrant for the .stran-
| gers arrest
| Michael Dowbenko. Town Meeting
watcher, was beaten and his ballot was
! torn to bits in n fight. according to war
| rants sworn out by Dowbenko, accusing
| George Christian, an election judge, CT as
| sault and battery and interfering with
| voter, and John Casey, a Highways Bureau
| employe, of interfering with a voter. The
| trouble occurred at the polling place of the
first division of the Fourth Ward, at South
and Swanson streets, in the river district
| According to Dowbenko, who lives at 6O5
South Front street he was about to put his
| ballot in the box when Casey yelled:
Don't let the Swede put it in"
This. Dowbenko told Judge Brown. was
the signal for a concerted attack on him,
led by Christian. AS soon as he was put
out of the place he asked for the warrant,
which was granted. Dowbenko said the only
grievance, against him was that he was a
watcher for the independents
Later warrants were sworn out for the
arrest of the entire election board of the
first division of the Fourth Ward on charges
Of conspiracy and interfering with a quail
flied voter The complainant was Dow
benko, who alleged that on returning again
this afternoon he was again prevented from
voting. He then returned to the Municipal
Court and got a second warrant for George
Christian and John Casey. and also for John
Coleman majority inspector; Joseph Casey,
minority inspector; Thomas OToole, clerk
to majority inspector, and Freeman Snyder,
clerk to minority inspector.
Following a quarrel at the polling place
of the ninth division of the Fifteenth Ward
which is at Tenth and Poplar streets. be-
tween Frank Smith, Ware worker, and
George Dawley Town Meeting supporter
Dawley swore out warrant for Smiths
arrest on a charge of assault and battery
Senator Ware gave bail for Smiths APP
pearance in the Municipal Court next
Thursday
Town Meeting headquarters this morning
sent detectives into the Thirteth Ward, OF
! which City Treasurer McCoach is Ware
leader, to investigate complaints that voters
were being intimldated Voters asserted
that in the fourteenth division of the ward
Nineteenth and Carpenter streets, Republi
can Organization workers were insisting
upon marking the ballots for the voters,
TOWN MEETING WORKER ARRESTED
One of the days first arrests was that o.
Fred Nelson, thirty-elght years old, loot
Kater street Nelson, Town Meeting work
er, was arrested shortly after polls opened
, by Policeman Ry IN. in the seventh division
of the Fourth Ward, on charges of fraudu
lent voting preferred ny Organization work
ers, led by State Senator Sam" Salus
Nelson was held in 5000 bail by Judge
Brown for further hearing and was re
, leased to vote.
s John Barrett. Town Meeting watche
at the polling place of the fifth division o
the Forty-eighth Ward, at Garnet stree
and Snyder avenue, was arrested on
charge of interfering with n voter. Mr
VINO Is real estate broker, VIII
offices at 1920 Chestnut street, was ARRESTED
) by Policeman Ramsey. of the Twenty -eightl
! and Ritner streets station. The charge late
\ was withdrawn.
4 Warrants were issued by Magistrat
Renshaw for the arrest of Nathan Ciplet
\ an employe in the Office of the Recorder o
v Deeds, of 427 Bainbridge street; Davi
0 Nachman, employed in the Department o
= Public Works, of 436 Monroe street, an
=, Wolf Fogel, of 706 South Fourth street
charging them with interfering in the con
, duct of the election and unlawfully assist
: ing voters. The men were taken befor
: Magistrate Eisenbrown and were admitte
A | to $500 bail.
h FIRST APPEALS IN VAIN,
1t is alleged that the three men attempte
| to influence voters OF the seventh divisio
. | of the Fourth Ward, at Fourth and Bain
. | bridge streets. to mark their ballots in
= | certain way that they intruded themseve
into the election booths and that the
showed voters out of booths. Charles Der
inghower is the judge of election at thi
~ | precinct and II is said that appeals to hir
q | to stop the attempted intimidation of voter
\ | had no effect whatever. David Wechtei
;, one of the watchers for the Town Meetin
, party at this polling place, is said TO hav
"a reported the situation to headquarters bu
no action was taken. Finally the warrant
IL -