New-York tribune., 1922-09-06
Elections Board Official
Assures His Managers
That Emblem Need Not
Be Printed ON Petitions
Surrogate Himself
Discovers the Trap
Effect Would Have Been
to Bar Candidate From
Participation in Voting

Ihe attempt of Charles f. Murphy,
leader OF Tammany Hall, and his few
but powerful Republican allies in this
county to prevent the reelection of
Surrogate John P. Cohalan found sup
port, according to the Surrogate's non
partisan hackers yesterday, in the
Board of Elections.
had 1T not been for the accidental
discovery of the s'error" made by off,
cials of the board, the entire non-par-
tisan movement to block the efforts of
Mr. Murphy and Samuel s. Koenig to
remove Cohalan from the bench would
have been spiked and Cohalan's name
would not have been permitted on she
ballot on Election Day
The "error" of the elections board
Official consisted in rendering an opin-
ION that the emblem of the Cohalan
Non-partisan Committee, or Cohalan
Nominators, as they are officially
known, would not have to be on the
designating petitions. The emblem is
the figure of Justice.
Cohalan Discovers Error"
Thousands of these defective petit
tions, which would have been rejected
on being filed as invalid and illegal
were printed and more than three thou
sand signatures obtained before the
terror was discovered yesterday by
Surrogate Cohalan.
Then committee representing the
Cohalan Nominators called at the
Board of Elections and called atten-
tlon to what Surrogate Cohalan held to
be the case, and then it was admitted
that the board official in passing judg-
ment last Thursday had made an GER
ror."
\ The supporters of Cohalan do not
characterize the occurrence as an
error" but as political trick to
nuliify the Non-partisan judiciary
movement and to insure the consum-
nation of the Koenig- Murphy deal to
remove Cohalan from the Widows and
Orphans court which he has insisted or
conducting without political interfer-
once.
Joseph McCloskey, one of the Nom
partisan supporters of the Surrogate,
and two other members of the Non
partisan Lawyers Committee, went with
the printers proof of the petition to
the Board of Elections last Thursday
and were informed that there was no
Justice on the document
New Petitions Prepared
After the "error" had been discov-
cred yesterday immediate steps were
taken to correct it, and on the new
petitions will appear drawing of the
statue of Justice, as the new law pro-
vides, and not a descriptive line, as
the Election Board officials first de-
clared would do.
The Cohalan Nominators have en-
gagged headquarters at 1893 Broadway,
on the northwest corner Of Forty-third
Street and Broadway. The Offices will
be on the second floor, which was for
merly occupied by Shanley's restau-
rant. Workrnen were busy yesterday
remodeling the floor, and from this
centrally located headquarters will be
directed the fight to keep the Surro-
gate on the bench.
An examination made yesterday of
the designating petitions of Frank j.
Coleman and John j. O'Brien, who were
picked by Murphy and Koenig as part
Of the deal to remove Conalan. showed
that they had been made, out properly.
1t was only after second visit at the
Board Of Elections thar the petitions
were shown to members of the Non
partisan Lawyers Committee 1t was
nrSt thought that the coleman petlJlon
at least might be defective. Repub-
licans who have been bitter in their
denunciation of Koenig's part in the
deal, were hoping that the examination
would disclose errors such as have been
found in number of other petitions.
Had this been the case, it was be-
lieved that Cohalan's name could have
been substituted in place of Coleman's,
and the deal broken, and another anti
Tammany victory brought about in this
city as occurred three years ago when
Murphy turned down Supreme Court
Justice Newburger for denomination
and the Republicans nominated him
and the bulk of the Republican ticket.