Year: 1876

GUIDB IN POLITICS.


tynoM A STAFF CORRESPONDENT OF IHR TRBUNEt


Tacoma, " H., March 7.-ln a recent letter from
Concord explained the methods by which large
corruption funds are raised by the central commit
tecs of both parties and spoke of their systematic
distribution to the local committees in close towns
% be used for purchasing votes. In order to learn
something definite of the way this buying busi-
ness is carried on came to this place on account of
tts reputation Of being of the most hotly con-
tested towns in the State, and one where large
amount of money is spent. On the way up was 80
fortunate as 20 meet on the cars member OF the
Democratic town cOmmittee-an energetic muscular
man of rather coarse tmental and moral fiber,
bot hearty aud outspOken--a good typical New
Hampshire Democrat, IN short. After talking awhile
on the. situation IN the State he had been to Con-
cord 20 confer with the Central Committed be ex-
planned frankly the manner OF running the cam
paign IN his town:


1--WE have 1873 1oatwocd voters" he said, "out of
about / 900. We know every man of them and so
does the other side and the game is to strike bar
gain with them for their votes and keep the Repub-
hcans from buying them. After We have made our
canvass and got our list of these fellows We 90 10
work upon them. We have twelve committees IN
the town that report once a week TO oar executive
committee. When we have bought a man we
usually paw him n small amount in band and give
him the rest Of his money after he has votcd.'


"How can you know asked, that one OF your
purchased voters VIII not afterward sell out TO the
enemyf"


1--WE watch them very close. IL fellow comes
10 us after We have ght him and tells s that the
Republicans have made him an offer, we know he's
all right, and we tell him 10 get al the money be
can out OF them. If he doesn't come with such
report we feel pretty sure he's been captured We're
mighty careful not to pay anything in advance to
men whom VIC suspect VIII play double game


DO YOU mean 10 say that all of those 1873 men
will he bought next Tuesday p | inquired.


Every man Of them. Most Of them have been
bought already. few are holding ont for big
price, knowing it Is going TO be a close election"


whats about the average price this yoarp


"Oh its hard to tell = said my Democratic friend.
Different men have different prices. Some can be
got for 81 o or S15, and some cost us $50"


"I heard in Concord that the Republicans were
paying as high as $7j.'


81 know Of men that cost them 800. They have
90 pay higher prices than do because Tacoma IS
naturally Democratic town, by about so majority,
and TO carry il they must buy our men,"


"Then am to understand that il costs yOu less to
brbe your own men to remain faithful than it does
the Republicans to coax them away from youP


That's b" replied the committeeman.


asked him how much money would be spent in





thought lie appeared unwilling TO say how much
his committee would pay out, but finally said it
would be about $500.


Lacona contains a large village Of that name and
half of another called Lake Port In both places
there arc numerous factories for the manufacture OF
stockings and il is the hands IN these concerns who
furnish the bulk of the loatwood vote At the ho-
tel two active Republican workers sat near me at the
dinner table. One was on the Town Committee,
and appeared to be an expert in the trade OF cor
ruptnR voters lie was a nervous, active, faSt-talk
ing man, with keen gray eyes smOoth-s haven
checks, and a beard upon his chin, and he looked a
good deal like the carcatures intended toreprcsent
Uncle Sam. He spoke without hesitation Of the
bribery business, introducing the unsavory topic
himself as indeed, does almost every politician of
either party meet


"I tell you we play il fine here" he said There
are about 400 good Republicans aud many trust
worthy Democrats, andwe haveabOut 100 men who
have to he paid before they will vote. 1t is getting
worse every year. Formerly we were rather cautious
and sheepish about approaching men with money,
but now we make no more of asking man how
much he will take for bis vote than We would OF In
Quiring the price of his horse"


" How do you make that man will vote
your ticket after you have bought him n inquired,
wishing to get at the details of the nefarous traffic.


Zone of our trusty men takes him TO the polls,
gives him his ticket, and sees it so in. There's no
trouble about that"


"And then you pay the price agreed upOnP


"Yes usually upon election day. Last year Ipaid
six Of my men right in the tOwn-house. There was
talk of arresting me- but laughed at the idea As
If couldn't pay my honest debts, hal hap


gentleman sitting opposite, who proved TO be
also Committeeman, said nc usually paid for the
votes he bought through third party. If no safer,
1t was more agreeable to him. He lamcnted the ex-
istence of the purchase system but said that neither
party could abandon it without suffering sure
defeat / asked how long tho wholesale corruption
Of the ballot had been going on. He replied that 1t
began 20 years ago, but soon ceased, and that its
present existence dated back only few years. He
explained how the agents of one party when they
fail to buy q man from the other side encOurge him
10 go and demand money from his own party mana
gers telling him il is being given TO worse men than
he and that he ought to have his share. This Is
trick TO deplete the funds of the enemy" break
their bank is the term used. If party's money
gives out and there still remain few votes not con-
tracted or the other side if still funds, easily bags
them.


Leaving out of the question the shocking i'm
morality of the system said, "pray tell ne how
does it pay 10 spend $1,000 $4,000 to elect three
members Of the Legislature, who get only SO day
for about five weeks in the year ~


at doesn't pay, but the contest is like battle
when we're in 1t We are mad and determined to win
at any cost. ] have known men 10 mortgage their
farms 10 get themselves elected selectmen of the
tOwn-an Office that pays almost nothing"


LacOnia is worse than dozens of other towns
A. the State, only the system is carried little
further here. Probably more money is spent in pro-
portion 10 the voting population than in any other