THE EFFECT OF IT.

*

7137

The effect of this "then was, that, in answer to the private circular, Tammany Hall "would get the vote from the country (counties, by telegraph) before they could get the vote of the city," 136 the polls closing at "six minutes before 5 o'clock p. m.' Another effect of this would be that it would enable the two canvassers at each polling place, where a conspiracy was arranged for the purpose, to change republican tickets for democratic, or "stuff the ballot-boxes," add democratic tickets, and have them counted accordingly.

The instructions for delay had the desired effect. The democratic canvassers very generally followed their instructions. "More than two hundred" 138 telegrams came to Tammany Hall in answer to the circular, showing how well the programme was arranged, understood, and carried into effect. By about half past 8 o'clock p. m. on the evening of the election "about one-third of the State had been heard from." 139

The returns of the different wards of the city are sent by telegraph to "the headquarters of the police department, 300 Mulberry street," and "the clerk of the superintendent of the metropolitan police department" testifies that "the total presidential canvass (of the city) was not ascertained until nearly 1 or 2 o'clock of the night after the election; 99 140 and though some of the wards were returned earlier, Mr. Hall himself says the returns were "almost three hours later than usual." 99 141

In some of the districts, where the democratic canvassers commenced the canvass in the unusual mode advised by Tammany Hall, this method was abandoned after the canvass had progressed, when private advices142 communicated to such canvassers seems to have led to a sudden change of purpose and practice. Whether they were advised the purpose of the delay had been accomplished may be inferred. With this private advice all legal scruples as to the mode of canvassing at once disap peared.

BALLOT-BOX STUFFING.

That this time was employed to some extent in "stuffing ballot-boxes" is proved beyond a doubt. Henry Johnson, a poll clerk in the third elec tion district, fourth ward,143 testifies as follows: 144

There were names added to the poll-list during the day of persons who had not voted - 85 names in that district. The total vote returned was 682; the number of votes actually polled was 597. During the afternoon names were taken from one of the registers of one of the district inspectors to the number of 85; and 15 or 20 at a time were added to the voting list, while there was a lull in the rush of voters. In the evening the counting of the presidential vote was delayed until about half-past 11 or 12 o'clock, for some purpose which at that time was unknown to me, now well known; the democratic canvasser insisting upon counting the vote of each of the 35 electors separately, and making out a tally-list for each; and the republican canvasser insisting upon taking each ticket with 35 votes, and making out a single tally list, which would have taken three-quarters of an hour, while the other way would have taken eight or ten hours. By that time the republican canvasser had become pretty well intoxicated, and during the evening there were 85 tickets, containing each of the democratic candidates, obtained from some of the booths outside, and when the tick ets were shoved out on the table to be counted by the canvassers these additional tickets were thrown in so as to make the number correspond with the number of names registered. From the time of the closing of the polls the republican and democratic canvassers were wrangling as to the propriety of counting the votes. At half-past 9 or 10 o'clock the democratic canvasser asked me if I had any objection to keeping the tally. I told him if

143 See evidence of Costello and others, February 6. The evidence, page 362, shows the votes returned as Johnson testifies, and this corroborates his evidence.

144 Evidence, 82, 86.

H. Rep. Com. 31-4

they directed that to be done, I should certainly do it. They went on and tallied about 500 votes, when two or three gentlemen came in, called him one side, and whispered to him. He came back and agreed to the terms proposed by the republican canvasser. I then asked him why he had been objecting to that all this time. He said that two years ago the republicans in the interior defeated John T. Hoffman by holding back until they had heard from the city, and that now he meant to be even with them and to hold back the count until the interior had been heard from.

THE DISTRICT OF JOHN MORRISSEY, JAMES M'CARTIN, AND GEORGE FRANCIS TRAIN.

In the 5th congressional district in New York city, and the 5th election district, 13th ward, the canvass, as returned, showed votes for representative in Congress, for John Morrissey, (democrat,) 229; for James McCartin, (republican,) 131; for George Francis Train, (independent,) 1. Train's attorney took "a large number of affidavits of persons who swore that they voted for Train," 145 and he procured also "affidavits of various parties who swore that they voted for Train" 145 in that election district where the canvassers found he only received one vote.

Peter Hale testifies that "from 30 to 50 voted for Train. He saw the tickets deposited in the ballot-box." 146

FRAUDS IN THE FIVE DIFFERENT WARDS.

Some idea may be formed of the mode and extent of the fraudulent voting or canvassing, by other facts.

By law, none are entitled to vote unless they are registered.

It is impossible to tell how many votes were added by canvassers in the 340 election districts of New York city, in most of which, those engaged in the frauds were satisfied to keep within the registry. But in some of the districts, in five of the twenty-two wards, even this precaution was not used, as will be seen from the following table showing the excess of votes over registry:14

And it is abundantly proved that many names of voters were put on the poll-lists of voters when no such names were registered.1

148

It was not possible for the committee to trace this species of fraud in detail in all the districts. Its existence is proved. It was not confined to one locality, but was wide-spread.149 Ample arrangements were made to perfect it.150

145 Evidence, 4986.

146 Evidence, 5283.

147 Evidence, 3718.

148 Evidence, 5953, 4567, 5561..

149 Charles W. Burton testifies :

*

I attended the election in one of the wards of this city, (the 3d district of the 19th ward,) where some three ⚫ votes were received which were not on the registry. * I was at the polls when they were closed, and one of the canvassers refused to go on with the count while I was there. One of the canvassers was anxious to go on, but the other refused. [Evidence, 261. ]

150 Marshall Murray testifies :

571. Q. We are advised here that certain officers received ballots and that at a certain hour of the day they turn over the ballot-boxes to two other officers called the canvassers?-A. Yes, sir.

572. Q. And that the canvassers are constituted in the same way?-A. They are supposed to be so consti

The democratic party, without any fraudulent votes, had a large majority in the city of New York. Their purpose, therefore, was to carry the State. Frauds were planned on a scale commensurate with the object, and executed so as to accomplish it, and this furnishes evidence of their extent. It is impossible that those engaged in frauds so numerous, wide-spread, and extensive, would fail to perfect arrangements to make their work effectual.

THE SECRET CIRCULAR.

.99151

A. Oakey Hall, the author of the secret circular, was a witness before the committee. He could not fail to know that it had been charged that "the vote in New York was largely in excess of the legal voters;' yet, on the stand as a witness, he made no denial of this, nor did he aver that the secret circular had no purpose on the part of any one to secure such a result.152

He states one of its objects thus:153

The purpose was to get local estimates from our democratic friends with which to compare and to check the returns when they came in.

*

*

*

*

The object was to get what would seem to be superficial guess-work, but which was really an approximate statement.

By law the presidential electoral vote must be counted first.154 Adopting the usual mode of counting, this could be done in a very brief time, for Mr. Hall says, "after closing the polls" an "hour usually elapses when the results are beginning to be known everywhere."

According to Mr. Hall, then, the object was to find out how well the interior democrats could guess! He wanted their "local estimates with which to compare and to check the returns when they came in." Three hundred and forty democratic canvassers were solemnly assembled on the Sabbath, and instructed to delay the count; "the chairman of every county tuted. I was going to explain that to you. I discovered in September last that some forty or more of these canvassers, who were the most noisy men in the republican party in this city, invariably turned up as canvassers; and that they were at the same time holding sinecure positions in the street commissioner's office at $3 a day; and that the only duties that they performed was to act as canvassers, and to get this appointment with a view to counting the votes. I knew what that meant, and I called the attention of our State central committee to the fact. I know all about this counting a man out and counting a man in; I knew it was done for money; I knew that if you and I were canvassers in a certain election district in New York, and that if there were 1,000 votes polled in that district, that if John Doe got 550 and Richard Roe 450, John Doe had a majority of 100; but I could not understand that John Doe would get 950 and Richard Roe only 50 unless you and I understood each other. I probed the thing pretty fully, and went before our State central committee and made a statement of the facts; they appointed a committee, of which I was chairman, to ventilate these facts, and we did it pretty thoroughly. Instead of forty men being in that position I found three times the number-scaly fellows who were in the market; I struck out myself 225 names from this entire list. They held the office of registrars and canvassers.

573. Q. Professing to be republicans?-4. They were in point of fact.

574. Q. And were bought over and were acting in the interest of the democratic party ?-A. Yes, sir. 575. Q. Does the law require that the votes shall be canvassed in the presence of other parties than the canvassers?-A. The law requires that they shall be canvassed publicly, but during the investigation which I had occasioned to make I found some cases where they had locked themselves up in a room, taken the ballot-box in there, and canvassed it to suit themselves.

576. Q. Violating the law entirely?-A. Violating the law; the poll-list shows that so many votes were polled, and that the candidates have run pretty even, but the canvassers took so many from A to give them to B, and the total tallies.

66

151 Senate Mis. Doc. No. 4, 3d session 40th Cong., p. 6.

152 He says, in connection with, the purpose to get local estimates from the country, that "the idea of this circular was not to perpetrate frauds, but to check frauds." Whether by checking frauds" there was a purpose to offset country frauds by city frauds, as a check, does not appear. Colonel Samuel North, who, with Hall, directed all the details of the committee, did not ask to appear as a witness, nor did any member of the committee or persons implicated in frauds deem it advisable to call him.

Mr. Hall further testifies :

I wish to disavow the remotest intention, on our part, of in any way advising the canvassers in the city of New York as to the state of the country polls; and, as a matter of fact, I state that no one single canvasser in the city of New York knew what was the country poll, excepting as he may have heard it was announced at Tammany Hall or Cooper Institute.

The public announcement gave all the opportunity necessary to know the state of the canvass to any engaged in a conspiracy.

153 Evidence, 2937.

154 Evidence, 3565.

democratic organization of the State" was addressed, and 200 telegrams received to test the guessing capacities of rural democrats, for the innocent edification of the urban leaders of Tammany Hall, including A. Oakey Hall!!

Why this could not have been as well accomplished without the secrecy enjoined by this circular does not appear.

But then there was "another object," Mr. Hall says:

Another object of this circular was to induce gentlemen upon our side to apply in such numbers and so frequently to the telegraph offices of the State that the operators would know that returns of some kind were expected over the wires, for I believe that nine-tenths of the telegraph operators in this State are republicans.

From this it would seem that all over New York State, outside of its enlightened commercial metropolis, the republican telegraph operators, on the evening of an election at which a President, governor, members of Congress, senators, members of assembly, and other officers were voted for, did not "know that returns of some kind were expected over the wires." But happily for New York city, the talent of its high officers was equal to the emergency.

The Sunday meeting of canvassers, the secret circular to the democratic chairmen, induced "gentlemen upon the democratic side to apply in such numbers and so frequently to the telegraph offices of the State that the operators” did find out "that returns of some kind were expected."

Mr. Hall says the circular was headed "strictly confidential" because they "did not want to attract particular [public] attention to it." Yet how this would enable operators to know that "returns of some kind were expected" is not perceived. This mode of reaching the republican operators was rather indirect. The work might have been accomplished, perhaps, if the superintendents of telegraph lines had sent a general despatch giving notice "that returns of some kind are expected!"

These objects alone would scarcely seem to justify so great an expenditure of time, talents, and other resources, in relation to the secret circular.

The examination of Mr. Hall proceeds:

3557. Q. Your object, then, was to get the returns from the country before they got the returns from New York?

A. No; our object was to prevent their getting the New York vote; it was nothing to us to get their vote, except as we opened the wires and made them send their vote.

"Nothing to us to get their vote." Then why was the secret circular sent? It says there was an important object to be attained by it. But Mr. Hall proceeded to testify:

There was, of course, an important object to be attained in the words written by me in the manuscript after the receipt of the circular, because I wanted to call particular attention of parties into whose hands this might fall through the post, and to make it emphatic.

What that "important object" was he does not disclose, beyond what is stated. But whatever the "important object" was, it seemed necessary, in order to accomplish it, that the condition of the vote in the interior of the State should be immediately known in the city, for he says, in answer to the question:

2940. Q. But the moment you commenced receiving telegrams in response to that circu lar, you then desired that they should know it?

A. Certainly.

And the importance of the object brought 200 telegrams, which were read as soon as received from the desk at Tammany Hall, "and then at the Manhattan club, to splendid congregations of mourners."

It is a significant fact that Samuel North did not volunteer to enlighten the committee, nor did any one of the committee or others deem it advisable to call him.

CHAPTER V.

HOW THESE FRAUDS WERE PERPETRATED-RESPONSIBILITY OF THE

DEMOCRATIC PARTY.

The city of New York embraces and is coextensive with the county. The city and county government comprises a metropolitan board of police commissioners elected by the legislature. This board appoints a superintendent of police, a police force of over 2,000 police officers, 1,360 inspectors of registry and elections, 680 poll clerks, and an equal number of canvassers. The city and county government also has a mayor; a common council of 21 aldermen and 21 assistant aldermen; a comptroller who is the chief financial officer; a city chamberlain, appointed by the mayor with the consent of the board of aldermen; a board of 12 supervisors; a sheriff, with deputies innumerable; a supreme court, with five judges; a county clerk, who is ex officio clerk of the supreme court, with a deputy and numerous assistants; a superior court, with six judges, a clerk, deputy, special deputy, and assistants; the court of common pleas, with three judges, a clerk, deputy, and assistants; the marine court, with three judges; a court of general sessions held by a recorder and city judge; eight police justices; eight district courts, all with clerks and other officers; a district attorney; a street commissioner and deputy, with clerks and employés ranging from 70 to 600. The mayor, aldermen, assistant aldermen, comptroller, half the supervisors, the judges, sheriffs, county clerk, district attorney, and police justices are all elected by the voters. The city government has revenues amounting to about $23,000,000, with a patronage to dispense, contracts to let, and power otherwise larger than many of the States. New York city sends 5 and 21 members of assembly to the legislature, and six represenss, all elected by the voters.

cers are democrats except half the board of police comalf the election officers, 155 about one-half of the police force,156 justice,157 and five supervisors; and there is but one158 republican in the city.

ith this army of democratic officers, a portion of whom are unscrupious and corrupt, and with the power of appointment over and patonage for a multitude of men whties in registering voters and receiving

thipotes.

uers as t

nti

Alugh it was notorious that thousands of fraudulent certificates of ation had been distributed broadcast171 over the city to per› never appeared in court to be naturalized, and that others had cured on fictitious and assumed names to be used by repeatt the district attorney advised these inspectors, and "a good

167

Evidence, 3111, 3112, 3115, 3099, 3514, 3517, 3520, 3533, 3547, 3537.

ence, 2095, 2147, 3031.

Evidence, 462, 933, 1073, 1306, 1785, 1799, 1813, 1824, 1825, 1844, 1845, 1968, 2093, 2220, 2924, 3027, 3075, 3099, 3263, 4059, 4063, 4132, 4164, 4213, 4575, 4580-83, 4606, 4820, 3514, 3553, 1872, 1900, 1984, 1922, 1930, 1935, 2341, 2897, 2912, 3260, 3395, 3863, 3386. No sufficient challenging, 933, 1073, 1306, 1785, 1799, 1813, 1968, 2093, 2220, 2924, 3027, 3263, 3075, 1824, 1844. Obstacles, 1786, 1794. Republican meeting of inspectors, 1279, 1300, 1960.

168 See last section Opinion Attorney General, page 337.

169 Evidence, 3863.

170 Evidence, 2850, 2881.

171 Evidence, 2, 92, 199, 222, 784, 1149.

172 Evidence, 7800-3, 7805-8, 7961.