The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, December 16, 1895, Page 2

THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, MONDAY, DECEMBER 16, 1895, ! legally bound to pay, because of a techni- | v, and which the city administration ious to repudiate if Boggscould only | be induced to disclose which ones fall | under the rule. This information he re- fuses to give because his friends have the warrants, and he says the city sold the warrants and received good money for them, and now they bave no right to try to evade payment. On the other hand, if a couple of hundred thousand dollars of | outstanding city warrants could be repudi- | ated—if the famous million-doilar suit | against C. W. Wright could be gained | for the city—there might be some hope | of recovery from the effects of the } raids upon her treasury. But with Boggs | refusing to give up the information de- | sired, with the decision of the Supreme Court last week holding that the City is bound to pay the water bonds, and that | the defense set up by the City, that the | voters were bribed to vote for the issue of the bonds, was no defense, but an admis- i sion that the City issued the bonds with | open, and with the protpe(‘livef e of the million-dollar suit when it | week, there is little | comes to trial t! ihpe for anything but repud n. With a public debt outstanding of over| $,000,000, upon which interest is piling up «at the rate of about $1000 every day in the | cear and no money to pay it, and a still | ger private debt, with an assessed valu- »n of only about $26,000,000, and with an two-thirds of the taxes of 1894 d no one willing to risk a bid on offered at tax sale, it looks as b it was a question not of years nor | months, but a question of days when | the people must come to realize that the | City is hopelessly bankrupt. ! ¢ circus-ground aiter the circus has Tacoma stands to-day, a striking con- ‘ to what she was in the days when ev flowed like water, when everybody | and every city officer had an a private harem. ol ry is told of a woman who lay | on her death-bed in the establishment over | the Union S, zs Bank on Pacific avenue | and Fifteenth street—one who had been a : | | more th favorite with the city officers and who knew State secrets. The word went around that she would pass from this world to the next before the morning dawned, and John untington, Charley Uhlman, George W. | 3ili” Freeman and a few other | choice spirits gathered in her room to keep Ler company in her last moments on earth. With them came the other women of the house, and when daylight came the woman | v dead on her couch, and a long row of | npagne bottles at her door told too | iinl; the way the night had been kept. | In tue election in 1892 the Democrats | made a determined fight to gain control of | the city, and to that had a large num- | ber of registration certificates printed and | then procured a counterfeit signature of the acting City Clerk, George Haskins, in- tending to run in a largearmy of repeat- ers from the wards presided over by “Bill” Freeman, Mart Dillon and John Malone, but their plans and the place where the counterfeit stamps were being made, near the corner of C and ‘Eleventh streets, were discovered and, to checkmate them, the City Clerk sent a man to Seattle to pur- chase 2 peculiar kind of ink and gtamp, that would be distinguishabie by the Re- pudlican boards on election For this nguished service H was Te- warded by being made City Olerk. Taking a pointer from the Democrats, the gang in power issued a large number of registra- ion certificates to its ward heelers, with instructions to haye them voted. In a small town of but 40,000 or 50,000 inhabi- | tants it required some fine work to so ar- range these repeaters that the fraud could not be discovered, and for this work an expert was employed—one S. L. Heck— who proved so competent that he was passed down the line by the gang to help out, in his spe , in a sister town where his services were needed. The fol- lowing letter will give an idea, by reading between the lines, ot how his work was appreciated: Tacoma, April 1, 1892. Mr. Dautrick: This wili introduce 8. L. Heck, who helped me on registration for five days, on authority of P. C.Sullivan. wants to go to Spokane, and I hope you will give it your attention. Respectfully, C. N. WRIGHT. Indorsed underneath, on the same page, in the well-known chirography of George Haskins, is the following: 1 certify that 8. L. Heck is the person who ‘was introduced to me as a man working in our interest, and that he was instrumental in causing men to register. GEORGE HASKINS, Dautrick was secretary of the Republi- can City committee. P. C. Sullivan is “Charley” Sullivan, the ex-chairman of the Repnblican State Committee, who then had his headquarters in John Malone’s gambling-nouse on Pacific ave- nue, and turned his fine hand to the manipulation of snch branches of Cil politics as appeared to him most profi able. He was the legal adviser and run- ning mate of Sam Milligan, City Attorney, | during the time when the looting of the City treasury was at its height. Harry Morgan was the Sultan of Ta- coma. No one must cross his path. If any one dared to oppose him openly, or was suspected of oppoging him secretly, a plan was at once laid to put him out of the way. There were three men in the city besides Ran Radebaugh who were spotted by Morgan. In looking over his list of handy men Morgan found there was no one that be couid trust to put these men out of the way, and he therefore sent to Sacramento for a noted thug and cut- throat named “Bullneck” Smith to do the job for him. Smith arrived, the men were pointed out to him and pians laid for their taking off. One was to be shot in adive on Pacific avenue, another was to be choked and thrown over the biuff, and in mdking way with the third'man it was necessary to take into the plan a well-known all- around sport still living in the city. When the plan was laid before him he demurred. ©T am ready to swindle, rob, flimflam or beat anybody and everybody for the good of the cause, but when it comes to murder I will have to draw the line,” said he. This unexpected opposition gave a de- | cided check to the plans of Morgan, and, by way of compromise, it was decided to railroad this unlucky third man to the penitentiary, instead of to the great be- | vond. This man was 8. J. Holland, at that time a prominent wholesale liquor @ealer in Tacoma. A lot of counterfeit United States revenue stamps were to be piaced in Holland’s office and at the proper time the office would be searched by the United States Marshal and Holland was to go to the “pen.” This plan miscarried by the unexpected moving of Holland from Tacoma to Spokane. In the case of the other two men who were marked for murder a most disastrous mistake was made. Instead of one of them being killed, according to programme, a quiet and well - respected young man named Crosby was shot from behind as he was going home one night, and the whole town was at once aroused. Public meet- ings were held, a large number of private watchmen known to be true and reliable Hundreds are buying BOOKS at wholesale prices at DODGE’S, 107 Montgomery. Megazines supplied at Cut Rates, | He | were posted over the city, and the demon- stration was so pronounced that Morgan | feared to proceed further with hisnefarious plans. But, in order to shield the true murderers from the consequences of their blunder, it was necessary to find some one upon whom the crime could be fastaned, and by the tireless exertions of one of Morgan's tools, who was then Prosecuting Attorney, a cnqule of young men were im- ported from Thurston County and the crime sworn upon them by hired testi- mony. It has gince been proved bevond a doubt that both Hoyt and Stowe, con- victed of the murder, were twenty miles from Tacoma at the time of the killing of young Cre . Great was Harry Morgan! For his services in this case the Prosecuting At- torney was made a Judge. he prophet and the Adonis of a cer- tain political faction — George W. Van Fossen and Fred T. Taylor—were then running mates. Van Fossen was attorney for the gamblers and liquor men and Tay- lor was City Controller and aiso owner of several of the largest, best a%pointed and most disorderly houses on street and Opera alley. When the Democracy was needed to help out on a proposition Van, as a prominent Democrat, could work the party. Taylor was an old-time Republi- can and a member of the gang. Van Fossen’s power with the Democrats came to a most unexpected end, however, ! when he put in a bill for $10 a night for services in stumping the county in the campaign following the election of Kandle for Mayor. It was too much for the Dem- ocratic county committee, and Van was | | dropped from the rolls. Taylor was one of the smoothest and most unserupulous politicians of the whole gang, and did more than any other man to carry through the many schemes for robbing the treasury, yet he went out of office when the game closed, without a dollar. He lived like a Turk, however, during his term of office. One of his asso- ciates, a member of the City Council, had a box reserved for his use at the leading variety theater. He was a member of tne Police Committee and made regular con- tributions from the policemen by way of “loans,” the police in turn levying tribute uvon gamblers, dive-keepers and dive fre- | quenters, in addition to the tribute ex- | acted by their superior officers. | Blackmail was rampant. Jake Adler,who | committed suicide a few days ago, was ad- vertising solicitor of the Tacoma News, | and a prominent member of the Tillicum Democratic Club—a club organized solely | for spoils. He extorted $1500 from the saloon men. But money was plenty, and | the profits of the saloons and gambling- | houses were thousands of dollars a night. | Wheu the fine hand of Wheeler had dis- | appeared from the board, and the warrant swindle was becoming apparent to people outside of the ring of bankers, gamblers and politici who were in control of the city, a batch of warrants fell into the handas of a prominent citizen not con- nected with the gang, that were proved to | be forged. This came very near being a | catastrophe. It wouldjnever do to let the | people know that there were forged war- rants out, and a_young man named Mc- | Cain, a deputy in the City Clerk's office, | | was fixed up as a scapegoat to allay sus- picion. By agreement with McCamn and | his family, he confessed to the charge of | forging the warrants, was sent to the State | penitentiary, and his family is being well | | cared for during his absence, and if the gang don’t go ‘‘broke” before his term ex- pires, which will be early next year, he | will draw a handsome salary for the time | spent in Walla Walla. Warrants had to | be forthcoming in order to keep the gang in funds, and a mere matter of hiring a | clerk to do time was only an incident n | the play. | Money was becoming scarce. warrants could be floated in the East, and xposure and ruin were staring the gang n the face. The money which had been | poured out like water for four years, bal- | ancing the books by fictitious credits and | forged and duplicate warrants, bonds and | other imaginary assets, was gone. There were twenty-one banks in the city, nearly all of them closely connected with the | powers that ruled. Dozens of the city’s | | most prominent men were involved in the | deals by which the city had been robbed. | The situation had become desperate. Un- | | less something could be done at once cer- | tain ruin was upon them, and the purchase | of the Tacoma Lightand Water Company’s | | property was brought forward as a way out | | of the difficulty. It was seized at once as | | the only way of salvation. Politicians, | bankers, gamblers and all members of the | gang entered with a will upon the cam- | paign for the purchase of the plant and | | property. This property consisted of a wooden | trough running from a small creek eight | miles away to the south of the city and a | system of pipes in some of the main streets | of the city, and a map showing a prelimi- | nary survey to the springs up in the moun- | tains, also an engine, anumber of dynamos, | some electric-light wire, poles and lamps, | and a shipload of iron water-pipe on the | way from Philadeiphia. But the ship | never came to port. This plant and property was estimated by competent engineers to be worth about $150,000 to $200,000, but it was proposed to sell it to the city for $1,750,000, and to issue bonds for the purchase, together with an additional $1,750,000, to be used for the building of a pipe line out on the line sur- veyed, to bring water from the mountain | rivers. With this much money in the treasury the present desperate straits | could be bridged, and before an exposure | could be made the members of the gang could put their houses in order and ruin would be averted. Thus it was that all { bands turned in and worked with might and main for the water purchase. A s}:ecinl election was called for the purpose of voting upon the question, and at the same time voting upon a proposition to | issue another $110,000 of bondsto build a | | bridge over the bluff for the benefit of the | St. Paul and Tacoma Lumber Company, | | which was one of the favorites of the pow- i ers, and was strong enough to make trouble | if its demands were not complied with. Now, behold a miracle! Nelson Bennett, | the old-time enemy of the water company and the *‘Philadeiphia crowd,” turns a somersault and, like the cat that came | back, lands on his feet. He has become the owner of the Tacoma Ledger, the {organ of the water company and the gang in advocating the monstrous steal. Day after day the Ledger, with C. A. Snowden as its managing editor, brivgs outX arguments in favor of making the deal. Strong opposition was developed to the purchase of the water plant, as proposed ! by the gang. Many of the leading respect- able men and property-owners of the city denounced the deal as an outrage. L. D. Campbell, prominent as an attorney of the Tacoma Land Company and ‘‘Papa’ | ‘Wright, was one of the first to declare his opposition to the scheme, which he char- acterized as a barefaced and outrageous swindle and fraud. But the newspapers of the city were all owned and controlled by the gang. There was but one cham- pion who could not be browbeaten or silenced, and who was a rustler in hisline. People admire a rustler, and a favorite in the newspaper fiela at the time was Tom Sammons, the Tacoma correspondent and local manager of the Seattle Post-Intelli- gencer. He fought the deal tooth and nail from the start, exsosing the rascality of the proposition and the worthlessness of the plant for which bonds to the extent of $3,500,000 were to be saddled upon a No more | | somethin | pia, that he believed it had itseye on Van, long-suffering and_already overburdened people. In vain the gtmgI attempted to buy and browbeat him. e was threat- ened by mail and his track dogged by thugs at night, but he was a stayer. When any member of the gang came to inter- view him, with a proposition to close his mouth, Tom would strike his favorite at- titude, run his fingers throuzh his hair, and ask them if they had a story for him. A fund of $66,000 was put in the field for the purpose of carrving the election in favor of the water steal. All the bankers were in the field in favor of the scheme. It was absolutely necessary that it should go through, and that this additional money should be procured in order to carry them over the dangerous crisis which then con- fronted them. The deal must be made to go through. A delegation of the City Council was sent to Philadelphia to con- fer with “Papa” Wright to insure the carrying out of the plans proposed by bim. This delegation included Harris A. Corell, president of the council and_part- ner in the law firm of Parsons & Corell, attorneys for the water company. Fred Murray, at that time city attorney, was also sent for by ‘“‘Papa’ Wright and his objections to the deal met by specious ar- guments, The Merchants’ National Bank, of which Walter J. Thompson was president and Samuel Collyer cashier, was about at the | end of its string, and unless this deal was {to go through the bank would be com- velled to close. Nelson Benneit was one of the largest stockholders and a director and also owner of the Ledger, the oldest newspaper in the city. C. A. Snowden | was placed in charge as managing editor and instructions given to carry the elec- tion at all hazard. The Morning Union the other paper, was owned by Boggs and the city administration, and the News, which for a time opposed the deal, swunz into line and was one of the strongest ad- vocates of the purchase before election day came around. The Chamber of Commerce and Com- mercial Club, claiming to represent the business men of the city, but which were all owned or controlled by the members of the gang, directly or indirectly, passed resolutions in favor of making the pur- chase, and the individual members were sent out upon the war path to see that the proposition carried. : _ Among those who were most prominent in urging the propesition were C. A. Cav- ender, then chairmau of the Finance Com- mittee .of the City Council; C.E. Hale, president of the Tacoma Grocery Com | pany, since defunct; H. O. hback, cashier of the Tacoma National Bank, de- funct; Samuel Collyer, cashier of the Merchants’ National Bank, defunct, now secreiary of the Chamber of Commerce. after escaping the United States Federal Grand Jury in the United States Court for | his actions in the conduct of the bank of which he was cashier; all of the Tacoma | Land Company and Tacoma Light and | Water Company outfit; all of the city ofii- ! cers, and every one who was supposed to | have a “‘pull” and who was susceptible to the “influence’” brought to bear by the | eanz. 1ke Anderson, manager for *‘Papa” i Wright of the Tacoma Land Company, ! was not only serving his master in advo- | cating the deal, brt helping to save his | own bacon as well, for it has developed since then that he had over half a million dollars of outstanding_ obligations, which were threatening to break him unless was done to relieve the pres- sure. if his bank could only get its share of the prospective millions to be derived from the sale of the bonds, he would be able to carry himself over the pending crisis and no one would be the wiser. Ancerson talked Joudly about running the election in an economical manner | when it was suggested by some of the op- ponents of the measure that extra guards be placed at the polis to prevent illegal veting; and when his point was carried he | went to his own lieutenants and urged that not a vote be lost. There was no registra- tion, and the election was run ‘‘wide open.” Hundredsof repeaters and floaters were in the field, and hundreds of others | were bought up at so much a head. On the day before election every saloon in town was given an order to use $200 for ‘‘the good of the cause,” and the $200 was promptly paid them by the gang. Van Fossen and Fred Taylor were again in the field, crying against the Irish em- ployed by the water company. Poor old Van! “Back East” he was a prominent member of the Hibernian Society; but | time and tide and ill fortune make strange changes. Van was a member of the third House of the Washington Legislature, and the story is told on him that Harvey John- ston, a young Democratic politician, went to him one day and told him a Clan na Gael Society had been organized in Oiym- and advised him to keep in nights and not allow himself to be away from his friends after dark. A member named Dorrity, from east of the mountains, a hot-tempered Irishman, was pointed out to Van as a prominent member of the Clan. Van kept very close to his hotel evenings, and never went out after dark without a bodyguard. After this had gone on for several days the joke was too good to keep, and Harvey gave it away to a few friends and it became public, much to the chagrin of Van Fossen. Nelson Bennett, who has aiways been fighting the water company, was now one of the strongest advocates of the purchase, He went to New York and Philadelphia, saw ‘‘Papa’” Wright—and perhaps ‘‘Papa” Wright “‘saw” him, for he telegraphed back advising and urging that the pur- chase be made. One of the strongest pleas made to the people in favor of the deal was that if Wright could seli the water plant to the city he would at once take the money de- rived from the sale thereof and build the Hart” Railroad to a junction with the “Hunt” road in the Walla Walla Valley to a connection with the Chicago, Bur- lington and Quincy road, making Tacoma the western terminus of that system. “Give Wright his way about the water and bhe will build the C. B. and Q. into ‘Tacoma,” was the cry. The laboring men were told to vote for the proposition; al- though the ‘Price was pretty high the money would all come right back here again in payment for work on the rail- road, and the extra $1,000,000 would be used for building an extension of the water works system to the sources of the mountain rivers. Work would be plenty and wages good, and the laboring man would be in clover. Three years have passed away, the deal went, and the C. B. and Q. is just as liable to drop in here out of a balloon as it ever was to come in over the *‘Hart” and “Hunt”’ roads out of the hand of ‘‘Papa’ Wright. An army of lieutenants and heelers was hired to carry the election in favor of the urchase. The present City Attorney, ames Wickersham, has a safe full of affidavits which have been procured from various parties showing how the job was worked. Two hundred and twenty-five of them are from people who were either hired to ‘*work’ for the carrying of the proposition or were paid money for their votes. Among the lot I noticed those of James Clark, Fred E. King and Thomas Kelley. Clark received $50, King $40 and Kelley $100 for their “pull.” The day before election ITke Anderson had the ballots changed so that the bridge proposition was substituted for the water proposition and vice versa. By this move the water proposition carried by 200 votes, otherwise it would have been lost, and ruin would have been the consequence to mauy of the most prominent citizens. When it was learned that the proposi- tion had carried the gang drew a long breath and at once set to work to realize upon its bonds as quickly as possible. The new blood gave the bankers a fresh lease of life, and it looked as thonih they would be able to ssil on forever, but in a few months it was known that the Merchants’ National was in a shaky condition. Nel- son Bennett became president and W. J. Thompson retired, but this did not restore public confidence. FinnllL the bank closed, and its example has been followed by one after another until out of the twenty-one banks only seven are left. ‘When the city counted up its property, for which the $3,500,000 had been paid, it was found that Clover Creek, the source of supply, was owned and claimed by the farmers who lived along its banks, and ob- jection was made to the taking of water r the city. One of thesefarmers, Robert Rigney, brought suit and obtained an - junction against the taking of any water out of the creek. The city then tried to get water enough out of a marsh and small sEnng on the line between the creek and the city, and also out of a pond near the city. Thisall had to be anped. and at an’ enormous cost, Suit was brought against *Papa” Wright for $1,000,000 dam- azes on account of this and other clalms, but the suit is not yet determined. Sev- eral times it has been set, but until now has failed to come to trial. Suit was also brought to set aside the purchase and rescind the whole transaction, on the round that the deal was procured through raud and bribery, but the Supreme Court has held that the fact that the voters were bribed to vote in favor of the deal was no defense, but, on the contrary, showed that its oflicers made the deal and with their eyes qpen. _ Among other things claimed by the city after purchasing the plant and prop- erty was a lot of wafer-pipe piled up near the water company’s works, which was not delivered. The Mayor and some of his men went down and attempted to take the pipe. A free fight ensued and much litigation followed, all for the purpose of making the dear veopie think that there was really a dfference between the city government and the water company—both members of the gang that was looting the treasury again, now that there was some- thing in it. . There was also a shipload of pipe com- ing around the Horn, but when the deal was consummated it looked like so much foolishness to give up that cargo—the dear people wonld not miss it, and there would be a fine chance for a rake-off.” So theship was put into San Francisco and unloaded through the seawall, eight or ten blocks from the Market-street wharf, and the pipe is there yet—100,000 pieces in the cargo, now completely tilling the warehouse and Fred ¥. Taylor. making a big pile on the outside—all marked “Tacoma.” For this pipe_suit is about to be commenced by the City, its existence having but recently come to the knowledge of the present City Attorney. The pipe is said to be worth about §150,000. The agent who represents this warehouse is connected with a ship-broker firm on Market street. When the Merchants’ National Bank failed, followed soon after by the Tacoma National, the Traders’ and others, and the books became subject to inspection, it be- gan to be apparent to the people at large how gigantic had been the combination for looting the treasury. The suicide of Yaul Schulze, the later bank failures and the quarrels among the looters themselves have brought all the details before the public. g The books of the Tacoma National—Ike Anderson’s bank—show that he was a creditor to theextent of $54,000 at the time the bank closed. Nelson Bennett's private secretary stands charged with ,000, which, he says, was made for the use of Anderson; G. G. Rowe, a clerk in Ander- son's office, who is built for taking books from the top shelf, also has a note in the bank for $3000 for Anderson’s benefit; Rus- sel T. Joy, collaborator in the good cause, another $3000, gone; J. G. Parker, father- in-law of Ikey’s, $3000, gone; Fox Island Clay Works, of which lkey was president, $8000, defunct; Cherry Hill Coal Company, of which Ikey was president, , de- funct; Excelsior Park Land Company, of which he was president, $13,000, defunct; Crescent Creamery Company, of which he was a stockholder, promoter and active manipulator, $13,000, defunct; Tacoma Land Company, of which he is manager, In the Traders’ Bank Anderson owed $140,000, as shown by the record in the hands of the receiver; in the State Savings Bank $2720, and in addition to this and his liabilities in other banks there are judg- ments of record against him, all taken since the workings of the gang were un- earthed. amounting to nearly $200,000. Nelson Bennett appeared on the books of the Merchants’ National Bank a creditor to the extent of $30,000, in the State Sav- ings Bank $3000, Tacoma Trust and Sav- ings Bank $12, 13, Bennett National Bank of Fairhaven $26,5600. The Ledger, of which he is proprietor, also appears as a creditor to the extent of $13,000. In addi- tion a judgment for $82,000 was recently entered against him, and manfi suits are now vending for othersums. Bennett was a director of the Tacoma Trust and Sav- ings Bank at the time that institution was run by Grattan H. Wheeler. When this bank failed it had $228,000 of city money “on hand,” but only $450 was found by the receiver. The balance is probably repre- sented by the city warrants that went away in Wheeler’s grip. ‘When this bank wentinto the receiver’s hands two of the books were missing; the two covering a most important period in its history. For their non-appearance W. B. Allen, the last presideat of the bank, re- named the Bank of Tacoma, is now under sentence for contempt of court, but the books are out of sight. Like the books of the Tacoma Grocery Company, that igantic institution ~ manipulate by barles E. Hale, who is reported to have maae $60,000 by the failure of his company, the books of the bank are as utterly beyond the sight of man as though burned in the *hell” of the old town mill, a fire that goes not out from year end to year end. . 0. Fishback, casbier of the Tacoma National, was a debtor to the bank to the extent of $8000. He was retained by the receiver to assist in winding up the bank’s affairs, and when the receiver took steps to secure the $3000, Mr. Fishback promptly confessed judgment in favor of Eastern relatives to the amount of over $30,000. Fishback is now the Deputy City Treasurer. Samuel Collyer, the bright light and sec- retary of the Chamber of Commerce and rand fugleman of the Occidental and E)riental Fair which is to be held in Tacoma in the year of grace 1900, was a debtor to the bank of which he was cashier to the extent of $34,000, while his associate was in for $159,000, 2 W. B. Allen, president of the Bank of Tacoma, which had $228,000 of city money “on hand,” was a debtor individually and as a pricipal stockholder in sideshow cor- porations to the extent of nearly $150,000, while Boges shows up in the same institu- tion for §61,000. Other members of the city ganq were in for various sums, large and small. > C. A. Cavender, chairman of the Finance Committee of the City Council, who was brought before the bar of the Council last week, is accused of using his official posi- tion to extort moneys from the bank upon the pledge of his influence to deter the city from making demand for its deposit. Charge six against Mr. Cavender is to the effect that he instead of endeavoring 10 se- cure to the city its money from the Bank of Tacoma used his influence as chairman of the Finance Committee to obtain money out of the bank for his own personal use to the damage of the city and in bad faith; that during the months of April, May, June and July, 1894, while pretending to be unable to obtain any money for the city from said bank be did, by reason of his dishonesty and dishonorable dealings, 'Ob“]in from said bank large sums of money, in all $4000. M. M. Taylor, president of the Board of Public Works, lately deposed for demand- ing $1000 rake-off from the Columbia Na- tional Bank for hisinfluence in preventing the withdrawal of the county fundsfrom that institution, is another of the same kind of patriots. Of the hali-hundred prominent citizens who made up the gang that robbed the city until there was scarcely enongh left to tempt & crow, haraly one has escaped [ the reward of his work. Bankruptcy and disaster have overtaken some, others have gone to the suicide’s grave, still others be- come almost paupers, or are now jumping sideways to escape the prison-doors. For all this debt of $5,000,000 Tacoma has a water system, with no source of supply; a shipload of pfpe in San Francisco, to get; a City Hall that could be built for less than $150,000, if honestly done; a bridge for the sole use and benefit of the St. Paul Mill Company; a County Courthouse that ought to be built for $150,000, and have money left—say $600,000 or $1,000,000 in all, and $4,000,000 worth of experience, Tacoma has a fine harbor, a beautiful Jo- cation and many natural advantages— coal in abundance, timber and stone, a rich agricultural country tributary, and once divested of the pburdens which have almost drained the iast drop of blood from her veins, will take a new start and be- come the fair Mistress of the Great Inland Bea of the Northwest. MARGERY DARE. CAREER OF McKEIGHAN. The Late Congressman Made a Record as a Farmer and Populist. OMAHA, Nesr., Dec. 15.—William Ar- thur McKeighan, the Populist ex-Con- gressman of Red Cloud, Nebr., who died early this morning at the insane asylum at Hastiags, was born of Irish parents in Cumberland County, N. J., January 19, 1842. He removed with his parents to Fulton County, Ill., in 1848, where he lived on a farm and attended the common scbool. He enlisted in the Eighteenth Regiment, 1llinois cavalry, September, 1861. At the close of the war he settled on a farm near Pontiac, Ill.; took an ac- tive part in organizing the Farmers’ Asso- ciation; was elected Vice-President for the Eighth Congressional District; removed to Nebraska in 1880 and settled on a farm near Red Cloud. He took an active interest in organizing the Alliance and was elected County Judge of Webster county in 1885. In 1886 he was the Democratic candidate jor Congress agamst Hon. James Laird, and was de- feated. He was again nominated for Con- gress by the Alliance or Independent varty, was indorsed by the Democratic convention and elected to the Fifty-second and re-elected to the Fifty-third Congress as an Independent. In 1894 he was de- feated in the race for re-clection by W. E. Andrews. Mr. McKeighan, at the time of his death, had gone to Hastings to visit his daughter, who is an official of that institu- tion. He leaves a widow and three children, who were by his bedside during the last hours. OPEN DEFIANCE DECLARED Catholics of Tecumseh Will Not Submit to the Bishop’s Order. They Deny the Right of Bonacum to Make Them Desert Father Murphy. TECUMSEH, NEBR., Dec. 15.—Catholics of Tecumseh have declared open defiance to Bishop Bonacum of Lincoln so far as his order forbidding them to attend the church of Father Murphy, the excommu- nicated priest, is concerned. After to-day’s services a meeting was held at which the following was adopted without dissent and signed by fifty members of the church: Resolved, That we hereby make open declara- tion that we as Catholics deny the right of any Bishop to foist upon us any person to act as priest for us, through malice, revenge or to gratify his personal pique, whim or caprice, and deliver over to bim the possession and place him in full and absolute control of our property, in which we have vested rights, with- out our consent. And we hereby further de- clare that no public threats of excommunica- tion or taking away from us any of the sacred rights which we are permitted to enjoy as Catholics will in any manner intimidate us or influence us to do any act or thing which we believe to be against and opposed to the princi- ples of right and justice. Be it further Resolved, That it is the duty of the ehurch to investigate the scandalous conditions that have already been too long tolerated in the diocese of Lincoln and remove them from the faitbful and from the State. And be it further Resolved, That we call upon the Catholies of Lincoln to take action in these matters at once with other Catholics throughont the State to move the authorities in Dubuque or Washing- ton or Rome to proceed at once to apply their solicitude and authority to the conditions of the church in this diocese. padeit el MARQUIS SACRIPANTI'S TRIP. Coming to This Country With the Insignia of Office for the Elevation of Satoll. BALTIMORE, Mp., Dec. 15.—Marquis Sacripanti, the member of the Noble Guard who has been commissioned as the Pope’s envoy to bring to this country the insignia of office and the brief for the eleva- tion of Mgr. Satolli to the Cardinalate, is on board the steamship Fulda, due in New York next Thursday. At the request of Mgr. Satolli, through the suggestion of Cardinal Gibbons, he will be met at the pier upon the arrival of tne steamer by Major John D. Keiley, City Treasurer of Brooklyn, the Cardinal's friend, and received in a manner due to his rank. Major Keiley will be accom- panied by Rev. Frederick B. Rooker, sec- retary of the apostolic delegation, and the Marquis will be escorted to Washington in a special car. At Washington the Marquis will be Mgr. Satolli’s guest, and after recovering from the fatigue of his long journey, will be taken to Baltimore and presented to Cardinal Gibbons, whose associate he will be in the ceremony of investing the Papal delegate with his new dignity on the first Sunday in January at the Baltimore Cathedral. PR PR i) TAILORS LYCKED OUT. Contractors Throw Two Thousand Work- ers Out of Employment. NEW YORK, N. Y., Dec. 15.—Threat of the members of the Clothing Contractors’ Mutual Protective Association to lock out the tailors was carried out to-day and the battle between the bosses ana the men is now on. The contractors made no concealment of their intention to repudiate the agreement which they had made with the Brother- bood of Tailors, and gave their employes to understand that they could no fi)nger work for them unless they consented to do 80 under a different sysiem and a new set of rules. Upto a late hour to-night reports had been received at the head- quarters of the bosses showing that over 100 shops had been closed in this city and that 2000 tailors had been thrown out of work. In Brooklyn 150 shops were closed and about 2200 tailors were debarred from entering. Caused by an Explosion. C[NCINNATI, Onio, Dec. 15.—An ex- p{oalon occurred in the cellar of the Krell Piano Manufacturing Company to-day, followed soon after by flames issuing from the lower windows. Before assistance could be summoned the hnfldin’f and con- tents were almost destroyed. The loss to building and stock is about /$75,000, fully covered by insurance. C —_— * Shot During a_Saloon Fight. CHICAGO, IrL., Dec. 15.—In a fight be- tween half a dozen drunken men to-night in a saloon at Market and Indiana streets, Alexandro Dl&go was shot and killed by Angelo Paren 3 PLANS OF CONGRESS Soon the Senate May Pass Into Republican Hands. STEWART UPON SILVER. The Statesman From Nevada to Make His First Speech of the Session. HILL WILL ANSWER CULLOM. Secretary Carlisle’s Report Will Be the Signal for a Great Finan- cial Debate. WASHINGTON, D. Dec. 15.—The third week of the Senate will open with that body no better equipped for the trans- action of business than on the day Con- gress first assembled, although it is more than probable that before the week 1s over the caucus committee will have agreed and the Senate committees will have passed into the hands of Republicans. If the suggestions of some of the younger Sena- tors are followed it is not improbable that this week may find the Senate testing the strength of the two parties over the sub- ject of the reorganization of the elective officers. To-morrow Mr. Stewart' will make his first silver speech of this session. Thurs- day he introduced a resolution to direct the Finance Committee to inquire what effect the difference of exchange between gold standard and silver standard coun- tries has upon the agricultural and manu- facturing industries of the United States, and report by bill or otherwise. This reso- lution will be the text for Mr. Stewart’s first speech. Senator Hill takes issue with Senator Cullom on his conclusions relative to the Monroe doctrine, and may address the Sen- ate on the resolution now on the table early in the week, possibly to-morrow. Senator White of California, who last week offered an amendment that all debate shall be relevant and confined to the sub- ject directly before the Senate, will speak to the resolution Tuesday. Itis one of the many propositions now pending to change the rules of the Senate, with a view to limiting debates. The receipt of Secretary Carlisle’s report to-morrow will be the signal for the flood- pates of financial debate to oven. Several Senators, among them Mr. Sherman, are preparing to discuss the monetary portion of the President’s message, but have kept silent pending the report of the Secretary of the Treasury, which is supplemental to the recommendations of the President. Mr. Sherman will hardly be prepared to speak this week, but it would not cause surprise if a discussion were precipitated at any time. The only thing that is expected in the House this week is the announcement of the committees by Speaker Reed, and when that is made adjournment for the holidays is anticipated. It may be that the committees on Rules and Elections will be announced to-morrow. The House is at present operating under the rules of the Fifty-first Congress, and if the proposition to make two or three com- mittees of elections, which has been under consideration, is to be carried out a change in the rules to that effect must first be made. One change in the rules that is looked for, in view of Speaker Reed’s expressions of opinion thereon, is a reduction of the number constituting a quorum of the com- mittee of the whole House from a major- ity of the full membership of the House. ‘What figure will be fixed upon cannot be stated, but it is believed thatit will not exceed 100 and may be considerably less. Speaker Reed is satisfied that such a change will materialiy aid in the dispatch of business and be a means of inducing a more general attendance upon the sessions of the House. z : c., FROM THE BELLE O’BRIEN. Mate Brooks, One of the Survivors, Ar- . ives at Baltimore. BALTIMORE, Mp., Dec. 15.—Captain NEW TO-DAY. EVERYTRING FR MEN'S =BOYS' AHI HOLIDAY FINERY Smoking Jackets, Dressing Gowns, Bath Robes, Mackintoshes, Fine Suspenders, Neckwear, Dress Shirts, Hosiery, Underwear. Holiday giits in our boys’ department—{ree. “THE Hug,” Cor. Kearny and Sutter. Till 9 Evenings. 0 BRANCHE: 1 itds, — ES— ABSOLUTELY FREF To those affticted with BMncn Troubles, Nasty Haekin Hoarseness, Pleurisy, é or its - after effects, We or ati naemia, wil given a_regular size di mu ton, 1L be in's Chocolate E; Hy fo 3 those :g affticted. %{ Laboratory, 221 Davis St., 8. F. Dunn of the British ship Lord Erne from Swansgea, to-day brought into port a survie vor of the American ship Belle O’Brien, which foundered off the English coast. Another seaman who was picked up at the same time died and was buried at sea. A third man went crazy from hunger and thirst and jumped overboard. Recond Mate Brooks, the survivor above referred to, stated that tbe O’Brien was abandoned on November 20 when nearly full of water. He along with two of the crew occupied one of the smail boats. What became of the captain and other members of the crew he does not know. Brooks’ mind is not clear, andthe con- nected story of the foundering of the Belle O'Brien nor the experiences of Brooks and his companions in the open boat has been secured. To-night it is stated that Brooks cannot iive. iR Destroyed by Fi HAGERSTOWN, Mp., Dec. 15.—The Bos ton Clothing-house, Beeler & Bennett's grocery and the cafe of W. D. Wilson were destroyed by fire this morning. The total loss is about $80,000, with insurance of two- thirds that amount. The fire originated from an unknown cause in the cellar of the Boston Cothing-house, owned by M. E. Jacobson. ekt RS The Burning of @ Church. LITTLE ROCK, Aerk., Dec. 15.—The First Methodist Episcopal Caurch (South) was destroyed by fire to-day. The loss is $25,000. Two firemen, Allie’ Robbins and George Wunderlich, were seriously crushed and burned by falling watls. NEW TO-DAY. Always on top! Amen! You'll say after you've been all around. Seems that HOUSE COATS, SMOKING JACKETS, GOWNS, BATH and SLEEP- ING ROBES are growing in favor as Xmas I gifts. Lucky that at least ONE house in S. F. has plenty of the right kind. Nice ones $4.50 and $5.00. Traveling Shawls, Rugs, ete. Say! Will some one tell ushow the hat- ters manage to sell the same hats as ours at one-third more ? ‘We understand the mail order business. HOLIDAY HINT No. 20. . See other * Hints" 14 morning and evening papers Jardin- ieres LEEDS POTTERY, MINTON, DELFT. In novel colors, shapes and patterns. “IDEAL XMAS GIFTS.” OPEN EVENINGS UNTIL CHRISTMAS. NATHAN, DOHRMANN & CO., 122-132 SUTTER ST. LOOK! A3 G2 Pom kIS, the Tator. For hotiday trade 'S, the Tailor. For hol all the latest flu\lm of Woolens now in. ok Suits Made to Order from.. $15.00 Pants Made to Order from $4.00 Overcoats Made to Order from..$20.00 Full Dre Swallow-Tail im- ported and Silk-Lined from.....$40.00 Perfect Fit Gnaialjud or Fo Sale. JOE POHEIM, THE TAILOR, 201, 203 Montgomery st., 724 Market st. and 1110, 1112 Market st. ) |