DELAWARE. 



219 



in lower animals ; making provision for colored 

 teachers' institutes ; abolishing days of grace on 

 negotiable paper after July 1 ; authorizing the 

 publication of the decisions of the Court of Errors 

 and Appeals, Superior Court, Court of General bes- 

 sions of the Peace and Jail Delivery, and the Court 

 of Oyer and Terminer from Feb. 1, 1893, to June 

 10, 1897 ; abolishing the old court seals and estab- 

 lishing new ones ; regulating the levying of a capi- 

 tation tax ; allowing the taking of an appeal in 

 cases where a demurrer has been filed ; regulating 

 the terms of various State officers and fixing their 

 .salaries. The Governor's salary is $2,000 ; that of 

 the Secretary of State. $1,000; Treasurer, $1,450; 

 Auditor, $1,200 ; Attorney-General, $2,000. 



Among important bills that failed were these : 

 Regulating telephone rates ; providing for the im- 

 provement of Wilmington harbor ; prohibiting the 

 trading-stamp business ; giving the Legislature dis- 

 cretionary power in making laws for levying taxes ; 

 regulating the sale of intoxicating liquors from 

 wagons ; making wages a prior lien in cases of in- 

 solvency ; amending the new Constitution so as to 

 give each county equal representation in the Sen- 

 ate ; creating a general corporation law ; establish- 

 ing a State board of agriculture ; providing for a 

 naval reserve force. 



Political. The death of State Senator R. J. 

 Hanby, of New Castle County, during the session 

 of the Legislature, made a special election neces- 

 sary, and one was held Feb. 21. The regular and 

 Union Republicans united upon D. F. Stewart ; the 

 Democrats divided and put up two candidates. The 

 combined vote for these two was 2,902 ; the Repub- 

 lican nominee was elected by a vote of 4,058 ; the 

 Prohibition vote was 19. 



At the November election a State Treasurer and 

 Auditor, a Member of Congress, a State Legislature, 

 and county officers were to be chosen. The offices of 

 Treasurer and A uditor were elective for the first time. 



The State Convention of Regular Republicans 

 was held Aug. 25, and a ticket was put in nomina- 

 tion. The Union Republicans met Aug. 30 and 

 named the same candidates. In addition to affirm- 

 ing the party principles on currency and protection, 

 the platform favored fortification of the seacoasts, 

 the retention of all territory taken during the war, 

 and Government construction and control of the 

 Nicaragua Canal. On State issues the resolutions 

 said, in part: 



" We again declare that we approve of the Con- 

 stitution of our State as at present amended, re- 

 serving the right, however, to correct the infamous 

 gerrymander of the city of Wilmington into the 



E resent legislative districts,'and to re-establish trial 

 y jury as it has always existed in this State prior 

 to June 10, A. D. 1897. 



" We condemn the Democratic party of Delaware 

 for the following: 



" For deliberately disfranchising 2,962 of the elect- 

 ors of Kent County who voted at the general 

 election of A. D. 1896, against no one of which 

 voters any charge had been made. It pursued this 

 revolutionary course in defiance of the plain man- 

 date of the laws of Delaware. For counting only 

 such returns of the said general election as were 

 favorable to its continuance in power, unlawfully 

 certifying such count and giving certificates in 

 pursuance thereof. For so legislating in the Con- 

 stitutional Convention and the General Assembly 

 (both of which bodies it controlled) by means of 

 the votes of men who were not elected, and who 

 acted as judges in their own cases as to smother 

 all inquiry as to the result of said election, thereby 

 setting aside the dearest of human rights and in- 

 terests. When proceedings were instituted in the 

 courts to enforce the verdict of the people, it cow- 



ardly refused to meet the charge squarely, but re- 

 sorted to subterfuges and dilatory tactics, thereby 

 confessing that its case was hopeless, that it had 

 been defeated at the polls, and that it had stolen 

 the fruits of the election.'' 



Following were the nominations: For Member of 

 Congress, John H. Hoffecker; Treasurer, L. Heis- 

 ler Ball; Auditor, John A. Lingo. In many of the 

 districts there were both regular and Union Repub- 

 lican candidates for the Legislature. 



The Prohibitionists met in State convention at 

 Dover, Sept. 8. The platform, besides declaring 

 strongly in favor of the special principle of the party, 

 favored woman suffrage, an improved school system 

 liberally supported, and strict enforcement of the 

 laws for insuring purity of elections ; and said fur- 

 ther : " We condemn the President and all who are 

 in any way responsible for the ' army canteen,' or, in 

 other words, the beer saloons in the camps, where- 

 by the health of the soldiers has been undermined 

 and their morals corrupted." 



The nominations were : For Member of Congress, 

 Lewis W. Brosius ; Treasurer, John Button ; Audi- 

 tor, George F. Jones. 



The Single-Tax party made no nomination for 

 Member of Congress, but named Samuel Swain for 

 Treasurer, and Frank L. Brand for Auditor. 



The Democratic convention met at Dover, Sept. 

 13. The platform declared the devotion of the 

 party in Delaware and all the cardinal principles of 

 the Democratic faith, and commended Gov. Tun- 

 nell's administration, and the Senators and Repre- 

 sentative in Congress for securing the appropriation 

 for Wilmington harbor. The administration of na- 

 tional affairs under President McKinley was de- 

 clared to be a disappointment, and it was set forth 

 that prosperity has not returned ; that trusts, com- 

 bines, and monopolies have grown, and that no 

 measures of economy have been introduced. 



The inequalities of the war-revenue act were con- 

 demned. The people were congratulated upon the 

 termination of the war with Spain, and a demand was 

 made that the burdens of war taxation be lessened 

 as quickly as possible. Further the platform said : 

 " The Democratic party generously trusted by 

 the people, has been almost continuously in control 

 of the affairs of Delaware for forty years. Its rec- 

 ord in this State has been one of honesty, economy, 

 and devotion to the public welfare. On the whole, 

 the Democratic party in Delaware has been sound 

 and true to the great and beneficent principles upon 

 which as an organization it is founded. 



"The Republican party in Delaware has for- 

 feited all rights to the confidence of good citizens 

 by falling under the foul and malign influence of a 

 corrupt political adventurer, who, in his impudent 

 effort to seize in this State a political honor for 

 which he is utterly unfit, has used methods in the 

 primaries of the Republican party and at the gen- 

 eral election so base and corrupt that the reputable 

 portion of the Republican party withdrew from fel- 

 lowship with him and in 1896 set up a separate 

 organization of its own. The nominations follow : 

 For Member of Congress, L. Irving Handy ; Treas- 

 urer, Willie M. Ross; Auditor, Lemuel A. H. 

 Bishop. 



The returns showed that the Republicans had 

 carried all the State offices and will have a majority 

 on joint ballot in the Legislature. The figures for 

 Member of Congress were : Handy, Democrat, 15,- 

 043; Hoffecker, Republican, 17,566; Brosius, Pro- 

 hibitionist 454. For Treasurer Ross, Democrat, 

 14,805; Ball. Republican, 17,544; Swain, Single 

 Tax, 935 ; Button, Prohibitionist, 468. For Auditor 

 the vote was nearly the same as for Treasurer. The 

 Senate will stand : Republicans 8, Democrats 9 ; 

 the House, Republicans 23, Democrats 12. 



