Bribery and Corruption.

Northland Age, 4 October 1904, Page 3

Bribery and Corruption.

Mr. Joseph W. Folk, the District Attorney of St. Louis (U.S.A.), and the Democrat candidate for the Governorship of the State, recently made some startling allegations against certain members of the Missouri House of Delegates. Mr. Folk, who may be remembered as the gentleman who brought an end to the long rain of corruption in the Board of Aldermen of St. Louis, persuaded Mr. Charles Outkc, an ex-member of the , House of Delegates, to give State’s evi- 1 dence against the “ boodling ” legislators, and his confession is one of the most astounding documents that have been published since the Tammany revelations of a generation ago. Mr. Cfutke says he has been a member of a clique of nineteen legislators, who are in the habit of selling their votes in the House of Delegates to the highest bidders, and who are known through personal dealings to practically all the large corporations in the State. On payment of their price they will introduce, any Bill in the Legislature, and their power is so great that they can generally guarantee the successful passage of their measures. Their quotations for Bills vary according to the importance of the corporations benefited, the scale ranging from £5,000 to £20,000. Six Bills mentioned by Mr. Gutke brought to the “combine” £50,000. Mr. Gutke says the bribery has been going on to his personal knowledge since 1880, and no special means were ever taken by the legislators to hide their guilt. There are hundreds, he says, “ in the know,” and all proceedings connected with the giving and taking of bribes were accepted on both sides, matter of course. Mr. Folk declares that intends to take criminal proceedings against tte “ boodlers ” and thebribc-giving corpirationa but sort are and often

come to nothing. The national conscience seems strangely dulled on the matter of bribery and corruption, and already there Are leading journals in the State condemning Mr. Folk and Mr. Gutke far more vigorously than they are denouncing the methods of the dishonest legislators. It would hot be surprising if they earned the public with them, and in the approaching election turned the tables against the indignant Attorney,