The New England magazine . General William Ames, brevetted a brigadier for Civil-War services, president and treasurer of the Fletcher Manufacturing Company, trustee of the Rhode Island Hospital Trust Company, and a man of whom it is said: He can have any political office within Rhode Islands gift for the asking. Pawtucket, Newport, and Woonsocket, —which cast 38,033 votes in the last con-gressional elections, have four members ofithe State Senate, and the thirty-four smallercities and towns, which cast a total of27,476 votes at the same election, have(thirty-four members of the State
The New England magazine . General William Ames, brevetted a brigadier for Civil-War services, president and treasurer of the Fletcher Manufacturing Company, trustee of the Rhode Island Hospital Trust Company, and a man of whom it is said: He can have any political office within Rhode Islands gift for the asking. Pawtucket, Newport, and Woonsocket, —which cast 38,033 votes in the last con-gressional elections, have four members ofithe State Senate, and the thirty-four smallercities and towns, which cast a total of27,476 votes at the same election, have(thirty-four members of the State _, Where this condition prevails it is ob-viously easy for a corrupt boss, supportedby greedy or cowardly corporations, tocontrol the State. He has no need to wina majority of the voters of the State tokeep his party in power. He need onlymake sure that his legislative candidates i5o NEW ENGLAND MAGAZINE. A glimpse through the gates at The Breakers, a Vanderbilt palace at Newport are chosen in a majority of the small towns,where but a few votes are cast, and thetrick is done. In Rhode Island the bossfound ready to his hands a condition ad-mirably suited for his uses. When Gen-eral Brayton set up business as a lobbyistthirty years ago he found the countrytowns dwindling and impoverished ag-riculturally. He found them inhabitedchiefly by descendants of the early set-tlers of the State, jealous of the growingpopulation and influence of the citieswhich were rapidly filling up with laterimmigrants. Plainly it was in the interestof General Brayton, and of his clients, thecorporations that might need special privi-leges, to maintain this condition. Theyhave managed to maintain it, but the signsof this day are adverse to them. Some Signs of Improvement In the first place, Senator Nelson , the brains of the Rhode IslandRepublican machine, has made his pile,as the phrase goes, and has a
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