[4] He became a member of Russell Conwell's Temple Baptist Church in the city's Tioga section, where he taught Sunday school.

[6] As district attorney, Weaver showed signs of the same independence that imperiled Rothermel's position with the party, including initiating prosecution for voter fraud against a local politician.

[3] Despite this, the ring deemed Weaver reliable enough to nominate him for mayor in 1903, his independence being thought to be an advantage in blunting the arguments of the growing reform movement in the city.

[8] The company was controlled by members of the Republican establishment, and the no-bid long-term lease was suspected by reformers as a way to keep gas prices high and insure profit for connected industrialists.

The proposed sale had by that time caused widespread outrage among the Philadelphians, and Weaver wrote a letter promising to veto the measure when he returned.