New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1853-10-31
THE CITY EdTHERS and PUBLIC
OPINION .
BALLOT BOXES IN RUM HOLES.

BALLOT BOXES. IN RUM HOLES.
The more numerous branch of our City Coun-
Gil Is Of present composed of body of men, the
like Of whom have probably never been known
IN an intelligent community. Pertinacious in
wrong doing, and scarcely ever in the right,
except by accident, they present the singular
spectacle of legislative body without the re-
spect of its individual MEMBERS and condemned
as utterly unworthy by the public at large 1t
would be difficult to pick at random from the |
community Saving few honorable exceptions)
an assemblage so utterly undeserving of public |
trust. Weak, yascillating, uninformed, and |
perhaps corrupt in its individual components, as |
whole it is utterly Ineffective From its first |
organization to the present time it has been n |
subject of ridicule and reproach, and in its
chambers, spectacles have been nightly wit
messed more BETTING the atmosphere of brothel
| than Of a deliberative assembly.
| 1t is unnecessary for US to recount the many
disgraceful scenes that have been enacted in its
sittings and by its own members during the
earlier part of its existence, or to refer to the
scurrilous epithets that have been banded from
one member to another with the frequency Of
i terms of compliment in respectable society
These are matters with which our citizens are
already familiar ad nauseam. Our business is
with occurrences of later date
Passing over for the present the instances of
weakness, vascillatioh and want of selfres
SO frequently evidenced by this strange body,
we come to the consideration of an outrage
perpetrated by them on public opinion at their
last regular sitting.
A reprehensible custom had prevailed here of
locating the places of holding election polls in
bar-rooms and coffee houses, thus making the
public business of elections subservent to the
dram drinking interests. Numerous citizens
feeling outraged at this, and wishing to have
the evil remedied, drew up petition, which
was signed by some six hundred names, asking
the Council to locate the places of holding the
| elections out of coffee houses The petition was
presented to the Board of Assistant Aldermen
With a large number of respectable names,
heading movement for reform, it would have
been reasonable to suppose that the Board would
have given it, at least, respectful hearing In
this, public expectation was disappointed In
stead of being listened to and considered. the
petition was hooted at as ridiculous joke A
motion was first made to lay it on the table A
"hs'y hiohipcis pictuoTlC Win III uHlppfec1Hteu
Jokemove to refer it to the Committee on Educa-
cation; and another, in a more effectual stagger
at waggery, proposed to sead it to the Blouse |
of Refuge" An intense deal Of laughter was
the consequence of this sally, and the question |
being put, the motion to refer it to the g House
of Refuge was carried Some Of the more
sensible members being outraged at this disposal
of respectful petition, moved reconsidera-
ton, and the petition was finally referred to the
Police Committee. No action could consequently
be had upon it,
more wanton outrage of the right Of petit
ton, and more disrespectful disregard of pub
lie opinion, has probably never been paraleled,
even by body of men to whom habit has made
such unworthy conduct so familiar
In the course Of business the Council proceeded
to select the places of holding the election, and
out of twenty three precnts seventeen of them
were located in public Coffee-hou Whether
in so placing them the Council has consulted the
general DESIRE. or has been influenced by a
criminal trucking to the wishes of class to be
benefited thereby, we leave to be decided by the
community at large