New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1856-10-06
WHY FERNANDO WOOD SHOULD BE
BEATEN.


Rather more than year has elapsed since the
,rsssot Mayor of the city, Fernando Wood, CON-
,,o,ced his official career with promising sketch
of the reforms he proposed to effect. He informed
ns-vhat we knew very wcll-that the tax-bill was
needIessly and shamefully swelling; that corruption
,s,vsded every department of the civic admnlstra-
lion. that the police was wretchedly Inefficient and
consequently that crime was rife and unpunished;
tbsttbe legislative branches of the Corporation were
d;sgracefully negligent, while the executive depart
ments were as disgracefuy reckless and incOmpe-
tents that the laws were not obeyed; that scenes of
violence. fraud and public indecency were everyday
occnrrences that gambling houses, lottery offices,
and houses Of ill-ame hOurshed In defiance Of law;
that the chief thOroughare mOnOpolized at night
BY abandoned characters-in fine, that the city had
fallen complete prey to anarchy and disorder. 1t
will be NV business, said the Mayor, substantially
70 correct each and all of these abuses. The whole
OF the power vested in me shall be exerted to that
end; and should find that cannot reach the evils
! intend TO extirpate, without using doubtful
unowers." shall not hesitate to use them and to
take the whole responsibility Of my acts upon my
sclf for the public good.
With such flourish did the Mayors Admnistra-
lion begin. And there were not wanting persons
who. when they saw how the action was suited to
The word; how vigorously old abuses were assaiIed,
how promptly new evils were checked, bonestl
prepared for new era in our municipal history
under the auspices of Fernando Wood.
Time has proved that OF all the fallaces that hdv
dcudcd mankind Of late years, this was the vaines
and most prcposterous. After more than year
administration the government of Mayor Wood ma
fairly compare in point of ineciency, carelessness,
corruption and absurdity, with the worst of its
preAecessors. After all the newspaper puffs which
rorifed Mr.. Woods first efforts, they have one
and all proved mere flashes in the pan. Neither
Tie gambling houses nor the lottery Offices, nor the
houses Of il-fame have been suppressed. Broad
NAV still belongs to the street walkers. Filth and
dirt still clog the streets to an uncxamped extent.
The police are still incompetent to prevent and I'M
able 20 punish crime. There is no diminutlOn IN
the number of street brawls or scandalous frauds
on couutymen, or cases of hOusebreaking. There
IL no appearance, even, of respect for municipal
ordinances, which are openly violated day after day
by rich and poor alike, without the least effort
Deing maze 10 NluulCbtc thtul. Inc ldACs are
garngly increasing corruption as VIGOROUSLY per-
yades the executive departments Of the City Gov
ernment--in word the condition Of the city, after
seventeen months of the Wood regime is rs bad as
ever il was, except in some particulars in which it
il worse. And within the last half of this period
We can call to mind no public act of the Mayors,
save that he went to Richmond, Va, to deliver
poltco-historical speech, and to show how little
first magistrate of this city knew about one of her
forcnos, Rev dictionary heroes
That this should DO the net result of republican
government in a city inhabited by prosperous re-
Eeious, orderly and intelligent population; that the
fruits OF free elections should be the installation of
incompetence, corruption, negligence and every bad
thing in places Of honor aud trlst, cannot be dis
ceIncd by liberal minds withoat deep regret.
Under the management of the present political
parties, all the departments of the city government
have been mere sinks of personal aud political cor
ruption aud proaigacy, aud have contributed in no
epprecable measure 10 the administration of the
real government of this great city.