The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1857-11-22
The Municipal Contest-Dcgradatio OF Public
Oratory.

OrneOrys
The political speakers and the political press
have been latterly sinking deeper in degra-
dation to an extraordinary degree; "lar,''
'scoundrel, !" "ruffian, william" and the vilest
epithets are heaped by both presses and speak
ers upon each other: the Tribune Tines, Courier,
Express and other journals of this character,
seem to have abandoned all pretensions to
decency. and to dream of nothing but frantic
abuse. This habit has now descended to the
public meetings, and to persons in respectable
stations of life. AT least such is the plain
inference from the reports Of the anti-Wood
meeting held on Friday in Wall street.
That was meeting called by certain defeat
ed factions to ratify the nomination of a COM
posite candidate for the Mayoralty in opposi-
ton to the candidate of the democracy. There
was no necessity, on the face of the movement,
that there should be any heat or excitement
about it; much less that any of the parties con-
cerned should be the object Of low or scurrilous
abuse. Even had such cause existed, the site
Of the meeting and the character of the persons
who were presumed TO be in majority there
ought TO have been guarantee that the bust
ness before it would have been conducted with
common decency if not with gentlemanly de-
corum. But what do the reports say?
The meeting is opened with an announcement
that the government of New York consists OF
"despicabe creatures in league with thieves,
burglars pickpockets and assassins," and the
head Of that government "a treacherous, coward
ly, and most unmitigated demagogue, capable OF
every conceivable enormity in the catalogue of
crime" Business further proceeded with allu-
sions to the villany which conspicuously pol
lutes and dciles" the city government; and one
Of the speakers dilated upon the villain al
luded to, meaning Mayor Wood, as "an migrate,
o traitor, robber, forger, a thief, and a
scoundrel" lie went on to thank God that
we have police that is not under the control
of that rufian;" and gracefully referred to the
"hired DULLES and ruflians who form the guard
Of Fernando Wood" He called Wood "a bold.
bad man" the choice of thieves and rufrians, =
"a man stepped in infamy," and "lar.r Ano-
ther speaker knew Of no worse company in the
city in which to leave the Mayor than to leave
him alone; and even the most moderate Of the
orators considered 1t proper to say that he had
never known any one possessed Of common sense
who suspected Fernando Wood Of honesty.
The speakers who made use of these express
sions were not men living on the Five Points,
or denizens of Water street; one Of them was
once State Senator the other occupies a respon-
sble and respectable position in the city magis.
tracy. II was out Of these mouths that the ex-
pressions we have quoted came. And under
whose auspices was this meeting held, and this
scurrilous abuse utteredg The President Of the
meeting after Mr. Cooley left the chair,
was Peter Cooper; and among the list Of vice
| presidents We see the names of VIM +. Have
meyer, Stephen Whitney, Robert b. Minturn,
a. CSkingsland, Henry Crinnell, Thomas Tiles
ton, DC, DC DO these gentlemen know that
their names have been used to screen such
coarse and brutal abuse of the chief magistrate
Of the city? Are they content that such degrat
dation OF fee speech shall be justified by their
seeming sanctionf Surely they must have been
unaware Of the liberty that has been taken with
their names, and will hasten to say that they
are not parties to the furious blsckguardism with