The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1858-11-10
plug-UgIy Rule In our Cities-A Lesson 10 the
Order Loving Citizens OF New York.

In another column we give letter from our
correspondent in Baltimore, descriptive Of the
events and scenes which attend life in the Monu-
mental City II should be read l,y every citizen
Of New York, and the lesson it teaches should be
| remembered and acted upon.
Baltimore has fallen under the rule of the 'PNig-
Uglies, Rip Raps' and Black Snakes, and
a sweet time the quiet denizens Of that city are
having Of it, How far Mayor Swami and the
| Judiciary may be able to put down this state OF
things is very questionable; but il there is any
public virtue in the Baltimoreans, they will put
down the rascals that now ride rough shod over
them by that summary justice which a virtuous
| and order loving people know how to execute
when the constituted authorities fail in the per-
Torrance Of their duty. For several years Bal
timore has been under the rule Of banded scoun-
drelism and it was these clubs that al the recent
municipal election drove the voters opposed to
the reelection of the present Mayor from the
polls.
We do not ascribc this state of things to the
principles advocated by any political party, but
| it is due in q very great measure to the system
! Of organization which the native American party
introduced few years since. The system Of
dark lantern lodges and secret proceedings gave
| scoundrelism an organization which it had never
before had in this country. The rascals got pos
| session Of the lodges" and long since drove
| every orderly citizen out of them. A few am
| bilious political asprants remained, and these
| have suiiiced to give political color to many
organizations that are nothing more than banded
villains. The citizens Of New York, Philadelphia,
| New Orleans and Louisville can bear witness TO
| this fact. az well as those Of Baltimore .Plug
Uglics," Dead Rabbits" "Trip Raps," Thugs"
end many other such truthfully descriptive names,
are familiar to all Of them. Aud these names
| are not opprobrious epithets, applied by out
siders but they are the selfadopted styles of the
clubs themselves.
In all our large cities these organizations exist
10 an extent that makes 1t very questionable TO
thousands Of thinking men whether our system
of representative government can be safely APP
piled in municipal affairs. In some States the
result has been that the chief control Of the mu-
nicipal affairs has been taken away from
the cities and lodged in the Legislature Of the
|
Of New York and New Orleans, and is now one
Of the proposed remedies for Baltimore. In 9TH
ers, vigilance committees have been formed by
the citizens, and an end put to the career of ras-
| caldom by strong but unlawful hand San
Francisco and New Orleans owe their present Sc
curity 10 such course. Although the adoption
Of such violent proceedings as have marked the
action OF vigilance committees is the indubitable
proof of the existence Of public virtue in the
bosom Of the community, VIC must reprchend
that inalleniion the part OF the citizen 10 bis
public duties that renders such an exhibition Of
hi virtue necessary.
If those who are entitled TO vote for municipal
officers would go TO the polls and deposit their
ballots in favor Of honest men, and men who win
uphold the law at all hazards, there would not
exist state OF things that would render il
questionable whether or not cities can be safely
entrusted with the right Of sclfgoyernment.
But 80 long Us mans opinion ON Kansas, squat
ter sovereignty The right Of federal interference
with slavery in the Territories, the admission Of
Cuba 10 the Union or protectorate in Mexico,
| u made the test for biz election or non
election, as a police Justice or TO any other
municipal Office, just 20 long will the bruiscrs
and -houlderbiiters Of the several parties decide
in the primary meetings who shall aud who shall
not he candidate for power in the city Then,
again. this very state Of things drives away a
very large number of citizens from the polls.
who thus do not vote at ALL In this city. Il Is
| estimated that twenty thousand legal voters
| regularly decline 10 vote for the simple reason
that they arc disguised With the candidates that
are PIT M by all the parties. They constitute a
| large proportion Of the honest and we'll inicn.
| toned citizens, and yet in staying away from
the polls they do the very thing they ought not
Il do. They give their countenancc TO the Plug
uglics and the Dead Rabbits by no, giving their
votes FOR honest men.
Tho deeds that have lately been transacted in
baltimore are Disgrace ioa civilized commu-
nifty. Yet our own city i not one whit better.
We gave in our columns yesterday on account Of
q murdcrous affair in the Fourteenth ward con-
scqucnt upon one of our primary ward elections.
Indeed The whole account Of these primary cleo
tons is every ycal scothing satire upon our
political system Fancy men. Bowery
Boys, and the scum OF New York, de-
eide who shall bc The candidates for
the sufrragcs Of the citizens We call upon
every inhabtant Of this metropolis to take these
things into earnest consideration. They should
no longer bc permitted to exist. Our municipal
affairs have nothing whatever TO 40 with Lee
compton protective tariff or the abolition Of
slavery. We call upon the committee Of the
taxpayers organization TO bring forward men for
honest man may not experience feeling Of self
reproach for having voted for And finally. we
call upon the order-loving. the honest. and the
we'll disposed citizens. ono and all, to abandon
n..orr "a bara tho candidates trho Io.i, q, pr.u