The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-11-20

poiiucat rciorms, 30 caileu, We beSlu ~ tno
wrong end We should have different order
Of men 10 oAace. Political affairs are managc'i
or msmanaged by the most consummate
scoundrels in the country. Our people are SO
busily engaged in getting rich an saving their
souls that they have 40 time for politics
| The CHARTER ELEorIoN A FARoE.--AM the
excitement among the different factions about
the approaching charter election is expended
| for nothing. AS for any Improvement in our
municipal government resulting from It. II is
are destined to 60 on in the old way. If not
In far worse one. There Ia q great deal Of
planning and mauouvring about the Mayor
and the Corporation Counsel just as II the
Mayor, were he gifted with the pepfe0tions Of
an arcAaDgel, could do anything under tho
present system, with all the power aad aa-
thority vested by Albany legislation in the
hands of set Of irresponsible beads Of depart
ments bureaus and commissions, aud the
chief magistrate himself mere cyphsr, while
/ the parties who really exercise power ere the
tools Of the lowest clasa Of politicians in the
city. When wealthy and influential ci&izen
was asked for whom he would vote for Mayor,
he answered that If the sole executive au-
thority was placed in the hands Of Fernando
Wood for ten years he woxld vote for him, as
means simply Of protecting his property
Otherwise he saw no use in voting vt all; and
perhaps he was right, for, shorn of its power
us the Office now is, the Mayor is no better
than machine out of order. The election of
the Mayor, therefore, is nero farce, and that
of Corporation Counsel, about which there is
SO much fuss, is still worse. The office Of Cor.
poration Counsel Is only good for the lucky in
| cumbent, who is sure to realize fortune out
! Of it by his salary and fees All the city gains
by the services Of that official, who is supposed
to protect its interests, is to be swindied ac-
| cording to the legal formula Of allowing suits
to 60 against the Treasury by default.
| With proper candidates for Aldermen and
Councilmen, however, some good might result
from the charter election; but there is not the
! slightest chance Of such nominations being
made. The business is in the hands Of a set OF
losting politicians, shoulder-hittecs, grogshop
keepers, junkshop keepers, and all that class
the lowest, least Intelligent and worst class in
the whole community. They will elect new
batch of Aldermen and Councilmen with whom
they expect to share the plumber, and the pro-
liability is that we shall see more corruption
and rascality in the next ommon Council than
ever before. The taxes, which are now ten
millions, will most likely be increased to
twelve or possibly fifteen, next year This is
| MT varv orrooahJo rrncnact fnr <ba
payers, but we see 40 remedy for it. There is
no use ia trying to stem the tide of corruption,
fraud and misgovernment; we have only to sub
NIT to be robbed and plundered INCREASINGLY.
EIxc11os OF SCHOOL, QyF1csRs-LooK Our FOR
THE RouGus.- School Commissioners aud Trus.
tees are to be nominated on Tuesday night in
the various wards of the city, and are to be
voted for at the charter election in December.
1t is a we'll known fact that come Of the lowest
and most disreputable characters look for, and
too often succeed in getting, these places, with
no other object in view than the indulgence of
their vicious propensities. The position gives
them an influence and control over the female
school teachers, which they not unfrequently
| u1S AoA eAS viASOs Pul PoSOo' VIC oAC AAiOLmCu
that in one of the up town wards there are two
candidates for school Offices, one of whom was
recently divorced from his wife, and the other
of whom was proved to have abused the same
Office by debauching one Of the female school
teachers who came under his jurisdiction.
These are the sort of fellows to whom the con-
troll of our educational institutions is handed
ovar hv tho h,,lliae and roudia rhn hauo mo
nopolized the management Of our whole NUM-
cipal system.
Of course it would be vain and useless to
appeal to grogshop primaries to put in nomi-
nation for school Offices none but men of edu-
cation and good repute. The machine does
not work in that way. 1t is in the hands of
the rowdies and can produce nothing but what
is vile. But there may be mode of check
mating the primaries, not only in the matter of
candidates for school offices, but in respect also
to candidates for the Common Council and
other municipal Offices.
We do not see why few of the decent
householders in ward should not put their
heads together and invite by circular the other
respectable residents of the ward to meet at
one Of their houses, where they might canvass
the merits of the various candidates and sug-
gest the names Of those in whom they could
repose confidence. If several were mentioned
in connection with the same Office the candi-
date might be decided by lot, and the voters Of
the ward could then be informed by circulars,
or by advertisements of the choice made by
the real bona fde representatives of their in
terests We are confident that in every ward
of the city decent, honest people outnumber
the rognes roughs and politicians, and could
elect their own candidates. Will those who
have children to be educated, taxes to be paid,
and interests to be protected, take the hint and
! move in time