The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1865-07-25

III IN the Hard ~ Goyef.et Fsptos,l
Our political affairs, national and local, are
at dead low water. 1t 10 the recess between
the tragedy and the comedy, between the most
terrible war in the worlds history and what
We hope will be the most glorious peace. We
have fnishss;. r.: H.. dreadful work or Gre, sword,
slaughter, destruction and subjugation, and the
country rests from its party electioneering ex-
elements, while faithful Andy johnson is pre-
pairing his plans and cutting out the work Of
restoration. There are as yet no definite lines
Of division established for national reorganiza-
ton of parties nor can there be any for at least
six months to come. The new Congress, which is
to meet in December, must have several
months Of discussions and test questions, and
caucuses, before the outside politicians can
with any certainty take their positions for 1868
one way or the other. Meantime President
johnson is doing very well, and all parties are
satisfied with the general course he is pur-
suing. egTFt
This is the time, therefore, for little useful
home work in the way Of house cleaning by the
several States. Our house, known as the State
Of New York, is in pretty fair order; but the
kitchen, which is our Empire City, is literally
and politically the flthiest hole in Christen-
dom. Our municipal government is an i'm
posture, o fountain Of corruptons, a fraud upon
the people and burning disgrace to our popu-
lar institutions. 1t is heavy burden, not only
to the city, but 10 the State; and the honest
taxpayers of the city cannot begin to remove
1t without the aid of the State. The very men
among us upon whom the people rely for
their protection are hushed up from cor
ruption fund which may be counted by
millions. Our Corporation advertising OK
penses, for example, officially summed
up at sixty thousand really amount to six
hundred thousand dollars. "Hush" "hushw
is therefore the general order of the day among
our city newspapers Excepting one daily,
too powerful, independent, end dangerous to
be approached by traders in spoils and plum
der, and one or two bold and manly weekles,
such as the trenchant Citizen and the Sunday
atlas, our city journals have become as docile
to our city stepfathers as the visiting paupers
Of charitable soup house. saap's.a
And so it goes, in endless Qualifications.
through all the avenues, highwayasnd byways'
Of our Corporation departments, onr local po-
Iitical cliques, and their retainers Of high and
low degree. We have system N municipal
wheels within wheels; f0E fleeing
and dividing the spOilhs- so COM
plcte, intricate arliextensive that n9partial or
halfway checks will do any good. The whole
machine must be TOM to pieces, ansid dumped
with me rubbish Of Bapnnm's Museum, before
we csn have anything approaching tAe value
If our money appropriated as city eKpendi-
lures.
Now, then, is the tine' f6r Governor 'Fenton
20 GOES to our rescus.. The governments of this
lily has become an affair of the StatAl>. The
taxpayers Of TIN little ISLAND ARE so
completely bound, hand snd foot, undSr our
Existing Corporation departments, ringsg and
yrogsbsp primary ele,tion engineers ara'pur-
chased presses, that relief can come to ,s'Only
Rom tic Intervention Of the State. Wsc oall,
upon Governor Fenton to beghinthe
work indicated in bshalr Of the city, lnd,'as
the ohisf officer Of thsc3tste, by turning sdrift
our present city rulersy from the Mayor down,
excepting the metropolitan departmentsy .andd
by appealing 10 the people Of the State tossus-
tain him in the election Of Legislature fSxora--
yle to the establishment Of metropolitan gov
,nmens for this city, nom the beginning tocther,
md, 30 that even the Mayor, from year to year,
hall be- subject to appointment by the Cover
nor, with the spprovaRot the Senate.
Let ne Governor strike for this great reform,
md, by making 1t the. test question o6 our
November election, hs' can carry the State by
In overwhelming pornlar majority, anasecure
n Legislature of tia proper materialafor tho
work IN hand. Thus Governor Fenton may
lay tne groundworirsof q popularity in,city and
State SURPRISING Tint Of any OF his predeces-.
sos, Never was thhrs . finer opportunity for
>. spsendid coup d'ztat He has nothing to lose
by il, but everything to gain. On the othar
hand his failurs- TO- mise this State issue will
leave the field ooen fn< the Introduction by tie
Democracy of hostility to the Chase and Jay
Cooke republican platform Of uncsndit ionaLand
immediate negro suffrage, and IN unlimited ex-
pansion of International debt as anational bless
ing. In default Of anything rsore in season, a
cry of opposition TO the Ghase-Jay Cooke
national platform will be suff sient to swsep the
State by twenty or thirty thousand majority,
beginning with at least fity thousand In this
city.
The Governor holds tho winning hand. He
has only to play II with ordinary skill 10 secure
the stakes. The time, tie opportunity and the
Issue suggested, If seized upon, renders success
sure and complete. Otherwise, tho divisions in
the republican camp on the ChaseJay Cooke
heresies Of negro suffrage and the national debt
will enable the denaocracy to carry the State in
November, 1865, aud hold it to, and In the Pre-
sidcntial election of 1868. II the Governor
would take rank in history with such New
Workers as HAMILTON and Clinton, his course il
open before him; but If he would go down tc
Al 80 ,..,sS6, un~ ~.