The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-11-06
SPIRIT or THE PRnss.
OUR LATE ELECTION.

FTOnl Ue " Il. Herald.
A Democratic Legislature, both branches,
with Democratic Governor in this State,
simply means sweeping revolution in the
laws regulating our city and State Govern
ments. The Democrats, since the great poll
tical revolution of 1859, which swept out of
existence the old Wing party, have not Sc
cured a full possession of this State. They
gained in the general Whig party collapse of
1852 the Governor (Horatio SEYMOUR and
the Legislature, and SO they took full posses
sion at Albany in January, 1853. Since that
time they have secured the Governor twice
Seymour In 1862 and Hoffman in 1868; but
through all the long interval from 1858 the
Senate, or the Assembly and the Senate, have
been against them. Consequently they have
never been able to upset the special legisa-
tive measures of the Republican party, passed
from time to time under Republican Legis-
lature and Governor since 1856, and adopted
mainly to reduce the Democratic maiorities
Of this corner of the State.
After seventeen years of exclusion from tn
control of the State government we may ac-
cordingly expect with the meeting of the
Democratic Legislature next January, backed
by Democratic Governor, a general over
hauling and repeating of the Republican party
measures aforesaid which will amount to
general reconstruction of the government of
this city, and DEMONSTRATION, to q great ex-
tent, of the laws regulating the affairs of the
State. 1t has been broadly limited from variou;
quarters that the Democratic programme in
the new Legislature (Which will be engineered
by Tammany Hall and supported by the Gov
ernor) will embrace, first, on national affairs,
the repeal of New Yorks ratification of the
fifteenth amendment; and, on local affairs:
!. A repeal Of the Excise law
2. repeal of the Registry law
B. repeal OF the law establishing the existing
Metropolitan police system.
4. repeal of the law creating the present Fire
Department
$. The abolition of the present Croton Board.
9. The abolition of the present Health Board.
2. new immigration SYSTEM
These things are to be done away with,
and, under new city charter, it is said, we
are to have all these and all other depart
ments of the city government made subordi-
nate to the Mayor and a Municipal Cabinet
and the two Boards of the City Council. The
Mayors Cabinet will probably embrace the
chief of each of the new departments to be
created-on the licensing of liquor dealers,
etc., on the police, the streets, the piers
and wharves, quarantine affairs, fremen,
Croton water, Central and other parks, gas,
health, etc. etc. This general reconstruction
OF our city government will create hundreds
of fat offices, and can be made to cover five
hundred millions of dollars in good fat jobs,
including new system of piers and wharves,
new city railroads Overhead and under
ground), new streets, new markets, and other
new public institutions.
At all events, this great positive gain of the
Legislature gives to the Democrats so firm a
foothold in the possession of the State and
such abundant means for strengthening their
position, that it is only by the most stupid
blundering that they can lose it. The repeal,
however, of the ratification of the fifteenth
amendment would be a blunder to begin with,
and it would not avail anything; but it is pro-
bable that the proclamation of the complete
ratification will be made from Washington
before the 1st of January, which will settle
the question and reduce the Northern Demo-
cracy to the wise alternative of joining the
Southern Democracy in cultivating the negro
vote.
On our local affairs the schedule of changes
suggested will require great deal of mighty
nice consideration, especially as the Demo
Gratis have, with the full power, the whole re-
sponsibility in legislative matters Neverthe-
less, we think great changes may be conf
idently expected in the laws regulating our
city affairs; but whether these changes will
be good OF bad-whether they will operate to
Tighten OF increase our taxes, to render more
safe or more in peril the lives and property of
our citizens, to strengthen the party or to
destroy twill depend very much upon the
engineering of Tammany Hall. She may play
her cards so as to control the National Demo
cratic Convention of 1872, OF so as to lose her
prestige and her power in 1870.