The New York herald., 1870-03-21
The Democratic Muad,, a. Albany.


The democratic muddle at Albany has been
pushed to charges of bribery and corruption
among the brethren. This is very amusing
and very absurd But the absurdest feature
in this business is the investigation ordered
into these aforesaid charges. When the sky
falls we shall catch the larks, and not before.
The patriotic indignation Of Fields is very fine,
and so is the virtuous wrath of Ainsworth but
we think that we can see for all that the
laughing nigger in the fence, with his thumb
at his nose, signifying that the moon is not
made Of green cheese Meantime, what with
ring charters, huckleberry charters, rough and
ready charters, free and easy excise and elcc-
ton bills, share and share about Senatorial
police bills and various other schemes of demo-
cratic reconstruction, we are hopeful Of great
things for the boys Of our primary elections.
Jack Reynolds says that changing is played
out, and we expect that q variety of other
embarrassments against the freedom Of the citi.
zen in his choice of amusements and recrea-
tons, and the times and places thereof, will be
removed.
The Park, FOR instance, is a pretty place; /;
but its government is too arstocratic for the
rough and ready boys, entirely They want,
as the frightened Puritans declare, the right
to hold their picnics in those grounds and a
free range over them with their target ex-
cursiOns, and the right there to have chicken
or dog fight, II they wish it, and bull-baiting
on the Mall, and music and lager and liquor,
and quarter races, and touch of the "manly
art" on Sundays, and no gray-coated police
men on the premises. Moreover, the boys
the election boys--according 70 the -'bloated
bondholders," want the Metropolitan police
! under the management Of the nnterrified
democratic masses, which is very natural
wish on their part. And if they want only
this they are magnanimous in this matter too,
for they might demand the absolute abolition
of the bothering police, but they do not. All
they ask is that they Ohe rough and ready
masses), as the majority, shall have the con-
troll of the city government, in all its details i;
and if you concede them this, you may make
your salaries and sops, and jobs and tax levies
any figure you please. And why not? Is
not this reasonable? Looking at the demo-
cratic doctrines Of municipal rights and popu-
lar rights, and the will and the rights Of the
majority. Of the responsible party and their
power, what more would you have? We say
nothing of the taxpayers, because 1t is simply
their business to take things az they come and
| foot the bills. .
| But neither the Tammany men, nor the
| Mantilini democracy, nor the so-called young
! democracy, nor the country ''cheesepress and
hayloft democracy" seem to comprehend the
beauties Of this rough and ready compromise
Each and all these rings and cliques are
hedging and ditching, sapping and mining for
the inside track. In the fact, however, that
every concession they make among them
selves includes concession to the rough and
! ready rank and file, the election boys, we see
that they are coming to a settlement. The
next two or three days will be fruitful, it is
! thought, of compromises all round; bui
whether the upshot will be failure TO give nt
new Charter of any sort, or q Charter which
will be knocked in the head in November, no
man can tell. We can only wait in resignation
| and trust to luck.