The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1871-09-21
rLo s,rnrpIe In New York.


Tho excitement in New York over tho
Tammany frauds is beginning to subslde
The situation now appears TO be subsIah'
tially this: The charge that many mil
lions OF fraudulent claims were paid and
that the leading city officials are partaker'
of the plumber, has not been, and cannot
be, met The proof is positive, and
there has been no attempt OF denial
No denial or defence being possible
the only thing the conspicuous thieves
like CONNOLLY, HALL, TWEED, and
SWEENEY could do was to divert public
attention and Indignation away from the
main facts. That is the meaning Of all
this war over the Comploller's office
CONNOLLY, the Comptroller, was appoint
ed by Mayor HALL While CONNOLLY
audited and paid pretended claims
AGAINST the city amounting to millions,
HALL supervised it, because his sigma
ture was required before they could be paid
Asa man of sense and information he
could not but know the orders he was sign
ipg were enormous frauds. If he had not
been partner in the theft he would have
not only refused his signature in every
such case, but he would have brought
charges against CONNoLLY ut once. In
stead of that, he signed away millions,
when he was bound to know and did
know that the taking of the money rom
the Treasury was pure, uumiLgated rob
berry. There is no room for doubt, there.
fore, that HALL is just rs guilty in all this
business as CONNOLLY. The latter was
only cats paw for the bigger members
Of the ring, and they all shared the plum
der.
HALLS pretended attempt to remove
CONNOLLY, lift had been real, was gross
absurdity. Why should the greater ras'
cal make u JONAH of the lGssG Why
should the plundered public be conlenled
or pacated by such ihrceH Yet the
farce has not been played without some
effect. Some time has been gained. The
public attention has been somewhat d.
vertcd from the main case, Tho simulR'
ted war on CONNOLLY has made some
sympathy for him; and the public, in
watching the fight between these two
WORTHLESS and their friends, unC0nsciously
lose something Of their interest and indig'
nation over their r0bberies. Meanwhile
the ComptrOllers office Is shrewdly turned
over to an honest man, and when the
Mayor recedes from his pretended al
tempt to remove CONNOLLY the
corporation counsel comes forward
with proposition to institute suits
against the figure heads in whose name
the fraudulent claims were presented, mot
the corrupt officials whO'paid them) All
these little events were skllhlly arranged
to abatc alarm and sooLhe public indigna-
ton. They have tidCd over tho excite
mGnt till the natural reaction should ar
rive; and now II would seem, as HALL,
predicted, that the worst Of the storm for
Tammany has blown over Care was
taken bGE0re CONNOLLY turned over
his Office to destroy tho vouchers that
would have insured conviction; and now,
these being destroyed, the public arc
sooLhcd by O'GoRNAN's talk about insti-
tuting suits when the very courts Of
the city are owned by tho ring.
We don't see for the present but Tam
many holds its ground pretty well, con-
sldering its desperate straits. 1t must
give way before the growing might Of
public opinion, but not probably till the
thieves have so secured their pluhder
that restitution cannot be enforced, nor
until they have so hidden or destroyed
legal proof Of their crimes that no con-
Viction, except at the bar OF public opin-
ion, will be practicable.