New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-08-12
TIE UOPLUS DEFENSE.

TIE WORLD'S DEFENSE.
GO forth, my SON." said Oxenstiem, "and
"see with how little wisdom The World is gov
"erned." In the Spring of 1870, when the new
charter was under discussion, The World Op-
posed it energetically for the express reason
that it kept in power and strengthened the
New-York City Ring, whose concentrated
"corruptions threatened the defeat of the De-
mocracy all over the country. "This corrupt
"Ringn exclaimed The World, "must be de-
"stroyed. This fatal Ring must be destroyed"
(Feb. "a. 1907 For several weeks the same
paper maintained a lively fight against Tweed,
Sweeny, Hall, and all their associates. But the
Ring triumphed. Hall came into power under
the new charter, and placed his partners
Tweed, Connolly, and SwceDy at the head of
the executive departments. The World ate its
own words, and became the official apOloglSt
of the Ring it had denounced
At last the frauds of the Ring have been
exposed. a year ago they were only sus-
pected now they seem proved. They are
worse than anybody supposed, far worse than
they were represented to be by The World in
the Spring of 1870. They are so bad that the
Democratic party must infallibly be beaten in
the next campaign unless it can throw off the
responsibility by throwing overheard the pIin-
cipal culprits Here is the chance for which
The World has been longing, to destroy that
" fatal Ring" But the ardor Of our cotempo-
ray has cooled. 1t defends its old enemies,
without much spirit indeed, but with extraor-
binary obstinacy. 1t insists upon bearing the
odious responsibility, and does its best to in
volve the whole party in the crimes of its
local leaders. At first it pretended to believe
that these men could not be held morally
responsible under the new charter for rob
berries committed under the old. Driven at
last to account for the fact that under the
new charter the debt is increasing at the rate
of $29 100000 a year, it undertook yesterday
the most preposterous defense ever offered
against criminal charge Omitting all rtfcr-
ence TO the reyepae bonds, floating d1ht bills
payable, &c, which are just as much a part
of our liabilities as the funded obligations, it
reduces the City and County debt Qess capital
of Sinking FUND.- to 5G0,0O00Oo, or an in
crease of 100000 in ten months, and then
says:
we went straight 70 the CONTROLLERS Office. and
frankly perhaps blunty, stated our difficulties and
count for this, not in general manner but by
spocite statement oftteos and PguTes; Although
this urged with air OF nculpatiOn II was taken In
good part and we were promised an exact transcript
the statutes which authorized each increase OF The
debt. This promise has Ocen punctuay Kept ana we are
enabled TO present herewith detailed statement which,
unless il can be successfully impusued Will satisfy ali
right minded c!tzons."
Ia the table which follows there is no specific
Statement OF items and figures whatever. The
Controller was charged with paying fraudulent
and extravagant bills. aud called upon to state
what be had paid, to whom, and for what
He ignores this demand, and gives us instead
a catalogue Of the different classes of bonds
and stocks upon which he has raised money
for these payments, and the authority of law
creating them. You ask what the money has
been spent for says Slr. Connolly; well here
you have it: City Improvement Stock, S1,732,OOO;
Accumulated Debt Bonds, 3l,19l300; Street
Improvement Bonds, &8593o; Consolidated
Stock. 1900, 900; Repairs to Buildings Stock,
100000; County Court-House Stock, 100000;
and so on. This is rs if n discussing officer,
asked To account for his funds, should report
that he had paid ont SO much in silver, so
much in gold, and 50 much in grcenback'.
But The World is in an ecstacy over the frank
ness and fullne5s of The Controllers answer!
l. the editor OF The World fool or does he
impute folly 10 his readers The people are
deeply moved by the revelations OF the last
three weeks The Democracy of the West is
tying 20 drive the Tammany Ring ont of the
party, and a disastrous defeat awaits the next
Democratic candidate for the Presidency I'M
hess the party wash its hands of these frauds
and join US in Furnishing the guilty. But with
IN infatuation almost beyond belief The World
clinos 10 the fatal Ring and bragS for it,
argues for it. lies for 1t, rs obstnately as it
lied last Summer for the broken armies of
France. When the Controller makes q virtual
confession, The World calls it a triumphant
defense; Just ~ il interpreted the defeat of
Graveotte a. a glorious French victory, and
gave us daily bulletins of the rout of the Ger
mans before Paris. 1t has not sense enough
to see that it is working for its own ruin and
the overthrow of it, party-in which COM
mendabc enterprise it has our best wishes.
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