The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-02-12


Processions in New York.
Senator Tiemann has come forward to solve
very difficult question, which has already
hazarded the peace of the metropolis, as well
as always causing a great interruption to
business; we refer to his bill regulating pro-
cessions through the streets of New York, in
troduced into the State Senate last week. So
long as the law makes no distinction in the
character Of these displays, and SO long as
public sentiment declares that where one has
q right to march all have an equal right, the
public uninterested In the nature of the demon
STATIONS must look on and suffer the incon-
venience, in obedience to the cry of free insti-
tutions. Senator Tiemann's bill provides that,
with the exception of the police, the Fire De-
partment and the National Guard, all process
sions must obtain the permission of the Police
Commissioners before parading. This permits
sion once given it will be the duty of the
Commissioners to furnish an escort. On Sun
days none but funeral professions which are
those of actual burials will be permitted, and
1t is provided that no music shall be played at
these. Now, In the view that these demon
strations-most of them tawdry absurdities,
and many of them dangerous to the public
peace-have no regulating spirit in the law, 1t
becomes really desirable that some check
should be put upon them. This every citizen
of common sense will admit; but in a matter
where so much passion and dyed-in- the-wool
prejudice is concerned the manner in which
this is to be accomplished will claim a
thousand different interpretations. Given
patriotic and enlightened Board of
Police Commissioners, without religious
or party prejudces, and the question arises,
how many of the professions that have made
their afirmations Of ideas by walking seven
miles in the mud would be allowed to parade9
England, in the interest Of the peace, had to
pass law preventing rival religious parties
from parading in Ireland, and now in her own
land sees the danger of republican professions
menacing the throne itself, yet hesitates to
formulate ukase against them. To the glory
of free institutions demagogues here may be
expected to appeal in the face of any law
limiting the right to form public professions,
and wherever two ideas are opposed the repre-
sentatives of each will expect that they should
be permitted and their opponents forbidden to
parade. We cannot help this. The common
sense view would be to forbid both or permit
both. The difficulty of finding men sufficiently
unbiased on all questions to decide impair
tally is difficulty that will meet those who
consider the provisions of this bill. But we
are heartily sick of the noise and cry raised by
these demonstrations and the interruption of
business which they cause We could on this
account wish that all of them be forbidden;
but there are national occasions, international
occasions and even party occasions, when to
put down the right of procession would be to
stife an expression of sentiment which no free
nation can afford. If all professions were
permitted to walk and compelled to avoid the
main arteries of business we should hear no
more Of nine-tenths of them; because, what
Ancient Order of Hbernians, Knights of st.
John, Antique Clio of Odd Fellows, Brigade
of Tamfules or Loyal Order of Redhot Orange
men would air their garish idotcy down the
back streets of New York? In the view that
bill of this kind would save us from such ex-
hibtions of the weakness of human nature we
should be glad of its passage; but we should
like to see the rules on which these Commits
sioners would base their permission or refusal
more clearly defined.