Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1872-04-24
OUR NEW YORK LETTER.
The FIRST GUN Fired-On 90 Cincinnati
Local POiitics-Prospects of water
Famine-The LenoN Librnry-Apart-
ment HOuses--In General.

NEW YORK, April II, 1872.
/ made slight mistake in my last let
ter. I was unfortunate enough to give the
Liberal" meeting as being the oath inst,
instead of the 18th However, / will
promise not to double anything else
connected with the Liberal Republican"
movement. Well, "the first gun has been
fred as the Tribune says, there was con-
siderable noise and good deal of smoke,
but nobody was hit or hurt for the very
good reason that the gun did not contain
anything but blank cartridge. | went
to the meeting at the Cooper Institute on
Friday night, and contributed my mite in
aid of the Reform movement. did it in
voluntarily however. n gentleman in
my neighborhood wanted some change to
help him pay his way to Cincinnati and
so he helped himself out of my pocket. AS
he left me enough to get as far as Phia-
delphia, | am disposed to forgive him.
As for the meeting itself, it was an i'm
mense one and it was "eminently respect
able'' and enthusiastic But let not your
credulous soul accept the assertions of in
terested journals that it was a spontaneous
gathering of the masses, seeking to prove
their antipathy to the present order of
things and their confidence in the new
game on the political chess-boa Posters,
scattered all over town, announced the
names of the distinguished speakers who
and red lights attracted a large crowd to
the building, while miserable band gave
all the prestige of wind and brass to the
occasion. Inside, the hall was packed,
and so it would have been at fifty cents
apiece. Lyman Trumbull is IL Senator of
the Uuted States, n prospective candidate
for the Presidency an able honest, upright
citizen, who, whenever he speaks, is sure
to say something worth listening to, and
whose reputation rs man and legislator
is without reproach." OF course people
will go to hear him, Carl SEIZURE is also
United States Senator and one of the few
foreign-born citizens who have reached that
position. AS German he naturally has
strong hold on the affection of those of
German birth residing in this city and
who form about one quarter of our popula-
ton. He is one of the most eloquent men
of the time, an earnest, fOrcible, speaker,
and Il thorough scholar. What he says is
carefully considered and beautifully eX-
pressed. When he spoke here before, the
tickets were dollar apiece, and the hall
was filled. Then, again, it is in the inter-
est of the Democracy to favor anything
looking toward a split in the Republican
party. That is their only road to victory.
New York city is and probably always
will be overwhelmingly Democratic, and
the unterrified turned out in force. At
ter these facts can anyone doubt that the
crowd on Friday evening was immense !?
opsis of the proceedings, for the telegraph
has anticipated that. The list of Vice
Presidents contains II few of the names
that are known, with number that are
not; the resolutions are meaningless and
non-committal on any eubject whatever /;
Senator Trumbulls speech was the best of
the evening, and was listened to with atten-
ton Schurz was sanguine and Bit
ter, but the most captious critic could
not object to his style and language. As a
meeting the affair was success, but
if any one believes that by it the city of
New York was irrevocably committed to
the Cincinnati Convention, its principles
and candidates, think theya are mistaken.
The policy of the Democrats is to pat the
" Liberals " on the back, tell them what
good fellows they are and how much they
think of them, get as many of them as
possible to oppose the gathering at Phlla-
delphia, and then to nominate their own
candidates and elect them if they can.
One thing is becoming daily more evident
to every one except the New York Times,
and that is this that the Cincinnati Con-
vention, if wisely and tremendously man
aged, may organize party which Will
hold the balance of power between the
two political parties at present in exist
ence. Such men as Charles Francis Adj
ans, Lyman Trumbull or Gov. Randolph,
of New Jersey, must command respect
and liberal support.
LOCAL POLITICS.
The news from Albany is not encourage
ing, although Conference Committee is
trying hard to give us some kind of a
charter. In addition to our other evils,
we are threatened with q water famine
this summer and this as the result
of injudicous legislation. Our streets are
horribly dirty and all the street contractor
will answer, when complaints are made,
is, that having no money he can not work.
For years we have been trying to secure
some kind of rapid transit from one end OF
the city to the other and now the Assembly
decides to have one system and the Senate
gives its judgment in favor of one radically
different. Unl1ind people say that the one
which has the most money in it will win
in the end. Certainly corruption and bri-
berry did not walk out of their dwelling
places in the capitol when our model " re-
form ("what's in a name ?'') Legislature
walked in. The immaculate james
D'Brien, who furnished the accounts Of
Tammany swindles to the Times, resigns
his seat in the Senate to run for the posi-
ton of Mayor, so that the political sky
looks as cloudy as ever-stormy in fact
A NOBLE CHARITY.
1t is pleasant to turn from the muddy
political sea to smoother waters. james
Lenox, one of the Weather citizens of the
metropolis, some time ago gave land anC
money to the city for the erection of {
magnificent library and museum in the
neighborhood of the Central Park. The