The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-06-07
The Political Outlook I'm New York
How Reform Must BE Reformed.

or to discuss the issues involved in the fall
campaign and the qualifications of probable
candidates for Office But the opinion of o
politician is not always disinterested one,
and in this particular instance it is easy to
discover motive Of q selfish character The
established party organizations, with their
machinery all in running order can be put in
motion at o moments notice, md it is not
the policy of the leaders to allow the rank and
file to know what programme has been
prepared for their acceptance until it is too
late in the day to render possiblea rebellion in
their own ranks against the plans of the inner
ring. A short campaign is the politicians
delight simply because it is to his interest to
spring nominees suddenly upon the people,
and to render any popular movement against
them impossible for want Of time. Political
leaders and wirepullers regard the voters as
their natural enemies, and keep from them
all knowledge Of their plan of battle until the
fight commences. When the HERALD opened
the discussion of the third term question the
party organs, almost without exception, de-
nounced it as premature; yet we see now
that the leading journals of the country are
agitating the subject, and We find unmistak-
able evidence of the advantages of it's early
consideration. The departure from prin-
ciple of government which the custom of
nearly century and the example Of the great
est and purest men OF the Republic have rem
dered as sacred as constitutional obligation
would have been an easy matter had the
politicians succeeded in closing the eyes of
the people to the danger until it would have
been too late to guard against it. We cannot
too soon commence the consideration OF the
interests involved in the next election,
for it is only by bringing public
opinion to bear strongly upon the political
organizations that we can hope for relief
from our present evils.
We may shut out from our next State cam
paign all matters relating to national politics,
for no interest will be felt in them by the
people. Every person knows that the repub-
ican majority at Washington and the repub-
hcan ofice-holders generally are as corrupt as
they well can be, and every person not blinded
by prejudice or interest must recognize the
probability of the dissolution of the republican
organization. In the battle between expansion
and national honor political parties have
been pretty evenly divided, and while the
republicans have certainly the responsibility,
as being largely in the majority, for the
passage of the imitation bills, they must also
be conceded the credit of the Presidential
veto. Some votes may be turned from the
republican to the democratic side, the char
acter of the candidates being equal, in con-
sequence Of the growing distrust of our
change; but there will be no material
national issue to be fought or discussed in
our November contest 1t is well that this
is the case, since it will enable the people to
turn their undivided attention to their own
State and city affairs and to protect their own
interests Independently of political considera-
tons, in the votes they cast. They will have
but little difficulty in recognizing the evils
under which they labor at home, or in trac-
ing them to their right source The miser-
able failure Of the reform movement OF two
years ago has shown them the mischief of
hybrid government and the absurdity of the
mo party cry in our local affairs. While
Governor Dix has discharged his duties with
honor to himself and with advantage to
the State the corrupting influence of the
reform movement has crept into other
branches of the State government, and has
made itself manifest in the dishonest manage
ment of the canals and in the defalcations and
confusion in the State Treasury. But the
great evil Of the experiment of 1872 has been
felt in the city of New York. Looking round
at its fruits to-day we find state of affairs
more scandalous than the rule Of the old
Tammany Ring. Public improvements
stopped works of great magnitude and
importance fallen to decay and abandoned
all progress checked public debt increased
forty million dollars in less than three years;
taxation growing heavier every year; one de-
partment of the government under indct-
ment for felonious violation of law, another
presented for corruption by a grand jury;
officers of the government fighting each other
to the neglect of the public duty; an officer of
the finance department making false exhibits
Of the city debt, paying out the peoples
money to amateur detectives and Albany lob
byists to crafty malice and promote ambitious
schemes parsimony where iberality would
be virtue and waste where economy is q
duty; public creditors unpaid the city
plunged over head and ears in vexatious and
costly litigation, and prankish merry
andrew of the last generation testing
and juggling in the executive chamber while
the city is going to ruin. This is what politi-
cal reform has bestowed upon tho metropolis
and all parties to the infamous bargain of
two years ago are equally responsible for the
result Whenever the republican side has
seen prospect Of getting the best Of the
trade the Legislature has been ready to step
in with laws framed to suit the exigency Of