, 1875-10-10


TIE DEvE-FIsH OF CHICAGO.
AL readers of "The Toilers Of the Sea
will not fail to remember that evenHul strng
gle Of Gn,11ATr on the Douvres rocks viii
the brute forces of Nature. After the hurri
cane, the silipwreck, cold, hunger, sickness
and supcrhuman labor and fatigue, came tht
crowning horror-the Devil Fish. Chicago
has had its struggle with the elements il
their most fearful ahape--that Of fire. Il
has struggled with tho storm, hunger, cold
wreck, and ruin, and now comes it's crowninE
ho<ror-tho Devil-Fish. The City Govern
ment is its Devl-Fish-
V1croR HUGO says: "some living thing
thin, rough, dnt, cold, sti1ny-had twisted it.
self round his naked arm in the dark depth
below. It crept upward towards his chest
Its pressure was like a tightening cord, its
steady persistence Ike that of screw" This
describes the City Government 1t has SLOW
" but surely twisted itself about the city. Il
has crept up to the very heart It is now
tightening the cord. It is worming its way
into the vitals Of the city with the steady
persistence Of q screw. It has as much
patriotism, desire for public good honesty.
and morality Of purpose, as Gu11A7rs Devil
Fish, and no moro. It's blood-sncking in
stincts nre the same. As It resembles it in
all its attributes sud instincts, and as it is
nameless, let US cali it the Devi1-Fish party.
V1croR Huoo still further describes it ::
It's folds stangle, its contact paralyzes.
It has IN aspect Like gangrened or scabroua
flesh It IS monstrous em bodinent cf dis
sase It adheres closely to its prey, an2' can
not be torn away" The Deul-Fish party is
a monstrous embodiment Of disease. It has
paralyzed everything with which it has come
in contact. It's disease has spread through
out the community. The Devil-Fish party
looks like Gu11Arr's monster. It is gan
grened, and scabrous, and fostering with
corruption, and it adheres as closely to its
prey as its marine prototype It has not yet
been torn from its prey, because no one has
had Gn11Arr's courage.
There are still stronger and more startling
points of resemblance between the Devil
Fish Of Chicago and that Of the DouVrcs
rocks. It almost seems as if Vrcros Huao
we're describing the former when he says:
It IL with the sucking apparatus that sttacka. Tia
victim il oppressed by Eecuum drawing at number
less points; It Il not cawiug or biting but an IL
descrihable Acatincadon. teafing o8 the Aesh ia
ter14hlt but less terrible than sucking OF the blood.
Tho spectre iiea upon you tho tiger can
only dsvoar you; tho DevFish, horrible, sucks your
bfe-b;ood Away. He drswa you to him aud Into him.
self; whe bound down, glued to the gronnd, poRes-
horrible pouch, which IL tha monster.
This elimy monster, the Devl-Fish party
Of Chicago, lies upon the city end envelopes
it with its tentaclos, Like an incubus It's
tentacles are corrupt men in tho City-Ran
and in the County Building, Councilmen and
Commissioners, contractors and jobbers,
dead-beats and bummers, thieves, gamblers,
and bunko-steerers, saloon-loafers and ya-
grants, and oil that mass Of corruption, igno-
rance, superstition, dishonesty, and criminal
ity which exists inside the party and hangs
upon its skirts. There are the Council and
its bummers the County Commissioners and
their bummers the County Clerk and his
bun1mers the Recorder aud Sheriff and their
bummers the Poor-House authori ties and
their hu1nmers the Courthouse Ring and
its bummers, All these tentacles and more
are wound about the city, holding it with
their tightening cords, whi1o the Dovil-
Fish sucks and feeds upon tho blood Of the
community. Look at the work that has
already been accomplished by this festeriug
mass Of absorbent corruption. It has ab-
sorbcd all tho dishonesty, and villainy, and
ignorance Of the city. This would not be an
evil Of itself, but 1t did not stop thare. It
has absorbed all the Offices, every depart
ment and branch Of the City and County
Government. 1t haa absorbed aud dcvoured
the taxes. It has swept into its pouch,
Is which is the monster" all the city and
,ounty contracts, and has gorgsa upon them.
It has absorbed the whole system OF outdoor
relief, and feeds upon the paupers, and Grip
plea, and other unfortunates who have
been dragged into its remorseless nav.
It hos wound itself about the municipal im-
9rovements Of every kind, and they tie made
% supply it with blood. It hiss now fastened
lpon the public schools, and is scoking to con-
zol teachers, buildings, and supplies, for its
corrupt purposes. It has commenced upon
he Fire and Police Departments and Board
IT Public Works, BY filing them with its
OF, to ca11y out our si1nIle. by
Winding its tentacles about them, and these
Fiu soon bs suopt into "ths horrible
,ouch."
Do the people OF Chicago recognize ths
'erl that ensirons thsm' Do they not sse
Int the Devi]-F;ah Il gzapplins tham mora
nd tnofs cloisly' Ars sasy going 10 ftes
b kzs thay ts!&ed 1ifh the