The Portland daily press., 1876-07-14
TiIden and the Tweed Ring.

AANOh anu biiO l. NCCu AtlhSs
A correspondent of the Philadelphia Press
takes occasion to deny the oft repeated asser-
ton that Tilden broke up the Tweed Ring.
The correspondent says:
1t is strange that the facts of this noted
struggle should be so soon distorted when they
are so easily obtained. A file of the New
York Times for the year 1871 tells the whole
story For years the New York Times and
Tribune had been calling public attention to
the gross. frauds of the Tammany Ring, but
the first determined effort to put stop to those
frauds was made by Mr.. John Foley in 1869,
wnen he was elected to the board of SUPER
yisors. Tweed and his gang counted out Mr..
foiey, but the latter gentleman is not easily
beaten when he knows he is right. He car
REQ MS case to the courts, and compelled the
hlng to give him seat in the Board With
MI. Foley in the Board, the stealing was
stopped for the time; and Tweed, who then
controlled the city and state governments, had
an act passed in 1870, abolishiDg the board of
supervisors, in order 10 get rid Of Foley. The
now notorious "Ad Interim Board of Audit
was then established, composed of Tweed,
Connolly and Hall. They held one meeting of
fifteen minutes duration. and passed fraudu-
lent bills. amounting to over six millions of
dollars In July, 1871, the New York Times
obtained and published an abstract from the
books of Controller Connolly, showing the
sums paid for. plastering aud furnishing the
court house, accompanied with an article
which attracted attention all over the United
States and stirred the people of New York as
they had not been stirred since the war. The
Ring did not deny the truth of the statements
made by the Times, but impudeptly asked
what are you going to do about it?" and said
the excitement would soon elbow over" and,
indeed. it seemed that such would be the case
until John Foley organized grand public
meeting at Cooper Institute, August Z, 1871.
lie presided and resolutions were passed de-
nouncing the Ring and demanding the resigna-
ton of Mayor Hall. Tweed, Connolly, and
others: On the 18th of August Mr.. Foley
published letter in the New York Times Civ
ing history of the secret meeting of the "Ad
Interim Board of Audit" and about the same
time began his famous injunction suit. This
was the most important part of the proceedings
against the Ring They had been exposed, but
their power remained, and their opportunities
for stealing were as good as before. But when
Judge Barnard, on the 9th of September 1871,
granted the injunction, the power of the Tam
many Ring was broken. Connolly resigned,
woodward fled, and general scattering OF the
thieves followed. Up to this time SAMUEL j,
Iilden had not raised finger against the Ring
though frequently urged to do SO. 1t was not
until the LIST of october, 1871, when the Ring
was etfectually broken up, that Mr. Tilden said
word against its members As chairman of
the Democratic State Committee, he used free
1y the money contributed by Tweed and other
members OF the Ring, and must have known
on the trial of Tweed), but he was perfectly
willing to wink at the frauds so long as he i'm
agined they were beneficial to thu Democratic
party. The one service which Mr.. Tlden did
on the Tammany Ring was ON the trial of
Tweed. He examined the accounts of the
Broadway Bank, and showed just how the stol-
en- money was divided-twenty-five per cent.
went to Tweed, twenty per cent. to Connolly,
ten per cent. to Sweeny, and five per cent, to
Woodward, the managing man of the steal, and
five per cent. to Watson the Ring auditor. The
honor of breaking up the Tammany Ring
belongs to John Foley and the New
York Times. They attacked it when the Ring
was all-powerful, and when to attack it was
dangerous. Mr.. Foleys house had TO be
guarded for weeks, and its owner lay sick for
months after the injunction had been granted
and the excitement had passed away. The
Times was threatened in every possible way, and
suit was entered to obtain possession of its
building on some trumped up claim; but all
was of no avail, The fight was kept up, and we
know the result. Let not their glory be given
tn another