Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1876-09-05
SKETCH OF TIE LIFE OF SAMUEL
JONES TILDEN,
G0cernor Of The STATE of NcU York, and
Democratic CANDIDATE for the Presidency
of the sEqitcd States.

The ancestry of Sir. Tildcu was Purtanic.
Joseph Tilden, of Tenderden, County Kent,
England, was one Of the ''merchant advcn>
turers" who fitted -out the May Flower, which
brought the Pilgrims to Plymouth. FROM
the same county, in9l634, Nathaniel TiIden,
brother of Joseph came over in the good
''shippe Anne" and.settled in the town of
Scituate. The family was we'll connected in
England, and BY marriage related to Oliver
Cromwell, the Protector" Tho name of
Tilden is still an honorable one in the old
colony. His grandfather removed to Colum-
bis county, N. Y.;twhen it was a wilderness
His father, Elan Tildeu, was q staunch Dem>
ocrat of the old SCHOOL Samuel Jones Til
den, the youngest of the sons of Elan Til
den, was born in New Lebanon, Columbia
county, n. Y FeblSk1Sl4, consequently he
is in the sixty,tbisd year of lis age. His
father, firmly he1.e the BemocEatfo-
doctrines of Jefferson, Jackson and Van
Buren,, early impressed them upon his son
Samuel.
10 1882 coalition was about to be formed
between the Anti>masOus and Wings to defeat
the Democrats. This subject was talked over
in the family, and Samuel, then only eighteen
years of age, wrote an article showing the alb
surdty of such amalgamation, couched in
ouSh SGA'uS duu IOR'Cdi GSI us IUaI lis auLnOT
ship was ascribed to Mr. Van Buren,, and it
was published as campaign document.
When eighteen years OF age, he entered the
Sophomore class in Yale College, but was
soon compelled to leave on account of the
failure of his health. He afterwards COM
pieted his education under Chancellor Mat
thews. and graduated at the University of
New York. Soon after his graduation, Mr..
Tilden commenced the study of the law in
the Office of the late john Edmunds in the
city Of New York, where he had peculiar
facilities both for the study of law and pol
ltics. Upon admission to the bar, he opened
law Office on Pine street, in the city of New
ork. Politics ragged high in those days, and
he soon wrote series of articles, which we're
highly praised by the Democracy. He then
embarked with Mr.. O'Sulivan in starting
the New York Ne,os, but he soon left the
editorial fraternity and was elected member
of the Assembly from the city of New York
Though young man, he took very con-
spicuous part in the legislature and was con-
sldcred one of the leaders in that body
During the session of the Assembly he was
elected member of the convention which
was chosen that year to remodel the constitu-
ton of the State of New York. In this body
also, MIR. Tilden was very prominent, and
many OF the amendments and improvements
In the new constitution emanated from him.
Mr.. Tilden, however, soon found that
neither politics nor editing paper paid, and
that to occupy prominent position in the
community, money was an essential article,
and that the way to accumulate this was to
apply himself to the duties of his profession
He now measurably withdrew from the polit-
lcal arena, and applied himself with great
zeal and energy to the practice of the law, in
which he soon became as eminent as he had
been in politics. He was retained as counsel
in many of the most important cases that
came before the courts, and was generally sue.
cessful in obtaining verdict for his clients
But the great work in which he pre-emi-
nently shone as reformer was in encounter
ing and overthrowing the so-called Ring"
of New York. This was one of the most
gigantic frauds ever foisted upon any COM
munity. The schemers and shrewd politicians
were composed of both Democrats and Re-
publicans, and it was a combination between
the officials of the city and the members of
the Assembly at Albany. Their object was,
by this combination, to defraud the city, and
they did defraud it of several millions of dol
lars. Mr.. Tiden with Mr.. o O'Conner, a prom
inent attorney of the city, and others set
themselves at work to ferret out the scoun-
drels who had entered into this wicked con-
spiracy, and SO effectually did they accom-
plish the work that they drove this banditti
from their strongholds, caused them to dis
gorge the enormous sums of which they had
plundered the city and take their fight from
civilized society, no man knoweth whittier
unto this day. Though the Times newspaper,
of the city of New York, ,.attempted to flch
from Mr.. Tilden the honor and the credit
which he justly deserved for the conspicuous
part which he took in this great reform, yet
the community generally, and even many of
the Republican newspapers believed that but
for his giant grasp upon the leaders, the back