Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1876-07-19
Tilden's Canal.RefOrm Fraud.

The Democratic candidate for President
bases his claims to the Office upon the
ground of reform. Said Mr.. Tilden, on
hearing of his nomination; This nomi-
nation was not made by the leaders of the
party. 1t was the people who made it.
They want reform" We have already
shown in these columns how Tilden acted
as reformer, when Chairman Of the
Democratic State Committee in 1868. We
have shown that at that time, acting as
agent and adviser of Boss Tweed he
served as IN accomplice in stuffng ballot
boxes, and helped to steal the electoral
vote of the State giving Hoffman for Gov
ernor 10000 majority, when, as was after
ward shown by the Congressional investi-
cation, the Republicans carried the State
by 10000. The chief reform, however,
upon which Iilden proposes to run his
campaign in the East and carry New York
is the Canal reform, which he announced
with such flourish of trumpets in his
canal message in March, 1915. We print
elsewhere from the New York Times an
exhaustive article showing the extent of
this reform and exactly what has been ac-
complished 1t is good reading in this
hot weather for those who look upon Til
den rs the great canal reformer. Figures
don't lie, and these figures not only don't
lie but they expose the shallowness of
this reform trick in very eloquent man.
ner. From the publication of the canal
message in 1915 to the present time, three
suits have been brought, one Of them an
old one commenced by Atty. Gen. Barlow
and abandoned as hopeless Two of yhem
were brought to trial. and one conviction
was obtained. One suit was dismissed by
Court, and one is now pending Not one
cent of money has been recovered and it has
cost the tax payers of New York $780,
900 in expenses of Commission and
counsel, and not one existing fraudulent
contract has been stopped. This is the
sum and substance, therefore, of Tilden'S
hullabaloo about Canal reform: that the
people Of New York have had to pay $780,
600 for the dismissal of one suit and con
viction in the second-the conviction be-
ING that of Lord, after two trials, who
was strenuous opposer of Tilden when
he was seeking the nomination for Gov
ernor in 1874 and refused to contribute to
the campaign fund when he was nomi-
mated After spending 800 900 of the
peoples money, he has convicted one
man, who Is not yet sentenced, and prob
ably never will be, and has not recovered
one cent How much will it cost the peo-
pie of New York if Tilden should carry
out his expensive system of reform and
prosecute the long array of Canal con
tractors The summary of the Times
shows the emptiness of Tildens pretenses
rs a Canal reformer. The reform policy
of 1ilden is reform policy to crush po-
litical rivals. Beyond this he has no use
for reform. His whole record down to
the present time has been that of cum
ming scheming, selfish partisan, bent only
upon advancing his own interests, at one
time acting as an accomplice with Tweed
in stutfing ballot-boxes to do it, at an
other time throwing away thousands of
dollars of the taxpayers money upon nj
legged reforms which in reality are vain
endeavors to crush out political rivals.
Tilden has IA host of political enemies;
but can the people of New York afford to
pay 500, 900 for each of their scalps in
order to crafty this reform charlatan?-
CHicagO Tribune