The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1876-06-30

lowing year, giving the power Of locs
government to few individuals Of tb
Sringo, tor long periods, and freed fron
al accountability.
within a month after the passage o.
this Tweed charter, the Board of Speia
Audit-one of the fruits of shis Leebla'
ture-were making an order for the Jay.
ment of over six millions of mons q
which it Is now known that scarcF 10.
per cent. in value was realized ths'
citv Tweed got "a per cent, ata hs
sosnt woodward, q; the brother u
Sweeny 10; Watson, Deputy Cotectos
-. az nerl cent. went to nieehaniS whb
fn,n,sbed the bills, though theb shste
had to suffer many attachments; ana a 20
went to other parties. Over s.SO,Yo
we're sent to Albany to be distributed
sOon y the members of the Legislature.
" ne nercentsges of theft, comparative
,. ~ in 1869, reached 66 per cent.
y 1870 and later, 80 per cent.
- NTba Senators no voted on the 9Th Of
snr;I 1870, bu. with two dissenting
toiees; TO depri ss our great COMMERCIAL
metropolis, VII lis million Of people, Of
all power OF self.government, as il Il
were conquered province, to confer up.
on Tweed, Connolly, Sweeny and Hall
for series If years the exclusive power
of appropriating all moneys raised BY
taxes or by loans and in an indefinite
mower to borrow-who swaYed all the
Institutions of local government the
local judiciary and the whole machinery
Of electioss-dld not come again within
reach of the people until the election of
the 7th of November, 1871, when their
successors were to be chosen. All hope
of rescuing the city from the hands OF
the treebooters depended upon recovering
the legislative power OF the State, in Sc.
curing a msiority of the Senate and AS.
sembly. To this end Mr.. Tildsn di-
rected all his efforts. In speech 1t the
Cooper Union in New York, he stated
MIR. Tweed's plan, which was to carry
the Senatorial representation from that
citv and then reflect eight, and il pos
,, sible twelve O. the Republican Snators
from the rura districts, whom b had
bought and paid for the previous year,
and thus control all the Legislation that
might be presented there which MOVED
his freebootirg dynasty.
A party lnpower is naturally Opposed
70 risk the continuance # abuses 1ther
than hazard The extreme remedy "cut-
ting them out by the roots" The xecu-
tive power Of the State and all = re-
Gently enlarged official patronage we're
exerted against the latter policy. And
since the contest of 1869 the "rins had
studied to extend It's influence the
rural districts, and had showered lsiela-
tive favors as if they were ordinar pat
ronage. But fortune favors the rave.
Without an office or q dollars wcth OF
patronage in city or State to confe Mr..
rilden planted himself on the fractions
of the elders on the moral sen,and
torces of Democracy, and upon te in
ylpcibility of truth and right. Thtnn-
daunted faith in the harmony otTuth
aud its irreconcilability with error, 'hich
we have found sustaining hn at
the bar and carrying him from v'tory
to victory against more desperateodds,
sustained him here. AS always happens
to those who battle for the right fovi-
dence came to his aid. The thlsv, fell
out, and one of their number betayed
them. A clerk in the Comptrolles Of
fee COPIED series of entries-sfter ards
known rs '.secret account''-and haded
them to the press for publication. hey
showed the dates and amounts Of cstain
payments made by the ComptrollS the
enormous amounts OF which, comsred
with the times sRd purposes OF thfay'
ments and the recurrence OF theume
names, awakened suspicious that thewere
memorials of the groasest f,pds.
Mr.. Tilden soon became satisfied othis
from the futility of the arvers
received from the city officers shen
questioned about them and from cher
sources, and reached the conclusiothat
the city ot New York had bee the
victim of frauds lar trsnscending9ny.
thing ever suspected. He immedtely
formed his plan, for the executh Of
which-as it involved the control 4 the
approaching State Convention-ts CO.
operation OF several leading Democrats
was first secured. He accepted ar
ran cement by which he was 10 bssent
to the convention from his native dtrict,
Columbia County, which bad trays
during the Ring" ascendency sbrded
him that opportunity OF being herd.
Early in September he issued aletter
to some seventy-six thousand DemcratS,
reviewing the situation and calhn|ppon
them 40 take knife and cut the sncer
out by the roots" But before theneet
ing OF the Convention an event hapened
which could not have been foresen, but
which was pregnant with the mst inn
portant consequences.
To the eternal honor of the Demo-
cratic party OF the city and State, p the
issue thus made up by Mr.. Tide they
gave him their cordial and irresistible
Support. The result was overwhm ming,
and not only changed the city repf enta'
ton in the legislative bodies T the
State, but in its moral effect, cruaed the
Ring"
Mr.. Tilden was one of the tlegates
chosen to represent the city in II next
Legislature. In Difference " th views
of his principal coadjutors, MrITilden
devoted the six weeks interval between
mis- election and the meeting Of he Leg
islsture to the prosecution Of its investi-
CATION in the city departments and IN
preparing the vast mass Of aalrate in
formation which was the basis ( nearly
all the judicial proofs that hive since
| been employed successfully in bringing
the members of the "Rlng" 10 nstice or
driving them into exile.
Mr.. Tilden gave his chief attention
during the session OF the Legislature to
the promotion OF those objects for which
he consented 10 60 there, the reform OF
| the Judiciary and the impeachment oil
the creatures who had scquiredthe con-
troll of it under the Tweed dynaty.
Mr.. Tilden had thus by his bold acts
made himself prominent In tbs work OF
reform, and recognized Is tbs man to
lead it in the State. Prominent friends
of reform urged him 10 accep, the nomi.
nation for Governor. They SAID he could
be nominated without difficulty and
elected triumphsntly, and in his triumph
4 q E<.S