Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1876-10-14

70 Tue appointment OF the Committee OF
Seventy Mr.. Tilden did not attend.
Have you any objection to giving me a
statement showing what you did. what
Mr.. Iilden said to you, and what were
precisely your legal measures and sue.
cessese will not use your name with.
out your consent, but it is important
that should have facts. which can be
substantiated if they are denied. My
address was Seafield. West Hampton,
New York. -.,...l
An early answer will oblige, dear sir,
yours very truly, JOHN A. DIX.
JOHN FOLEY, Esq.
MIR. FOLEY ANSWERS HIS VENERABLE
CORRESPONDENT.
No. 2 AsToR HOUSE, J
sg5H" NEW York. Oct, 4, 1876.
The Hon. John 4. Die. ....-.,,
MY DEAR GOVERNOR IL should have
sooner replied to your letter, as its inn
portance demanded, but for my absence
from the city and a press of business
matters. .aa.
You are mistaken in your impression
as to Governor Tilden's action in tbs
Tammany Ring prosecutions.
had several interviews with him. in
1871, and gave him printed copy OF
my proposed injunction. After a care
full examination, Mr.. Tilden came to the
sanfe conclusion that several other emf
nentNawyers arrived at, namely, that,
as taxpayer, had no standing in
court; and, as the law then stood,
could not secure an Injunction to stop
the further stealing of the ring. My
oh1o oorpool Mocoro Tok,
Strahan and Judge George e. Barrett.
thought otherwise. and strongly held
that the injunction was my only true
remedy, but, fortunately for me and for
our plundered city, Tweed, Hall and
Sweeney thought that their only safety
was to throw all the blame upon Conol-
ly. and they arranged with Judge Ber-
nard to grant the injunction. and so it
was done. Mr.. Tilden manifested no
desire to shield the ring, but, on the con-
trary, quite a bitter feeling existed be-
tween him and Tweed. ..t ~
You refer to the circumstances that
Mr.. Tilden did not attend the great
meeting of the 4th OF September, 1871.
Perhaps you are not aware of the fact
that he remained away because he was
engaged in pursuing the same end by
another route, and that it was, on con-
sultation. (he being the chairman of the
democratic state committee), deemed
best for the good cause that he should
not attend at that meeting, but should
prQceed separately.
You also forgot tho. tho 4-.. or-o.+
public meeting held in our city to put
down Tweed and his Tammany Ring
occurred August Z, 1871. You were in
vited, but you failed to attend that or
the 4th of September meeting, or any of
the early meetings of the Committee of
Seventy; neither do you refer to the
fact that the live,: stirring speech deliv-
cred by Mr.. Havemeyer at the 4th of
September meeting was revised previ-
GUS to its delivery by Mr.. Tilden, who
gave to it the clearness and backbone
by which it was characterized. .,... ..
1t is a notorious fact that long before
this Mr.. Tilden had become one of the
most determined opponents of the Ring,
both here, in the Young Democracy
fight, and in the State Convention.
In October, 1869. at the request Of
several leading merchants, bankers and
taxpayers, accepted the nomination
for the Office of supervisor. and promis-
ed that I would break up the corrupt
board or put a stop to the shameful
frauds upon the Taxpayers. was cleo
ted. but the Ring managers, through
their plant tool, Mayor Hall, appointed
the late Henry Smith to my place, and
on the 5th OF. January, 1870, they intro
duced bill in the legislature to confirm
their unlawful action. Tweed's attorney
general. Champlin. refused twice to al
low me quo aOa1Tanto, yet, with the
powerful aid of the Independent press
of our city-especially the SUM- com
PEELED the attorney-general to allow the
writ. pushed the trial successfully
through the courts. and got into the
board, and forced Tweed to abolish the
old board of supervisors. During all
this contest l secured much information
as to the swindling tactics of Tweed and
his plunderers, and which afterward led
me to bring, wholly at my own cost and
responsibility, the famous Injunction
suit of September Z, 1871, which result
ed in a perfect destruction OF the Tweed
ring power, forced Comptroller Conolly
to resign. and saved many millions of
dollars to our overburdened taxpayers
l also instituted other legal proceedings,
pushing things pretty lively organized
several public meetings-keeping up
the fight, ending in the complete r0ut OF
the thieves.
In 1872, I took an active part in your
nomination and election as Governor of
this state. Although a democrat and
you radical, l felt that you were the
best and most competent man in our
state to aid and sustain the great reform
movement; and it is but Just to say that
although you made such serious mistakes
on the whole you made good governor,
and when nominated for second term.
two years ago. told you early in the
canvass that your defeat was certain.
and that the people owed so much to
MIR. Iilden for his powerful aid in the
prosecution of Tweed and the Ring. And
now, when we come to contrast two
years of Gov. Tilden's management of
our state with yours. it proves the
wisdom and good judgment of the peo- !
pie in making the change. No other
man could or would attack and put
down the powerful Canal Ring as Gov.
Illden has done; and for his good work |
The people OF our state will ever feel |
grateful to him under his wise and able |
our state taxes have been |
reduced one-half; and this is Just the
kind OF management our whole country
s now in so much need of For these
reasons l may say to you that mean to
support Gov. Tilden for president, and
70 do my utmost to secure his election.
But this is not all. When l consider
,he fact that one half the number of bus
ness men and traders in this country
nave gone through bankruptcy, and that
large proportion of the other half
ought to become bankrupts, although
many of them don't know it; and whom
reflect that this widespread ruin is the
'esuit OF the extravaganza and the cor
upton of the dominant party, l feel
hat there is 4 necessity such as in all
'ur history never before existed for
'hange and for reform.
Can this change and this reform be ex-
,eeted from the election of Hayes and
What evidence have thew
yer given that they are geformsrs, Of u