New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1877-10-01

The autobiography of William NJ. Tweed
does not grow more interesting as it advances,
and the public has reached the conviction that
the cream of the story has been pretty well
taken off II is true that AL his "reminiscences
contain something of entertainment and lin
strlction. There Wa u comic side to the
transactions of the ring, and Tweed, who is
an abandoned old reprObate, still, in all his
misery and detection, rolls the plums of
humor under his tongue, and rchearses
the iudicr0us incidents of his crimes with
an unmisakahle relish. He has the art
also Of presenting i'll n few terse sentences
u wonderfully vivid representation OF The men
among whom be lived. and the operations by
which they swindlcd the public. Nothing could
be better in its way than his account OF the
dealings of the ring with that accommodating
statoner who gave them everything they
wanted, from Il p0cket-bOok to an oil painting,
and charged the cost 10 the city under the
head of pens and ink. All the members of the
CITY Government participated III the grand
Gift distribution. % do not know that | could
''bo more definite than TO say everybody
q know that anything we wanted we
''cot from MIR. Jones-pictures, harness, Russia
"lcather goods cannot name thing we could
mot get; they were paid fer in Mr.. JOnes's
"bill; they were inserted as stationery"
prosperous member OF The ring in those days
led wonderful life. The Court House Com
mission built fine house for him, aud after
GarYcy had plas'ered the walls, they were
hung by Jones with "oil paintings" touching
which ii is to be presumed that the happy
statesman was not particular about the artist
or the subject, 50 long as the picture had
plenty OF color and rich frame. Thus pro-
viued with a home ut the pnbhc cost, ne
could spend all his stl.lings Tor drink and
diamond pins. Tweed gives graphic account
also OF the doings on election night in 1SGS,
when almost all of any notabiIty III The
Democratic party including so iaras he can
remember. SGeeny, Mclean. Connolly and Gov
emcr Hoffman, met with him at the Metropol-
ltan Hotel, and arranged to telegraph the
whole Bible to the rural districts if necessary,
so rs to block the telegraph wires while the
desired forgeries were made IN the city re-
turns: - They never used the Bible for any
Ching else
But apart from these and a few other pas
saprs, IL must be confessed that the sixth chap
zen OF his Rec0llccti0ns is rather di'appoint-
mcnt The partisan aninus Of the examiners
was made altogether TOO plain on Saturday
Tweed was asked what testimony he could
have given the Attorney General if bis c0nies-
sion had been accepted in what suits his evil
deice would have been material, how much
money il would probably have saved the city
There is not man in the Common Council
who does not perceive the absurdity Of taking
the opinion OF the prisoner himself upon points
like these, and there is not a respectable man
in the city who is not conscious OF the indie
cercy Of asking such questions of such
witness, merely to promote the interest
Of a faction within the Democratic
party, which is trying to dscredit the Demo-
cratic state Administration. These things
have a very bad effect. Ii is suspicious that
Tweeds revelations are all in the interest of
Tammauy Hall. When they impiicate Demo
Gratis at all, the victims are Democrats whom
the present managers Of Tammany Hall do
not like Yet it is certain that all the sinners
are not on the same side of the fence. DO
the Democracy of New-YorI expect Us to be-
lieve thaC il has east out all its bad char
acteIs?