, 1877-10-21

| that party will best serve its own interests
which offers to the public candidates whose
character will be guarantee of honest gov
ernment.
DEMOCRATIC REFORM IN COOK COUNTY
The Democratic notion of reform, as e3h1o~
tied by their Committee. is peculiar IL IS
only year ago that band-wagons were pa
radine the streets with "T1LDES and lie
form and s. Reform is Necessary Pl@srereo
all over them, and heralded forth BY the d1n
of cracked bugles and bess~drums large
number of boys were indulged with torch
lights to arouse the inert people to reallza-
ton of the fact that it was only through the
Democratic party that honesty economy,
and re retrenchment in the public service could
be assured; aaring transparencles pore tne
same magic legends, illunlined more by their
own etfulgence than the dim candies that
lighted them public speakers harangued the
people till the hoarseness Ut the orators and
the physical WEAKNESS of the audiences could
bear no more ;. brilliant promise was held
out of political millennium under the aus
plces Of the Democratic party. COOK
County was among those communl-
ties that permitted themselves to be
partially duped by the parades, the torch
lights, the fanfare, aud the oratorlcal flour
ishes. Mr.. T11DEN carried the city and
county, and dragged through the Democratic
County Commissioners with him. The re-
suit was to solidify the County Board as a
Democratic institution. aud to cement more
strongly than ever the Ring which rules and
plumbers the county. This is one illustra-
ton Of Cook County Democratic notions
of ssreform."
But it is the same " Reform crowd which
comes forward this year, throws of the mask,
no longer so much as processes or promises
reform, and openly seeks an atiliation with
the "Industrials," with the certainty of
getting the Communist vote and the hope Of
deceiying the workingmen, as q class, by this
pratonss of especial sympathy. It is not
merely in the proposition for such an al
lance which has been made by the
managers of the local Democratic party,
but in the basis submitted to this
end, that the Democratic purpose is
revealed, The plan of cooperation pro-
posed by the Democrats is that they shall
retain the paying Offices, such as the County
Treasury, County Clcrkship, and all the fat
Offices to be filled, while the ''lndustrials
may have the FIVE places in the County
Board, and make what they eau out of
them. Now, the County Board is the Legis-
lature Of Cook County. It determines the
appropriations, makes the oontracts, levies
the taxes, issues the bonds manages the
puble charities, and largely dictates the
subordinate appointments in all branches Of
the County Government. It is patent to
the Democratic ringsters that there Gun be
no reform in the administration Of county
affairs without first improving the character
Of this Board. 1t is also perfectly well
known to them that the confessed purpose
of an independent appearance of the - In
dustrials in politics is to secure what they
call "liberal" policy: which means to
spend even more taxpayers money than
ever for pauper supplies and con-
tract work In the face Of this
knowledge the local Democratic managers
propose to throw the Board into the hands
of the Iudustrials aud Communists, to sup
port any men whom they may name, no
matter how unfit or unscrupulous, aud to
assist in the continuation Of Ring plumber.
They propose to use the Commissioners IS
mere pawn6 wherewith to maneuvre their
designs on the fat offices Of the County
Government. This is another illustration of
the Democratic notion of reform.