The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1878-04-26
TwEEDs LIFE RECORD.
eash's story of HIS Political Reign
The Most Rem arIable History of a Pol
itLcaI Life-His ImprisOnment and
Escape-The Capture and
Death In Jail.
Correspondence Philadelphia Times.

lalls Ills ACAotbS15 W BtA-
ton and crime were preserved to the
last. No merely civil prisoner, con-
demned for debt, was ever pursued
TO a neutral country and brought home
on a ship-of-War but Tweed On ship
board, as In jail, he was kindly looked
upon, because he had a temperament
which subdued luminosity, and also a
certain pride and sensibility. That
natural temperament, in which
there were childish impulses, not only
made friends around his person, but
travelled in the atmosphere and soften
ed distant critics IN. He dies sorrow-
Ing thief, AMI, like Jack Falstaff.
wrings commiseration from the in
stincts OF both literature and law.
This afternoon you hear but one ex-
preston in New York: "P0or Tweed (!
/ suppose he broke his heart - He died
in the month of his birth, at the age OF
fiity-five. His name was William
Marcy Tweed, probably named for the
able Jeffersonian governor, Judge and
statesman of New York, the same who
uttered the sentiment which Tweed's
life verified: "To the victors belong
the spoils." II death-bed repentance
consists of TenOuncing ones false relig-
ion, Tweed is not n lost soul. He told
me last winter in the Jail that civil SER
wee Unconventional, state and mum
icipaI-was all that could redeem our
politics. L am sure that he said what
he meant. Indeed, / think that
Tweed's melancholy conclusions of
days were unreserved and truthful.
He was the victim OF three dreadful
powers-public opinion, party nccessi-
Iy and the press. Between the three
justice was more than satisfied and
pity had long been waiting at his jail
but entered only ohis bier
BEGINNING OF FELONY.
Tweed's confession, which was prob
ably true in every respect, although
condemned by partisan press because
1t inculpated both Republicans and
Democrats, stated that the first con-
ception of ring began soon after he
entered the board OF supervisors, dur
ing Mr.. Buchanan's administration
Money was required to purchase the
absence OF a Republican (for Whig) so
as to give Mr.. Tweed's side majority.
IL was advanced by the federal post
master, Ike Fowler, afterwards a de-
1aulter and fugitive, out OF the post
office funds. The person bought 10 be
absent was obscure, aud name and de-
lection were never known until Tweed
disclosed them nearly twenty years at
terward. The greedy leaders of differ
emit factious then coalesced for mutual
interest, each controlling a ward or
wards, and the ring was formed.
Among these were Sweeny, a poor
lawyer; Connolly, a book-keeper, and
Brennan, a hreman-politician The
war broke out in 1851, prior to which
time there had been no more than the
usual peculatlon in New York city.
The MAJOR of the city says that It was
In raising regiments, paying bounties
AMI getting substitutes that the ring
first discovered how vast a robbery the
public would stand. Thus the war,
the flood of currency and the union OF
loyalty and rapacity gave Tweed's
ring Its opportunity. He and the ring
were the product of the war. All
these men were stout war Democrats
Their pet statesman was John L. Hoff-
man, whom they successfully made
recorder, mayor and governor, anL
have acquitted of all participation in
their spoils. At the close of the war
or in 1865 or 1866, organized opposition
was made to the ring. The governor
Fenton, cited the heads OF departments
before him at Albany, and Boole, one
of the set, took fright, and finally died
in lunatic asylum. Nothing came
of this except Fenton's election TO the
ODlISu OJdtSS Sen ATE.
In little while the country plunged
into care of railroad extension an(
city improvements. Tweed and
Sweeny took hand in both, using
their judges and the legislature to pro-
cure railroad decisions, aud they went
into the Erie railroad directory witf
Gould and Fisk, Tweed was also in the
State Senate from 1867 to 1871, using
the revenues of the city to procur,
cast-iron charters for il and entirely
remodeling the constitution of TIT
State. He was now called the "Boss,
and prostitute lawyers proposed t
erect statue to him. It is said tina
he took kindly to this preposterou
suggestion, and Ben Wood relates tina
at.Sweeny's request he took that dan
gerous variety out of Tweed. New
York city was immensely improved
and at immense cost. In 1868 tn
Democratic National convention wa
assembled In New York, and the ring
now in absolute control of Tamman,
Hall, took the opportunity to make
strong Impression upon the delegates
Mr.. Seymour was nominated; he re
ferred TO Tweed and Sweeny as "me
of remarkable political and eXecutiv
ability" The succeeding years wer
the best the ring had down to ISL
when they had resolved, apparently, {
press Hoffman on the Democratic con
Vention for President. But their pat
ronage had now become enormoUsi
extensive and costly, and they coul
not suppress the eVer-arising arrog
ance and rapacity of new leaders
One of these, O'Brien, the Sheriff, ha
transcripts made of the accounts of tn
ring and the wide discrepancies an
overcharGes there. The city was no.
next to bankrupt and the publicatiO
of these charges in the New Yor
Times produced an agitation foreboG
ing a revolution, perhaps a vigilanc
committee. A large meeting of cit
zens, including many Democratic pul
lie men, was called at Union Squar
The cowardly member of the rim
was Connolly, and his fears were opel
ated upon by Messrs. Tilden, Gree
and Havemeyer, while Judge Barnar'
partly from like fear and partly undo
the delusion that 1t would make hiI
governor, put an injunction en- tt
rings command of the city revenue
They were thus sold out and starve
out.
THE EVIL DAYS.
It was at that ominous period thi
the Democratic State convention m'
in Rochester, that Tweed appeare
there to play his last card. He di
not go to the hall of the convention
but from his quarters in the Osbor
House sent his creatures, Dewitt Bal
Der aud Fello ives, to do his work. ]
the convention, seated beside Franc
Herman, the present Senator, and Ht
ratio Seymour, Mr.. Samuel j. Tide
led the opposition TO Mr.. Tweed. I'll
latter's henchmen packed the gale
les and stormed, but In the pausss
their bowling could be heard Il
words: 81 can go back to my plunde
ed fellow citizens and take my plat
among Them" This was Tilden
threat. He raised up Charles O'ConnC
to conduct the prosecutions on beha
OF great moral vigilance commit,
of seventy, and In the interim, Tweed
misconduct lost the State and electC
Dix Governor and Grant -Presiden
Tweed himself was arrested on civ
suit and gave ball In 1000, 600. II
district elected him to the senate ne'
ertheless, but he did not take his sea
The other riDgleaders fled, except Hal
the mayor. Late in 1873 Tweed WI