Daily Los Angeles herald., 1878-04-23

We find in the New York Sun
the following just reflections on the
late VIM. NJ. Tweed:
His power was well-nigh bound
less; his crimes were on the same
scale of grandeur; and his punish
mont, though only the smallest
part Of II was inflicted by the min.
isters Of the law was most complete
and exemplary. TWAS intensified,
too, By the fact that he endured 1t
alone, and that his confedsrates,
more timid, more cunning, and
more fortunate than he, escaped,
Tor the most part keeping the spoils
of their robberies, while he was
compelled to lose his. Connolly,
fleeing In time to Europe, 10 still q
millionaire in his shameful exile,
and 6weeny, the ablest head of
them all, compromising with the
public prosecutor for Q few hundred
thousand dollars, IL unframed in
Paris. Thus human justice was
most unequally allotted. They
were no less culpable than he, while
they lacked altogether the amiable
and engaging qualities which ma.
ture had bestowed upon Tweed.
Yet he dies poor and in prison,
while they live rich and at liberty.
The writer, in the fall of 1871, as
the New York correspondent of q
leading Western newspaper, had
occasion to call upon Tweed when
he was lettering to his fall. The
general impressions as to the per-
sonnet of the ex-Boss are entirely
erroneous. While Nast's carica-
lures Of him were remarkably
faithful, they were exact only as to
the salient outlines, and every
facial characteristic was grossly ex.
aggerated. We had several inter-
views with Tweed in his private Of
noe. on Duane street, and we found
him . man Of even brilliant corver-
sational powers. His observation
Of men and manners had been ex-
tensive and exact. He had given
. close attention to not only public
men but to the events of his time,
and few persons could com mand a
clearer or more felicitous express
sion of his ideas than he. With a
fondness for curt, short Saxon, his
conversation, when he desired to
have it so, was that of a thorough
ly accomplished man of the world,
His features were strong and
marked, but much must be dis
counted from Nast's delineation OF
them. There was the large, char
acteristic nose, and the forehead
iessening In breadth as the coronal
was reached, but the forehead itself
was broad ut the base, massive and
ofsven abnormal height. He had
the face and head of man Of intel.
ligsnoe and great dynamic
force. There was about him
very little of the coarse vulgarity
with which his name has been as
ISOLATED. How, with his clear cut,
intelligent and even urbane cha r
acteristics, lie ever descended to til e
wearing Of a $4,000 diamond pin,
has always been a mystery to Us,
just ~ his permitting himself to be
thief, even with the me odramatic
accompaniment that his thieveries
were on q colossal scale, must have
puzzled those who knew the better
qualities Of the man.
We remember the conversation,
which turned on his DOWNFALL, as
though it had taken place yester.
day. We remarked that he did
not seem to be at all Disconnected
by the tile of ill-fortune that had
set in against him. He answered
that a true-born New Yorker loved
a fight, and he was a New Yorker
of the third generation. We re.
marked that, Notwithstanding hii
arraignment and the strong outcry
against him, his friends still seem ed
to stick to him and that we had
noticed that his portrait still hung
up in the offices of District Attor.
hey Garvin and Sheriff Brennan
He replid that he daily received
evidences Of the answering fideli
ty Of his friends. He did not in
tend to use his power, but he was
satisfied that, If he chose to do So
he could still facilitate or defeat thu
advancement Of airy man in either
party to office in the city anc
State of New York. We have
often reflected that, since tina
time, he must have come to bitterly
modify this opinion.
In his conversation with us Mr.
Tweed ascribed the direct cause O
his misfortunes to the hostility O
HArper's Weekly, aud almost en-,
tirely to the pencil of Thomas
Mast. We expressed some surprise
at this, as the figures com mum.
Gated by ex-Sheriff O'Brien to the
New York Times were supposed to
have been at the bottom Of 1t all,
He replied that that i'm.
preston was q mistake. He
could easily have handled
O'Brien and the New York Times
but those terrible cartoons of Nasl
were unanswerable. They ap.
pealed both to the educated mar
and 10 the man who could not reat
AHka hoI fnaperal