The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1880-03-25
TILDRN AND TRK NEW YORK
D12MOORAOY.

The World cslls attention to the fact
that not 9 shred of the real executive
power of the New York state govern
ment remains in the hands of Demo-
Gratis. Two terms OF Democratic ad-
mlnlstration has cooked the party's
goose, and the act of cooking is
charged by the World to Mr.. Tilden
and the arbitrary influences he has set
to work in behalf of himself and his
clique. A syndicate setting at Gram
mercy Park have 30 managed and so
continue an attempted management
as make the course of Democracy
In the Empire State quite hope
less, and Its redemption de-
pends upon its management being
wrested from influences that have ut
terly damned it. The simple fact that
any single man, in so great a state as
New York, habItualiy talks of himself
as "the leader" of his party, of itself
stamps him as incapable of managing
Democratic organization. The Dem
ocratic party must by its very name and
nature be managed by the voters who
are members of it, and not by syndi-
Gates which emphasize and magnify
every point of difference between the
syndicate and members of the party
who are not in the syndicate. The al
legiance of a party is not to be won
and kept by such contrivances. Says
the World:
The most fatal defect of Mr. Tilden's
management of the affairs of the DEM
Ocratic party in New York since he
became Governor in the election of
1874, has been the silly and uncalled
for application, to every case of local
or personal dissent of the tactics which
it was no doubt necessary to use in or
der to break this Tweed ring. Every
body who is accurately informed about
the campaign against Tweed knows
that the real blows and the effective
blows against the Tweed dynasty were
dealt not by Mr.. Tilden at all, but by
Mr.. O'Conor. His wefe the tact, the
temper, the prudence and the merci-
less vigor which secured the victory in
that contest. Then, no doubt, a sort
of personal despotism was useful,
and Mr.. O'Conor did not shrink from
it. When he could not persuade an
adversary in that struggle into
decency he crushed him INTO silence.
In that campaign Mr.. Tilden was
employed by Mr.. O'Conor as faith
full, useful and expert grubber among
figures and accounts. No other instru-
ment was more effective in the hands
of Mr.. O'Conor. But when Mr.. Tilden
had so exploited his services in the
Tweed business as to get himself NOM
mated by the Democraclc party as Its
candidate for governor, he straightway
began to apply to all Democratic dis
sent the same kind of warfare that he
had seen Mr.. O'Conor apply in dealing
| with the Tweed ring. Mr.. Tilden's
policy in party management was impe-
rial; his opinions were infallible; his
mandates were absolute. Mr.. Tilden
showed little insight into human ra-
ture as displayed in the average politi-
cal voter. II the policy of Mr.. Tilden's
friends and lieutenants had been bril-
llantly successful in New York the un-
democratic character of that policy
might have been overlooked, but Til
den's arrogance in the beginning and
his ''futle dalliance" in the end result
ed in disastrous party humiliation:- OF
course no one expects the tail of a
party to continuously or vigorously
wsg the head, but every one does ex-
pect that the head of the party will
not expend all it's force in snarling and
biting at the tail of the party. The
next Democratic state convention of
New York must decide whether the
Democratic party will any longer toll
crate a state management, the chief
and only aim Of which appears to be
! to reward the personal friends and
punish the personal enemies whom Mr..
Tilden has created by his selfish and
exasperating methods and by his reck-
lessly personal distribution of the
state patronage while he was Cover
nor.