New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-06-21
THE GOVERNOR And THE RAILROAD COM
MISSION BILL

MISSION BILL
t. was n matter of course that Governor
Cornell should be mathematical If he signed
or if he failed to sign the Railroad Cemmis-
sion bill. 1t was n bill that inspired very many
warm friends and very many enemies equally as
warm. While it was yet pending in tho Lesls-
lature sundry newspapers prophesied that ne
would not approve of it if the power TO APP
point the commissioners was not lodged I'D
him. and then went on to declare that his
failure to approve would be an outrage upon
the people, denial of justice, and all that sort
of thing. Still other newspapers solemnly in
formed their readers that tho Governor was
puttlng I'D a deal with certain Tammany
leaders having for its object the passage of
the bill in a shape agreeable to himself, ana
then went on to declare that this deal, which
existed nowhere outside of their own inn
aginations, was just too awfuly disreputable.
And SO the storm against the Governor ragged
before the bill passed into his hands. The
Legislature having adjourned, it began to blow
great guns against him on the supposition
that possibly he was going to sign 1t. "A
large public meeting was held at prominent
noipt in the State at which the bill was
vigorously assailed by number OF prominent
business men. And while they were making
their speeches several newspapers here ana
there, on the supposition that possibly he was
not going to sign it, were just as vigorously
asserting that the bill was all right, and by
all means ought to become law.
Well, the Governor signed the bill. The
provision lodging he appointing power not in
the present Executive, but in the one to be
ell thn nntpn nf
most rancid and bieOted plrtisanship, and as
such was quite worthy of a Democratic ma
iority that gave five weeks to a spoils deadlock,
and could not find any time to give to re-
vision of the tax laws. But Notwithstanding
the insult offered him in the bill, and nOtwith-
standing that it passed in an unfortunate
shape. the Governor finally decided to
put his name to it. He could well afford to
ignore the insult, considering its source (; and
although the bill as it reached him was weak
and inadequate it was not vicious, and he con-
Guided that the lesser of the two evils was to al
low it to become law. There had been general
demand for the passage of a railroad commission
BILL Both the Republican and Democratic plat
forms OF last year contained plank responsive,
to this demand and the Governor, in obedience
to the popular will calling for some bill, placed
his signature to a faulty one rather than by
Withholding it to afford the people no relief
whatever in the premises. And how he is be-
ing abused for his action ! One of his fero-
cious critics says that when he signed the bill
he drove the last nail into his political coffin.
Another means out that he has sat down on
country merchants. A third is sure he signed
it simply on political grounds. But it is to be
remembered that if he had refused to sign 1t
three other sets of critics would have
assailed him in precisely the same terms.
There would have been the same heated
allusOn to nails in political collins, to
sitting down on country merchants, and the
rest. The Governor of course understands all
this perfectly well. Anu so we conclude that
his equanimity is not at all disturbed by this
particular sGorm. No matter what course he
took it was bound to blow.