New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-10-27
A LOOK AHEAD,

"If were wooden Indian standing ont il
front of tobacco store on the avenue" sale
Mr.. George in one of his speeches last week
"and you should elect me-, you would command
ever afterward the respect and service Of
the politicians" He might have gone
further and said to his supporters, Give me q
strong vote, and whether you elect me or not
you can dictate terms TO politicians hereafter
If he should be elected grave as the ultimate
consequences of that misfortune must be, Mr..
George could not Immediately unsettle the bases
of our prosperity, and his inability to accom-
plish any of the fine things he has promised
would soon involve him in a wrangle with his
own party. But if the control of the city
should fall into the hands of a wel-Organized
faction, like TammaDy or the County Democ-
racy, and that faction, with its experience and
opportunities, should surrender itself to the
service of the agltatOrs, communists, rey0u-
tiOnists, impracticabes, and cOnspira tors
against free labor who train at Mr.. Georges
heels, the situation would be far more serious.
That would give the Socialistic faction all that
they need to become fnlmida ble-the use of a
complete political machine, the services of
little army of trained political operators and
the open favor of municipal administration
eager to bend to their purposes the police, the
courts and the district atto ncy's Office. Tam
many acting under Mr.. Geor gels command
would be far more dangerous than Mr.. George
trying to rule in person.
When the canvass opened there was some
plausibillty in the notion that 10 elect an
honest Democrat like Mr.. Hewitt by a large
majority would reduce the George movement
to such insign:fcance that it would never be
heard of again. But it is impossible to enter
tain that expecta ion now. Ii is certain that
the George vote will be so large, and 81 largely
drawn from the Democratic ranks, thai even
if Mr. Hewitt can be elected at all Il heavy ma
jOrity for him IS quite out of the question. As
a cOnse nuence both tie Democratic factions
are already convinced that the sO-called Labor
vote is neceSs Try for them and neither OF chem
wishes to risk another election without making
itself solid with Mr.. Georges followers. The
truce between Tammany and the County De-
mOcracy will end on election day. The next
morning, il either George oTsIlewitt is chosen
for the eeds Of the factions will be the same
In either case-we may expect to see the two
halls outbidding each other in overtures for the
George alliance. A coalition with the Labor
agitatOrs before the next campaign is the
lesson which each wing of the Democracy will
draw from such an election, and neither OF them
will hesitate to pay the price of it
We commend these considerations to re-
spectacle citizens Who lave thought of voting
for Mr.. Hewitt under the delusOn that the
best way to counterfeit the George movement
is to place the city government in the hands of
a faction which would certainly go over to
George as soon as the votes counted.
The election of Mr.. Roosevelt would have a
very different consequence. That would be "a
popular rebuke to Disappointing schemes so
severe that even Tammany politicians would
probably take it to heart and many signs seem
10 show that good citizens of both parties so
understand it, and will cast their ballots &C
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