New-York tribune., 1886-04-02
4 DEEFNCE REOTIRED.

Dodgcr" and the other tools OF the original fa-
gin was, when caught picking pockets, to shout
Stop Thief louder than anybody else. Our
NcW-I ork FaGin knows that trick too. But 1T
viii not hep him. He cannot throw the police
off the track by an outburst OF false and child
,h inv entions about THE TRIBUNE. lie helped
Jacob Share all he could when Jacob oharp
wanted help and was paying for it. lie said
then, not once Oh twice, but so long rs 1t was
needed. the exact opposite about Jacob Sharp
and the Broadway steal of what he says now.
Why
The Aldermen gave their final consent to the
Broadway grab on Novembe. 13, 1891. The
Neu- lotk Tin,cs'S article approving the grab
appeared November Ii, 1881. The Aldermen
are supposed to have been paid from the pro-
ceods OF the sale of bonds in June 1885, Of
which the famous Distcchcr fund was part
From November, 1851. until June, 1888,
The Times WAS Jacob Sharps warm ana stead
fast supporter. We propose to show that
there Is not an accused Alderman to-day who
has so serious a need to furnish IN explanation
0f his vote as this newspaper, processing to acC
for he public interest, has TO explain It's 'lbors
20 promote the success of Sharp's schemes. 1t
vas the Adermens business to give away the
franchise. 1t was apparently The Tmess busi-
ness 10 make i market Tor Sharp's bonds with
which the Aldermen were TO be paid.
In August and september. 1891, The Times
condemned the threatened steal unsparingly.
Then, while all the other newspapers were pro-
testing az ainst the threatened action Of the
Alderlen, il became susplciousy silent. AT
last. on November II, the very morning after
tine Allermqen adopted tacir tlal vote, it came
out with this astonishing language:
Itthc privilege Of constructing AMI operating rail-
rod On that thorousate BrJltwIy Is TO he granted
at ALL il IL diiicGt TO conceive Of more fnVora-
bic arrRn cement FOR the eiiy iian thnt provided
for by the Term. Of this consent OF the Common
Council. TIE question Of compensation to the
city dealt with III way That appears to be quite as
Gdcuu0ge0uS eJsid DC dS:cd or erpec'cd. This
be preferred 20 the payment of Sl,o0O.oOO as
lump sum to the city, ana - better thnn the sale Of
The Franchise at auction. The conditions
which this company akc sharpl is ready to accept,
and the which the consent OF the Beard o. Al
dernen has been giyen seen, u ALL the benefits
to tio city and 10 ihe people that could be ren-
sOna5ly demanded, dnh GREATER BENEFITS Than are
offered by any ou'r pla, tara Broadray ra'iroad
The whole article from which this IS taken
was clearly designed to appease public indigna-
ton, and to show that the road itself and this
arrangement for it were entirely satisfactory.
This article was followed by others during the
winter OF 1854 and 1850 all of the same tenor.
On February 13, 1855, in long editorial
occur these statements:
There IS no doubt that wel-conductod railroad It's
operation found he fairly uuobstructed, will de-
veop largely increased travel and afford far better
facilities than now exist Ii may in fact do much 10
promote he commercial progress Of BroadcaH If 1t is
admitted that surface road Broadway is desirable.
there can be HHe question Of the adsdHdges oDered by
The company upon whose application this commission
appointed. The financial conditions on which me
consent Of the Common Co,ntc lcaS granted and rhth
hare been occcpted by the oompay, frvorabh as
could be erpeced. Then follows long statement OF
sharp's with city, The interests ~ the city
and Of he public To hare been ecery ,cay duty
prOe,dcd for.
What more could Sharp ask than this 7 Yet
the newspaper which printed at least dozen
articles of this kind has the eilrontery to sneer
1T innocent bondholders" and to call them
"imbcciles" for purchasing the securities it so
earnestly sought to bull upon the market.
When Sharp started to build his road in May,
1850. The lines found another opportunity to
boom the enterprise, and this is the way it went
about its work
that all able requirements in tho
interest OF the public hsve been put upon the company
which has Obtained this valuable franchise. and If It Is
successful III Its undertaking tie people. including the
Broadway property-Owners. will derive great benefit
from 1t. The interest OK the company there
fore, is quite great that of the public and the lat
ter must hOpe that the enterprise will
turn out successful
At last the road was built and the bonds were
put upon the market. The proceeds Of their
sale are not tO this day accounted for. The
settling time with all Sharp's friends and abet-
tors had come And on the day of - the great
divide" June 49, 1885, Disbecker received
his $4,000 Two days later The Times felici-
tated the public and the bondholders, and as
if il were not enough to pledge the glorie of
the "new era" it must needs defend Mr..
Sharp, which task it undertook day later,
after this fashion:
II the privilege and duty Of tho press Of course to
enunerate day the several Christian virtues which
Mr.. JACOB Sharp acAs. And objection can bc made
ifnewspapers which have regarded his Broadway
face railway project inlrlnsically wicked and
odous shall choose their time for conicssug that
road greatly benefits the people Of the city and n
creases tho value of property in Broadway.
For about week after the great divide "
The Times kept up its adulations of Sharp and
his scheme At last, in December, 1885, 1t vent
ured rather tardily to follow its contemporaries
IN calling for an Investigation OF the bribery
and limited that the bargain the city had OBJ
tanned which ii had SO extravagantly com
mended was not a fair one.
This Is the course of The Times. We cOntend-
and all honest men will agree with us-that it
requires explanation. Yet to this day, in spite
of the ioudest calls, The Times has not dared to
say one word on the subject. WHY