New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-03-29
p1rrY gopELESsLY DECEASED.

Tho relative attitudes of the two parties IN
the Assembly upon the motions ordering 'ao
EXCISE Commission and Ballot Reform biils 70
! third reading were highly significant. Inc
psnnbI;cans we're seen again in the act OF en-
deayoring to force through reformaeory iesio,
lation upon these Two great questions, aSaln'
the stubborn resistance Of the united Demo
cratic uarty. In both cases the course Oh bne
minority was so NAKED by thickness ana
evasion as to suggest direct inspiration rom
the Executive Chamber With regard to the
Excise Commission bin, Mr.. Sheehan, the Dem
ocratsc leader, put forward the pretext that the
Rapublicans had increased the license fees, and
so made the bin " Objectionable" Now, as
matter of fact every one knows that the IN
crease in the fees made by the Republican eau
Gus over the schedule fixed In the original Dill
reported from the commission Is not great
enough to make material Difference The ne
publican members Of Assembly seemed TO think
it best to keep the question Of high fees apart
from the Commission bill, and 80 tho only
change made in this respect was TO raise the
minimum figupes adopted by the commission
for beer and storekeeperS licenses about 20
per cent. II is this change which, according
to MIR. Sheehan, made the bill Objectionable"
and he made great show Of offering to help
the Republicans pass it. if they would let it
20 through in the shape in which It came from
the comm ssion.
The real difficulty is that the Republicans
had stricken from the measure number OF
features skilfully inserted by the representa-
tiyes of the liquor interest in the Revision Com
mission which promised to be very useful to
the saloonkeepers and which would have made
the proposed law much more acceptable to them
although If we can Judge from Governor Hills
annual message, they had given him orders to
veto It, even as it was The sum and sub
stance of the whole matter is that the Demo
cratic party in this State does not want any
better regulation of the liquor traffic, any
higher license fees, any reduction Of the mum
Der of saloons, simply because the great ma
jority of saloonkeepers are Democrats, and
that party derives a great proportion of its
campaign funds and its working strength from
that powerful class. This was demonstrated
again for the hundredth time whom the solid
party vote was given against the proposition
to order the Commission bill to third reading.
The situation regarding Ballot Reform is an
exact duplicate of this. Again, the Democrats
professed to favor this reform, while in reality
doing everything to block it's progress. Mr..
Sheehan whined hypocntically that the bill was
being pushed forward without discussion,
whereas, in fact, Democratic objections had
stood in the way of such discussion for more
than a month past. Again every Democratic
vote was recorded against the reform. The
Democratic party does not want Ballot Reform
because election frauds are Democratic spe-
cialty, more particularly in this State, and be-
cause the adoption of the Australian system
would hurt the business of the Democratic
" hallsn The action of the minority upon these
two bills is sufficient indication what its
course will be throughout, and what reception
they are likely to have in the Executive Cham
Der.
There does not exist anywhere in the United
States to-day political party so stubbornly
opposed to reform Of any kind, 50 hopelessly
debased in its views Of political questions, so
subservient to the most corrupt, the most dan
gerous and even criminal elements Of society,
Is the Democratic party of the State of New
York, under the leadership of David B. Hill.