New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-05-19
THE EXCISE COMMISSION INDICTED.

From the honest citizens point OF view, the
Reform Clubs effort to bring justice out of the
Excise Commission, and, failing in that to
bring the Excise Commission to justice, is as
trustworthy and excellent as, from the Tam
many point of view, it is meddlesome and au-
dacious. The Excise Commission in late years
has rarely been anything else than the pro-
tector of crime and criminals. Charged by the
law to defend society against the dangerous
practices of liquor dealers, it is usually far
more dangerous foe to society than the liquor
dealers themselves 1t is frequently composed
of men who have records as liquor-sellers and
lawbreakers. 1t is the favOrite weapon and the
nvariable mainstay of the Tammany and
County Democracy bosses. IL enriches itself
by blackmail and extortiOn, and it enforces the
nurposes of its factional creators by oppression,
nartia1ity and threat. Of all the vile cogs
which compose the political machines in this
unhappy town the Excise Commission is usually
the yilest and the meanest
There is not the shg htest reason to suppose
that the present Commission is an better
than the average. The case they are sum-
moned now to defend is fair sample OF the
serenely impudent way in which they defy both
law and common decency. The Reform Club
is composed mainly of patriotic young men who
have organized themselves into an association
with the purpose of opposing and exposing the
corrupt practices by which New York is held
in subsection to bosses and rings. 1t has been
particularly active in investigating election
abuses and in calling the perpetrators of them
to account On the last Election Day its men,
hers visited certain saloons adjacent to the
polling places, where liquor was being sold, and
collected the evidence of these violations of
the law. This evidence ii submitted to the Ex-
else Commission, demanding that the saloon
keepers thus proved to have disobeyed the law
should be deprived of their licenses.
No attention whatever was paid to these
complaints The Commission, with that eX-
asperating insolence so characteristic of the
Tammany official, simply tucked the complaints
away in pigeon-hole and practically told the
reputable citizens who had presented them to
make the best of it. In this situation the au-
thority of the Supreme Court was invoked to
coerce the Commissioners, and Judge Barrett
with q singing rebuke commanded them at
once to act upon the complaints. Even then
they hesitated and actually had the audacity
IN refer the courts mandate to /" their counsel"
for his advice. Their counsel, not being an
idiot. advised them to do as they were direct
ed. Thus urged they took up the complaints
and with show of gravity which might be
amusing if it were less hooking and less sig
njfcant of the power which these creatures
have over the public affairs, they soberly re-
solved that the charges were not sustained
This decision, however unnghteous and def
ant. is settlement of the cases covered by it,
hut il did not overawe the Reform Club. The
facts they had collected as to the Commissions
failures to do their sworn duty were pre-