New-York tribune., 1895-10-14


This nromlses TO be a remarkable year. Par
,icuarlv in its closing months. The hrst or
April seems continuous. Instead OF one All
rno,s. DAY we oppcar 10 be having an All-FOcls
Year. with more focls and more different kih"s
of fools constantly on dress parade than were
ever loose at one time in The history OF me world
ON this blessed Manhattan Island there mas poeh
n perfect carnival Of them ever since the present
political campaign opened The Goo-rooS oesan
IT with the bumptious folly of undertaking 10
lead off with Independent county nominations
and assuming the responsibility for the munic
pal reform movement OF which lh'y were
comparatively unimp0rtant part. Inc 'aroos
followed II up when, without crasing Reform
from their banners, they marched podily over
TO the organization whose inquiries against
good government they had banded themselves
together to put down. The RepubIcans oi 'he
XIIth Senate Dstrict-or persons calling 'heh
selves Republicans caught the coniagion anu
suddenly startled everybody by nominating 1or
Senator ex-Police Inspector Alexander ). VIII
Jams. who was one OF the kingpns in the cor
rupt system which the Republican party IN this
county and the State had denounced in unmeas-
urcd terms and pledged itself 10 eradicate Even
the good Dr. Parkhurst. returning from Europe
after summers absence during Whleh H'h'
things had taken place which he had not Ini'e
caught up with showed symptoms or the pre-
valnc malady and came near being taken "oWh
with IT, He still hesitates over the question oi
taking the half loaf or going without bread ana
can hardly be pronounced convalescen'.
And now the most hamboyant of all. with the
strut Of drum major the grandiloquencc OF
falir selling soap. and the loftness OF Slahg-
hoi rooster with a harcm Of one hen. Mr.. lhlr-
low Weed Barnes. stalks ont in Il procession all
bv himself propounding fool questions To Frank
u Pavev the Republican candidate for Senator
in the XVIII District Giving himself. or al
temntjng to give himself official consequence
hv usng the letterhead of the Republican State
Committee of which he signs himself member
he asks Mr. Pavcy, Eat the request OF several
"ycntlemcn. Who Ike myself. opposed your nomi-
.notion." and also for his own information ''as Il
representative Of the Republican organization.
.if the rpport now IN circulation that you will
mot attend regular Republican legislative eau
"cuses. nor be bound by their decisions. nor act
"n n strict party sense as Republican If elected
..is well founded or notT' If this absurd impert-
ncncc means anything. if the Use Of fhe Republi-
can State Committees official leterhead was
making such an inquiry in his official capacity
as member Of the committee. there Is but one
construction to put upon it. and that Is that
he and the gentlemen who with him opposed the
nomination Of Mr. Pavcy in regular Republ
can convention having been fairly and squarely
hcoten. are seeking some excuse for repudaing
the action Of the convention. and that they have
the conn.enance encouragement and authority
c,ntn rtlif for flnir ~ g.
tion.
If This be so--and only the fact that the state
Committee has committed similar folly before,
though on n much smaller scale. makes II at all
cre1ible-then the prevailing contagion has taken
hold of the State Committee What more stu
nendous folly could be conceived than for the
state Committee. as the official organ Of the
Marty 70 subject a candidate regularly nOm-
mated TO ridiculous catechsm as 10 whether
or not he would take part in Republican egiS-
lotiye caucuses and be bound by their action If
elected And this avowedly for the purpose of
finding Il preteXt upon which 10 oppose his cleo
tion Obviously Mr.. Thurlow Weed Barnes
seeks an excuse for boiling the action Of his own
marty. regularly taken. And he has not the sense
10 see the absurdty Of basng his own bolt upon
the possibility that the candidate. If elected may
do the same thing himself. This hamboyant
featherhead puts himself on record as saying
Il will not be governed by the action Of Re
publican convention, because I am afraid the
nominee Of the convention Will not be governed
"by some legislative caucus 10 be held hereafter
And this man is a member of the Republican
State Committee 80 signs himself official
paper. And las "A representative Of the Repnb-
lican organization" asks these foolish and i'm
pertinent questions. implying a threat on his
own part and that Of the State Committee 10 OPP
pose regularly nominated candidate at the
polls If they are not satisfactorily answered.
Is this more Of Mr.. Plait's work? Has that
influential person, after brief return Of sense
and reason, again gone stale? Has he put Mr.
Barnes up to this demonstration? l. this the
manner in which Mr. Platt proposes To get even
with Republicans who follow their own convic-
tions and refuse To do his bidding: II seems
incredible But II IT, as has been said m All
Fools Year. and all folly Is possible. We strong
ly suspect however that this particular burst
OF foolishness Is Mr.. Barncs's own. II So the