The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1897-10-31
EARLY HISTORY =
PARTY MACHINES AND BOSSES

publican candidate Alonzo B. Cornell,
to be elected was defeated subsequent
ly by the county democracy. led by Hub
ert o. Thompson; opposed Cleveland in
two national conventions, and. accord
ing to the charges OF Cleveland friends,
sold him out" in the election of 1888;
obtained high measure of power I'M
der its present leader, Richard Croker;
was vanquished in 1894 in the mayor
atty contest in which Strong was elect
ed, by combination of republicans, of
one element of the democrats and of in
dependent VOTERS and has been out of
power ever since.
Many other New York politicians and
statesmen of Burr's day knew the value
of organization and of intelligent atten-
ton to details. in politics. Each of the
VITO Cintons-George one of The earlier
governors of the state after the sapara-
tion from England, and the fourth vice
president. and De Witt his nephew,
who held many offices up to and includ-
ing governor and United States senator
was at the head of a cabal of party
workers for many years. Alexander
Hamilton, in view of the power attain
ed by TammaEy under Burr, wrote Rep
res5ntatives Bayard,, of Delaware, and
Gouverneur Morris, of New York, that
the federalists, in self-defense, ought to
start similar society in New York city
Public men in other parts of the country
were also strongly impressed by the
thoroughness and military precision
with which the New York democrats
marshaled their forces and managed
canvasses. Il am no politician" re-
marked Andrew Jackson to a friend,
just before the election of 1928, in which
he was first chosen president, but lie
1 were che l would be New York poll
tician"
The particular society which Jackson
had in. mind when he spoke was doubt
less the Albany regency, whose directing
spirit at that time was his powerful sup
porter, Martin Van Buren,. Perhaps
the regency filled more nearly than
Tammany did at that early day the
present ideal of political machine, and
Van Buren, was nearer than Burr to the
present type of political boss. Burr
was far more INSCRIPTIONS than ever
Van Buren, was, but he was not SO long
in politics, and he was nsver so COM
pletely identified with Tammany as Van
DuI6E was WITH Tic lC6ChIJs RiSfCONel,
as Tammany was, in theory at least, a
local organization, its direct arena of
operations bsing virtually confined to
New York city the regency had a larger
field, and thus had more political talent
to draw upon. The name Albany regen-
cy was due to the fact that its head
quarters was Albany, that most of its
prominent men were either members of
the state government, or men who, for
political reasons, either resided for part
of the year at the capital or drifted to
it during the sessions of the legislature.
In dts early days in the zoos" the re-
gercy had on its rolls William L. Macy,
state comptroller: Benjamin Knower
state treasurer; Samuel A. Talcott at
torney general; Edwin Croswell, state
printer, and editor of the rsgency's Or
gan, the Albany Argus" Benjamin F.
Butter, district attorney of Albany coun-
ty and Roger Skinner United States
district judge. OF these men, Marcy, af-
terward governor. United States senator,
secretary of war under Polk and secre-
tary of state under Pierce, and the for
mulator of the spoils doctrine, was a
national figure for many years. SO also
was Butler who was an attorney gem
eral under two presidents.
Van Buren, was popularity supposed to
have been the founder of the regency,
and its chief offsets were understood
to be to run" the politics Of its state
and to advance the fortunes of its prin-
cipal members. In both objects it was
conspicuous,y successful. Van Buren,
was connected with 1t from the time
when it was founded in 1916 or 1917,
while he was a. state senator, on until
after his candidacy for president in 1S4S
on the free soil ticket. At one time and
another in addition to those named,
the regency had among its members
Silas Wright, Azariah C. Flagg, John A.
Dix, Peter Cagger, Daniel S. Dickinson,
Dean Richmond, Thomas w. Olcoitt Ho-
ratio Seymour and many others con-
spicuous in state politics. and some of
them well known in the national field.
Van Buren's political pupil, Samuel J.
Tilden, was long a member of the re-
gency, and Tilden's pupil, Daniel Man
ming was in its councils a few years be-
fore his death. From 1920 until 1S4S
it was a powerful factor in democratic
politics in the state of New York, and
often welded great influence in national
politics. The ease, dexterity and sue
cess with which the regency dominated
politics in its state for many years won
for Van Buren,, its nominal head, the
Little of the Little Magic am In the
neutrality-suspicious. fight of the later
"40s" in which slavery was the ostensi-
BILE issue, but in which the distribution
of the spoils was the principal melting
cause, the regency spirit. The larger, or
Van Buren,, end Of it lost the federal
patronage, and its power was gone.
Theoretically the regency was supposed
to be in existence until recent years, but
it's influence ended and its glory depart
ed when, in 184S, in revenge for his de-
feat in the convention of 1874, Van Blu
rem LEI. the Barnburner revolt on the