The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-05-02
AN OLD-TIME GOUTYM MAYOR
BURG INDY, NOT TEA, GAVE TWINGES
TO IMBROSE q. K~INGSLdND..

Century AEo-Mr. KinEsinnd's Good Nature.
Now York's reform Mayor had two prede-
cessors who. TO quote Tom Hood, performed
jhe feat how from govt to retreat" One was
Dewitt Clinton, and the other Ambrose G.
Kingsland. The nrst named was n great states
man. while tho other WAS a successful money
making merchant like William L. Strong and
without any previous civic experience. To
quote a mot of New York's great surgeon. VAL
entine Mott. ST.. lit was tho 1out OF each
that occasloned their govt" In Clinton's case IL
was his taste for Madeira wine that Inspired the
govt. but Mayor kingsland's swollen feet came
from Chateau Yauem, Chateau Latour, and
Chambertin. In Kingslnnd's time. half a century
ago, that govt producing vino. Madeira, had
gone out of fashion. and the stock OF II in town.
ut all events, was very low. and only TO be found
in thu cellars of Gil. Davis. A. NJ. CozZans.
Royal Phelps. the elder Stage. Philip Hone. aad
like comrades and lovers OF the wine favored by
tho roysterers Of the Trince Regents nights.
The present generation has discovered that nei-
taer tho royal amber wine from the Azores nor
the rich purple of the Burgundy district is absc-
lutely necessary to inspire .Rout. because In
xouty Mayor StronR's case the mischief Is done
by tea instead such tea as Ii Hung Chang
dotes upon and is carried across the Tartar
steppes to st. Petersburg for the delectation Of
NV SSoA uiaA NO ttobtSos Det
the wine that gave Dewitt Clinton the govt.
his undying fpme among Knickerbockers 10
yet founded on water-that OF the Eric Canal
and tho Croton system, OF both of which he was
the prime instigator.
Mayor KinGsland was chosen at the Novem-
Der election OF 1850 after one of thc.mos STIR
ring local political contests New York has ever
known. Tho election was attended with scrim-
mazes at the polls such as voters in this genera
tlon can have no conception of. Tammany had
been divided for several years into factions
one of which was known as the Soft Shells. or
Barnburners. and the other as. Hard Shells. or
Hunkers, the division resulting from the differ
ence In views as to Southern slavery. Tho
Wings. the Anti-T,mmany party. were SINH
arlY situated. being divided into factions. on
similar lines. and were known as Sewnrdites
and Anti Sewardites.
Tammany had lost the previous election after
having carried two preceding contests. The
Mayor In office, Caleb T. Woodruff. had been a
lawyer. as was his recent predecessor. Re.
corder Morris. Five Mayors previous to the
latter had been merchants. as were the five
who preceded Woodruff; for the trend Of all
parties in Ma, orally contests was toward plac-
ing the commercial interest to the fore In the
City Hall. Out of twenty-five Mayors elected
since the century began. only four had heen
lawyers. In 1850 both parties presented mer-
chants as candidates. Fernando Wood. nomi-
mated by Tammany. and Ambrose c; Kings-
confidence OF his Whig party by his cowardice
aud ineiflciency upon the occasion OF the Aston
ents of Forrest and Macready. and also aues-
tionable official actions in regard TO a city con.
TRACT with the gas company:
hingSland was n man OF large fortune, ac-
cording tn the standard Of that comparatively
fTugal era. In the Tammany convention
Wood. who had been q whole year intriguing
for the nomination. found no real competitors.
In the Wing convention Woodruff. obtained
eleven votes and James Kelly. a baker of the
while Kingsland beat the two combined BY four
OF high social rank in both parties did not dis.
dain to use political machinery. Among tho
representative men as Gen. Chester Lamb. or
revolutionary knickeEbocker lineage. Robert
and an bern peTsap at's she Se., fio%n1iSS,lsr Of = ,h ,as o s1ss;
New York ever had; DR.. James r.: Wood. n
W9rid.reaowp led snrgsoa; Henry E; Davies:
w Bradford. later tho Surrogate. and Nathan
c. Ely. founder Of the Peter Cooper Fire In
surance Company. Peter Cooper was Chairman
Of the Wood ratification meeting.
At once an intensely bitter personal cam
palsd S Siin an IN as whIsh sh Ii,I nsw Us ~ sns pss.1oii
and Enqufrfr and the disnided Journal Of
unc. held up Wood as a swindler In the sale Of
a California ship named the Joseph Walker.
anu tIOTIS NtTt" u ny w mig 70 lnQlCI MINI
while q merchant named Marvine WAS induced
to sue him civilly for alleged fraud and publish
the complaiEt MS an electionearinG document
He was assailed as a groLshop keeper and as
having been once n supernumerary actor in n
philadelphia theatrical spectacle. The Gaia
ract OF the Ganges." in which he acted as one OF
the legs OF q proper y Gle. hnnt. Nor were tho
men behind In attacking KinRsland.
He was charged with being IN arislocrat yho
had lately huill a palace on lower Fifth avenue
and with having principally made his fortune
through suspicious and exceedingly profitable
| contracts with fln aNtRtiIlD and nrinF NNIID I'D,
ministrations OF the city government for rru-
yiding its supply department with lRinp oil.
Al that time three tifths OF the street lamps
The Herald es oecially opposed KinGsland on
Party feeling increased as election drew nigh.
The money was all on the Wing side. for at that
time the laws against vote purchasing were lax.
There were separate ballots for every class OF
officers to be chosen. Thus the MayoraIty
candidate was on a single ballot, 81 marked IN
the back. There. was no law against using
colcred paper or tissue paper: against putting
identifying printed dots upon. ballots. ~
pretty closely how each voter cast his ballots.
kingsland's assessment was understood TO have
been $50 600. and the salary of the Mayor
was then only So. 900. There were then only
nineteen wards, and only ninety-three polling
Polls opened ut sunrise and closeo at sunset. and
the time for those solar occurrences depended
inspectors. so that IL toward actual sunset thare
was yet a long line OF waiting voters the good
nntured Election Board would initiate some
legislative bodies whose Attendants convent
ently manipulate the CLOCK of the chamber
toward adjournment.
Tho Tam electioneers throughopt eloc.
tlon day made good uss Of tho appeliat ton
affixed on Kingsland in allnsion to his oil con-
tracts Oily Cannon" That was the name
of q character in a novel of the time an
titled Ten Thousand a Year written by the
father or an EPISCOPAL rector. the Rev. Walpole
Warren. now IN this city. Down with the
aristOcratS." Away with the silk stocking
gentry" Bad. luck to OILY Gammon.' were
samples OF the Tammnny cries at the polling
places In the lower wards. ana especially in tho
bloody sixth and the Riotous Fourth. Kings
land voters there were not far behind in physi-
al strife. Booths made OF planks to any num-
Der. and without regard to distance from tho
polls. were allowable. and. indeed. every cat
didate usually had u ticket booth and n vote
rOoter "f his Cwn. II was not unusual for the star
policemen stationed At the poll tunnnirormed
them 10 eng 20 actually In vote solicitation.
The sixth ward polling opened with the Tam
many gang Of Dead Rabbits knocking down all
the kingsland booths and destroying the show
tills and ballots thereia. But supplies Of
tickets were free and abundant. Then party
committees printed their own ballots.
The population of this city WAS then q few
thousands over half n million: and 90 1850 votes
tonly us many az one Assembly district of this
a.