Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-01-06
The Question Arises Can Mayor Van
Wyck Make Them Good.
CROKER SPECfER LEERS IN REAR
Rip Van Wrinkle Clerk Says New
Scheme Won't Work.
TROUBLE WITH FINANCES
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence of The Evening Star
| NEW YORK. January 3, 1898.
Mayor Robert A. Van Wyck made the
| shortest Inauguration address record.
His brief remark that he had received his
| office from the hands of the people and
that to the people he would answer, has
raised his personality in the estimation of
| the people. There are many who remem-
Der. however, that the nomination was die
tated by the supreme will Of one man,
Richard Croker: that up to the time of the
assembling of the democratic convention
| Van Wyck was unheard Of and undreamed
| of. Though elected by an unusual combi-
| nation of circumstances by the people of
| Greater New York. it is still too much to
say that the voters of the greater
| city could be massed together in the old
| fashioned town meeting style Van Wyck
would even now be the popular choice.
His feeble Imitation OF the great Jeffer-
| son, who refused to permit any display
and who rode up to the public square on
horseback. hitching his horse with his own
| hands has also made an excellent impress
| sion on the people of the town. True, the
City Hall Park was a blaze of glory from
| end to end the night before when the cele-
| bration occurred. but the exercises sur
| rounding the office taking-the event over
| which Mayor Van Wyck had absolute con-
trol-were unoStentatious and simple Now
| that the time for action has arrived now
| that the day of performances rather than
| promises is at hand. the new mayor s
| troubles may be expected to begin.
| Cabinet Composed of New Men.
| In the main Van Wyck's cabinet consists
of new men. Perhaps this is an advantage.
perhaps it is a disadvantage. 1t will take
| the people longer to get on to the curves
| Of the new administration. The mayor
| power of removal over the heads of depart
| ments lasts for only six months. 1t may be
expected that Tammany will not fully
show its hand" during that period, but
afterward the new charter absolves the
| mayor from nearly ali responsibility, and
I the blame for official wrongdoiuK can be
| placed upon the shoulders of individuals
| rather than upon the organization. There
are some men who may be expected to
| give trouble.
| One source Of great weakness to Tam
| many and the anciliary organizations in
| the boroughs Of Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens
| and Richmond is found in the fact that
| the new municipal assembly is overwhelm-
| lngly democratic. In fact, it Is extremely
] doubtful whether enough republicans We're
l elected to give that party a representative
| on important committees. Political econo-
| mists generally appear to agree that the
| best results are obtained where the par
| ties are almost evenly divided and where a
few independents hold the balance Of pow
| er. If this theory holds good, look cut
| for the new municipal assembly!
| This city legislature promises to become
| a veritable School for Scandal" The
1 character of some of the new members
! indicates that 1t is not above suspicion.
| There are those who predict that the only
two daily papers which supported Tam
| many Hall in the last campaign will, with
| In six months. commence to attack the
| tiger and its actions. All the other dailies
| are openly hostile. This fact speaks vol
| umes concerning the character of the men
| in control Of the new city. Should the
two dailies mentioned quit the support
of the administration 1t would leave Mayor
| Van Wyck without a newspaper organ in
| the great city Of New York.
Attitude Toward the Saloons.
| 1t is too early to indicate the policy of
! Van Wyck toward the saloons on Sunday
one Of the hardest problems that confront
ed Mayor Strong and his president of the
police board Theodore Roosevelt. The sa-
| loon keepers. however, If the first Sunday
urder TamEany rule is any criterion, ap
| pear to be going ahead while the mayor
| is worrying over his policy. Sunday night
| the saloons were free of access through
the long-closed side doors, and in some
| instances the drinking places were To-
Gated within sight Of places of wor-
| ship. And, while Cookers mayor is as
sumeGly thinking over his policy" the
police acting, or rather not acting,
| for there was not a single excise arrest
| recorded in any of the precincts or courts
| this first Sunday of Tammanys admins
tration.
If this is the situation now what will it
| be later? 1t is agreed that the great pres
sure the administration so far as sa
looms are concerned Will not come until the
| warm weather approaches and the summer
gardens and the places at the beaches at
tempt to run. During the winter in city
ike New York it is comparatively easy to
conduct the sale of liquor in the smaller
| saloons if the police cOmAlaiSant. IT is
| when doors and windows are wide open be-
cause of the heat that trouble with the
| church people begins.
New Conditions Accepted.
r. 1t is interesting to note that the people of
New York have accommodated themselves
| to the changed conditions caused by con-
4solidation, and that there has been little or
| no friction. Even Paddy" Gleason, the
| fighting mayor of Long Island City, yield
| ed his crazy contention that he had been
| elected to serve another year by the people
| of his bailiwick, and that he had never been
| legislated out Of office, and at the last mo-
ment he consented to help welcome Mayor
| Van Wyck into his new office
To the very last, however, there remained
| a little old Rip Van Wrinkle sort of a man
| in the office of ex-Controller Fitch. This
old man has grown up in the controllers
once; knows nothing, hears nothing. talks
| nothing except bookkeeping and bones
This expert, for he is an expert upon these
subjects. will probably be retained by Con-
| troller Coler. AT any rate controllers for
the last half century have found him an
| invaluable man. This odd little old fellow
the day before New Year. insisted that
consolidation was financial impossibility;
9. sort of a fiscal monstrosity; that Greater
| New York was, in fact, absolutely illegal:
that 1t would be impossible to ever recon
| Gle the bond issues Of the different cities
| ana towns, and that the new city idea must
ran py Its own weight. Whether the old
man Is now convinced that the consolida- .
ton is fact no man knows, for the book
| keeping Rip Van Wrinkle would not talk
TO your correspondent on the subject.
Primary Election Law.
One Of the most important subjects that
Gov. Black will cab the legislatures at
tention to at the coming session is the
amending Of the primary laws of the state.
Already in anticipation of SUCH a move sew
erad bills have been prepared for introduce
ton into the legislature but so radically
I different are the ideas concerning the policy
to be adopted that it Is almost certain that
the committee that will have tine bills in
/ charge Will have to frame q combination
measure containing the best of the vieu,s