The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1898-10-30
'GRoNELS At
THE FEET
OF RAINEY
{" MAYOR FINDING HIMSELF FACE TO FACE WITH DEFEAT TRIES TO
AVERT DISASTER BY LICKING THE FEET OF THE MEN HE HAS CALLED RASS
that no medicine could mend.

that no medicine could mend
| Mr. Phelan is not of that fiber. His
honor is no sensitive plant, to shrivel
! at rude touch. It is Of a wanton and
bawdy kind, that is not easily shamed.
The people Of this city now have this
peculiar case before them. If Phelan
told the truth about Harney and
Rainey Democracy, no honest citizen
can calmly contemplate their reinvest-
ment with power. Phelan has called
them the upas shadow on the city, and
has hkened them to everything awful
in the physical world His lieutenants,
Max Pepper, Braunhart and McNab.
have used them as a bogy to frighten
the people. Phelan has drawn his
skirts as they passed. and has stepped
over the spot In the sidewalk poisoned
by their shadows And now, in the
rank betrayal Of all his professions, he
sends his emissaries and commission
ers into their camp with not only a
flag OF truce, but the protocol of
treaty Of amity. comfy and alliance.
by which he agrees to i've them the
public patronage which he has insisted
! they cannot have without using it cor
ruptly, and to hereafter put the city
| in their control, for the new charter
election Of 1900, by knocking his Com
| mittee of One Hundred in the head
and turning all party authority over to
| the organization he has denounced as
an aggregate jailbirdi Was it called a
| treaty of alliance? It is rather the
terms of a surrender, with the privilege
Of retaining his plug hat, as soldiers
| stipulate for their side arms. An am
| bition for office which seeks such
means for its qualification is unnatural.
1t is a political typhoid, a disease, and
its possessor is no more moved by a
desire for the public welfare than is q
sperm whale actuated by wish to
perfume the locks of women when he
overfeeds and produces ambergris by
indigestion.
It remains to be seen whether the
Harvey and Rainey Democracy will re-
ceive the Mayors surrender. They
have for months been fugitives from
political justice. Phelan hooted them
| out of Sacramento He called them
tools of the monopolies, minions Of the
corporations, despoilers Of the people,
bosses, corruptionists and gangsters:
and then when his chances to get office
| by denouncing them seem fading away
he and his morning organ and the or
| gan grinder and the grinders monkey
trudge to the lair of the men he had
denounced as bandits and offered all he
had to give if they would make him
Mayor, let him sit in high place, let
him be looked at by the populace, let
him enjoy dishonorable honors and be
seen of men for two years more! No
other man ever had such an itch for no.
toriety as to give so much for. so little.
No man ever climbed down from such
a height to root in the mud for an Of
flee. like a hog for truffies which 1T is
not allowed to eat. 1t may be known
later on how far this surrender ex-
tended. whether it invaded the range
of those official institutions which con-
Germ the public peace and safety. 1t IS
safe to say that such a. politician as
the Mayor would not hesitate to BAR
gain for the partisan activity OF those
divisions of the city government whose
efficiency wholly depends upon their
keeping aloof from politics. into this
BARGAINING and trading and laying or
himself on the shambles like mutton
chop he brought outsiders, not voters
in this city. 1t was characteristic that
he should have Mr.. Tarpey from Ala
media to bear the white flag, as he had
imported a registered voter from Sausa-
Ito to sit in his Committee OF one
Hundred convention and vote for him
for Mayor. Whether he had been tell
ing the truth of the Harvey and Ralney
Democracy or whether he has been
traducing them makes no difference
now. Be they black as he painted them
their sins arc as white as his shirt front
compared with his offense in playing
q part to get public confidence and then
volunteering to betray it by this abject
surrender.
The city will turn with relief from
the spumy mess Phelan has made and
daubed on himself to clean and strong
man. who is no pretender, who does not
go around abusing the devil by day and
crawling into bed with him by night.
The Harney Democracy is now put to
the test of it's self-respect. Phelan
hissed and pelted it into corner and
has brought the town daily to look at
and hear him jeer it No pug puppy
ever took more pleasure in worrying
cat than Phelan has in towseling that
wing of his party. Now let us see
which way the cat will jump.
The duty of the city is plain. 1t will
repudiate Phelans ambition and retire
him to that privacy which he will adorn
less as an ex-Mayor than he did as
private citizen before ambition swelled
his self-conceit so out of proportion to
his merit.
No good Lord and good-Deyil candi-
date who would excite the envy of DR..
Jekyll and Mr.. Hyde and make Janus
shut up shop can be elected this year.
His talent for intrigue survives while
he catches at this straw. His promise
of patronage to Rainey is shadow.
The substance is the offer of control to
the Harney general committee. But
that is gold brick. The next Legis-
lature will pass a primary election law.
which obsoletes all committees In re-