The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-11-19
THE TYRANNY Of TAMMANY.
An ORGANIZATION ADMINISTERED
As An ABSOLUTE DESPOT1SM.
CrOker's Flight and Return-Hfs
Change In Character and His At
tempt to Produce Social Reform
alton I'm Tammany Hall Affairs.

The organization, administration and
policy OF Tamma7y Hall is as near an ao-
sosute cespot.sm was the government OF
Nero OF Ivan the Terrible. Under the con-
siitutIon OF this country. where freedom OF
thought action and religion Is believed 10
have attained lis highest type. is banded
together a number or men whose one ann
Is looi. and Inc name o. this OF gaiiiZdt!o
Is Tammany Hail. and the leader Is hieii-
ard Croker. People who do not 1--we in TINS
city, and many - no dc, have wondered at
the way this organization has hung TO-
gether when It's purpose Mas so Clear, ana
marvtled at the absolute sway OF one man
A study Of Tammany Han does much 10
solve the question The organization or
this political association Of bandits IS more
akin 10 the brotherhood OF the WHO hQras
that sweep the Balkan plains than any
thing else. Like this brotherhood, IL Is
composed Of small bands, each under an
acknoa lodged leadership and these petty
leaders are under the control Of another
chef leader. n instinct there is no more
morality or sense Of honor in the Tam
many organization than there is in the o'n-
er brotherhood. Owing 10 the prejudces
of the present age the Tammany chiefs
cannot murder. piliage and loot openly.
but secretly they carry on their raids, and
in The past have been known even TO re-
eort 20 cold-blooded murder 10 accomplish
an end.
wellknown business man said TO
Richard Croker: Give me your orga MIA
ton and the name l Will not ask for Fl
candidate. a platform. a principle. or an
idea and / Will carry this city for a can
Gidate whose face has never been seen
In New York. whose name has never been
heard and who is not known TO a single
man In the state until he goes on the tick
ct | Viii not have him say word in the
campaign, and We will fight the matter
out on the issue that he is Tammany's
candidate, without a platform, and / will
win This may be an exaggeration. but
II has an element of truth. It's the name
that the yellow dog vote goes for. and
that vote cast in the balance wins for
/ Tammany Hall.
Tammany's organization is as complete
as IL Is pitiless. Let leader fail TO carry
| who defeats him is welcome to his place.
Let leader refuse 10 obey orders and
of goes his head politically: If 1t was the
time Of Nero his head would go of actual
~. Absolute fidelity 10 orders Is the
watchword OF Tammany Hall. and no mat
ter what these orders may be the one WHO
protests or recants is doomed The track
OF Tammany IS strewn with the bones OF
men who reyolted at the idea of the
crimes that Tammany proposed. and when
they spoke they were cut down.
The District Organization.
The suhstructure Of the Tammany or
Eaniza ton is the district organization. The
big man in the district is the man who has
following of a dozen.a score or hum
dred and who can go into the primary
and pack II and elect whomever he pieases.
This man in turn follows bliudly the lead
CT Of the assembly district. That leader.
through instructions To his petty retain
ers, Is able TO carry all conventions and
meetings in his district and send men to
the city. county or state conventions who
vote Ike so many automatons as the lead
er dictates; and this leader in turn deliv-
CTS his delegation as the Tammany chief
tain orders. Thus from his headquarters
tn the Savoy hotel. the Hoffman house or
A.! the Democratic club, the absolute master
| OF Tammany Hall can reach by its accrei-
| tied channel any district in the city. He
simply plays on the keyboard and the keys
| touched respond Whenever there is
| Earring note the discordant note is cut out
| and a plant tool substituted How these
district leaders. through their petty heel
patronage. promises and actual force is
( well known. Suffice II TO say that every
/ leader is held personally accountable for
| getting out every Democratic voter in his
! district to register and vote: 10 go "a far
! as he dares in colonizing and securing a
! false registration and vote. and 10 keep
| away from the polls ny threats, in;im.da-
| ton and actual violence as many Repub-
( leans as he can. Thus all the dirty work
! is done in the districts. but the orders for
! II comes from headquarters.
| Whcu the Lexow committee had finish
/ ed its work and the clouds gathered
| darkly around Tammanv Hall: and the
| prominent men within that organization
! II was not the district leaders or the wsru
heelers that turned craven. They were
! defiant and aggressive They would have
! gone 10 ian. glorying in their acts 1t was
/ the leader of the hand whose face
hlanche, I'd. Whose teeth chartered and
| that had set In against him Richard Crok-
! ar showed himself coward. Deserving
! his organization and the men who had
stood by him for years shielded him from
attack. carried out mis- criminal work. and
| took IN return the crumbs he dealt out to
I them, he fed 20 England. There was
/ hardly man In Tammauy Hall who be-
lleved that he would ever return. To John
/ G. Sheehan fell the task ri carrying the
lead He accepted The respons bilitv and
! through the Storm he stood as Tammany's
/ leader. Finally the clouds broke, and last
/ year Tammany gathered its shattered
! forces together.
The appetizing vision Of the rlunder Of
| tho greater city was held out 20 the lead
/ ers who are II politics only fer the money
/ IN Il. Tammany had heen oDt Of power
I ana 1t was lean and hungry, There had
/ been no fat offices for the Tammany CO.
/ horts. and therefore no salaries to assess
i There had been no control az the police
department. and therefore no chance to
3 make nee " that great ma ilne 10 collect
{ money from every saloon. gambling house
+ pool room. 'puShcaft vender. dsordefiv
house and steamship company. In fact
! there We're no dives open T9mmany lead
efS circulated among the oli~t.ine gamt-
icTS. pCCi-re0m keepers. kaeuerS ~ dfs0r.4-
eriy houses and other lawhreakers. ard
! begged S'lhs.rt ntious. with the open prom
! =" thar = Tammany won the city should
once mere Ae wide open" How faithfully
/ Tsr1many Hall kent SIS oron1 50. j. wr1
I Known nov hu; Tammanv did not keen
t'@ promise o0t 81 any sense az honor in
! s. king 81 its word Nut because WHEN th-
TOWN Is wide open Tammany IS able %
! collect az enormous revenue each month
from these places
Croker Hurric- Home.
When &. was seen t1aJ 1ammaay had an
sHfe-i""f chau1e = ~inang Ra,nard
Croker, ~ho nai. before his depar5ar, fsr
/ t.Dt' p'. sad he WcGld never have any
J tang more - So Witn politics ~ thfs ,.uYl-
+ W. rt't.N"d N'Td "! tilr conditions from