Evening star., 1900-12-10
Ex-senator Hill to Take a Hand in
City Politics.
he WILL Be FOUGHT BY CROKER
Uriah Rhodes to Sail the New Cup
Defender.
HOUSES CLOSED
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.
|. NEW YORK, December 9, 1900.
The announcement that ex-senator David
B. Hill had decided to come to New York
city for the purpose of aiding the republi-
can reform committee of fifteen has brought
JOY instead Of sadness into the hearts OF
some Of the leading Tammany Hall men.
For 1t means that Hill Is to ally himself
with the republicans in an attack upon
Tammany Hall. Hills influence in the
city save in the borough of Brooklyn is
nothing. And Brooklyn borough is not to
become the speciality of the vice hunters.
The efforts of the committee of fifteen will
be confined to the borough of Manhattan
and Brooklyn will be a mere incident in the
crusade. THE feeling Of relief over the
entry Of David B. Hill into the ranks OF
the men who are making war on vice In
the metropolis grows out Of two things,
said Tammany Hall leader today. First,
it proves what we have always maintained.
that this crusade Is political and not gen.
uine. If Hill attempts to use this move
ment of the leading business men to again
climb on the shoulders of the democratic
party it will only prove the politics that
can be running through the entire crusade.
Second, 1t means the end of HILL If he
helps in bringing about trumph for Sena-
tor Platt and the republicans it is good-by
to his chances for a presidential nom!na-
ton IOuf years from now. NO man cCulu
turn the metropolis Of the country over to a
crowd of republicans and hope to obtain the
presidential nomination at the hands Of the
democrats as a reward for his treachery.'
Small Fry Fear the Ex-senator.
On the other hand, a good many of the
smaller fry who float through the troubled
waters Of Tammany Hall are greatly alarm
ed over the possibilities Of Hill entering
an anti-vice, anti-Tammany crusade. They
fear that Hill will not proceed against Tam
many Hall directly by forming an alliance
with the republicans. but that he will rather
adopt his usual policy of indirection and
will build up an organization along the
lines of the old county democracy. If Hill
should do this they say 1t would mean
farewell to positions in the city administra-
ton and a loss of the spoils which in the
metropolis always go to the victor. That
Hill will try to form rival organization
instead of working directly with the repub-
licans and the reformers may be taken for
granted. But New Workers are more pro-
vincial than many of the people living In
country towns and they resent interference
from an outsider. Not even Grover Cleve-
land in his brightest days ever dared to
Interfere in New York local politics. and
he probably knew more about New York
city politics than any man not to the metro
politan manor born If Hill succeeds he
will be the first outsider who has ever made
a success of local politics in the great city
of New York
NO uOuDI I'LL uliueIsldlluS tiiol Siohoi 40
the one man who will stand like stone
wall in the way OF his securing a nomna-
ton for the presidency. If he can defeat
Croker he naturally figures that he Will
loom up as the only man Of national prom
inence In the empire state. But 1t Is doubt
full whether he would not pay too high a
price for his victory and whether ne would
not lose more in the Croker killing process
than he would gain. If the reports are
true, however that Hin Is to lead the fight
against Croker in this city it means the
prettiest play of empire state political forces
since the days of the midwinter anti-Cleve-
land snap" conventions, and perhaps the
prettiest political doings since the days of
the Garfield -Conkling misunderstanding and
the days of the 'barnburners.''