The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1907-10-31
AN HONEST GRAF TER
4 Glimpse Into the Future of MI"
nicipaI Ownership.

A Iumb Nail Sketch of "Praetieai
Poiitician"-The Profits of an All
Around Servant of the People, Who
Seen His Opportunities and Took
EN-"
Honest graft will reach its highest
level when, as predicted by the en-
thusiasts, the principles Of municipal
ownership are accepted by New York
and the city controls the trolley lines,
the electric light and gas works and
all the ferries as well as the water
works and the police, the fire and the
street departments.
Then such patriots as George Wash
ington Plunkitt, for many years or
ganization leader of the Fifteenth dis
trict in New York, will reap rewards OF
greater magnitude than they have ever
been able to gather under the present
order Of things.
Perhaps you have never heard about
Mr. Plunkitt's honest graft schemes.
He told about them himself in O book
published last year, which was intro
duced by q paragraph indorsing him as
veteran leader Of the organization"
signed by its greatest chief.
Plunkitt was sore because there We're
some objections to graft being made
out of the city by men like him, and in
the first chapter Of his book he uttered
q vigorous protest "Blackmailin' gam
blers, saloon keepers, disorderly peo-
pie. etc." he admitted to be wrong.
That was dishonest graft"
But" be added, there's an honest
graft, and I'm an example of how 1t
works. l seen my opportunities and I
took 'em."
Mr. Plunkitts explanation Of how he
did these things will illuminate the
possibilities Of future municipal owner
ship days. If they ever come.
After calculating the ways he was
clipped off, at various times by mem
bers Of his party-the party in power
when new bridges, new parks, new
streets were to be opened, SO that he
might invest in real estate likely to
rise in price from the Improvements
contemplated, he adds: II haven't con-
fined myself to land. Anything that
pays Is Ill LILY Ill., uSA AC SASCS q
specific instance:
Learning that the city was about to
repave a certain street and SO would
have several hundred thousand old
paving blocks to sell, he was ION hand
to buy" and he "knew just what they
were worth" But newspaper "tried
to do him. and got some outside men
from Brooklyn and New Jersey to bid
against him. Mr.. Plunkitt's own words
tell the story best:
"Was I done? Not much. I went
to each of the men and said, How
many Of those $4,000 stones do you
want?' One said 10000, and another
wanted $4,000, and another wanted TO-
00G. said, All right; let me bid for
the lot, and I'll give each Of you all
you want for nothin'.'
'"They agreed, of course. Then the
auctioneer yelled, How much am bid
for these fine PAWN stones?'
"'Two dollars and fifty cents says /.
"Two dollars and fifty centsv
screamed the auctioneer. oh, that's
Joke. Give me a real bid
''He found the bid was real enough.
My rivals stood silent. got the lot for
$3.50 and gave them their share. That's
how the attempt to do Plunkftt ended,
and that's how all such attempts end"
1t is hardly necessary, in the light Of
this authentic statement of "honest
CRAFTS" workings, to enlarge upon the
extended opportunities that would
come to the men Of the Plunkitt stamp
were the dream of municipal owner
ship to come true. Plunkitt says most
politicians who are accused of Robin
the city get rich the same way be did.
They didn't steal a dollar from the
city. They just seen their opportunities
and took them"
While in the legislature Plunkitt in
troduced the bills that provided for the
outlying parks of New York, the Har-
lem river speedway, the Washington
bridge, the One Hundred and Fifty
fifth street viaduct, additions to the
Museum of Natural History and many
other important public improvements.
He is now a. millionaire. Under the
proposed order Of things, with city con-
troll Of everything, he might become a
Millionaire
Under municipal ownership Of all
public utilities in New York-and in
most other cities In fact-politicians
like Plunkitt, who at different times
has been elected state senator. assem-
blyman, county supervisor and alder
man by his fellow citizens, besides
serving as police magistrate for one
term, and who boasts of his record in
filing four public Offices in one year
| and drawing salaries from three OF
them at the same time, would flourish
like whole grove Of green bay trees.