Tonopah daily bonanza. [volume] (Tonopah, Nev.) 1906-1929, 1911-08-05
THE LAMP OF THE WICKED. ;

Solomon tells us, The light of the righteous
rejoceth, but the lamp of the wicked shall be
put ont That the same connection between
cause and effect exists in this day and gener-
alton was recently illustrated in the death in
Ireland of a once noted New Jersey politician
William j. Thompson, who died practically
penniless, having lived for some little time on
the bounty of old-tme neighbors in Gloucester,
y. J. Yet this i'll his day possessed i'm
mense wealth and welded great political power.
He known The Duke Of Gloucester,
the title, by the way of Richard III. before
his elevation to the English throne when he
strangled the two young princes in the Tower
of London
Thompson represented class of politicians
20 years ago. no sought to govern the state
permanently by playing on the vices Of voters.
These people, in fact, We're wont to laugh at
themselves for pandering to the moral senti-
ment of the community" They considered it
merely sop thrown to the respectable element
Ito keep them quiet ThOmpson'S hold on
southern New .Jers ~ became so strong that
for the time being he did have the respectable
element by the throat. He secured the election
of Legislature to pass more liberal gambling
laws. and actually placed of his race track
starters in the speakers chair. The Legislature
did Thompson s bidding, going to the extent
of overriding the vote of a governor of their
party and carrying out his orders Tie spent
tens of thousands of dollars annually for po-
litical purposes, pushing in addition to the race
track the preferment of the saloon and gas-
bling interests in securing wide OPEN con-
ditions all over New Jersey The belief be-
came pretty general in Thompson day that
race track gambling AN neradicable evil .
1t was born and bred in the bone of human ma
ture. and nothing could wipe it out This
man and his associates might have taken les
son from the rise and fall of William NJ. Tweed
and the history of the Tammany society across
New York bay. But there are none so blind as
those who will not see, so deaf as those
who will not hear. Tweed stole millions from
New York taxpayers and apparently had reach
ed a position secure from the hands of the law
But the forces of civic righteousness were set
in action, although at the time Sheriff Brennan
laughed and thought with Tweed it was good
joke when he served the papers on the great
Boss But Tweed became shortly fugitive
from justice; he fled to Spain. was captured
and returned sent to Blackwell's Island
where he died feon
William }. Thompson the noted New Jer-
sey political boss thought he had made his
calling and election sure, " that he had got
above the law, that he had the state securely
IN his grasp from which there was no escape
But-the voters of New eJrsey arose in their
Indignation, expelled the gamblers curbed the
power of the saloons deprived the race tracks
OF the sinews Of war and finally eradicated
the race track altogether. In fact such of
these as have not been converted into building
lots are now grown to grass Thompson's
power gone. his ill-g gotten gains were not
long in following suit his health failed as
might be expected with man who had led his
kind of life. Sympathizing friends sent him
across the water in expectation of his finding
some relief, but the lamp of wasted life went
out and he called away to "gve an ac-
count of his stewardship here below" to Him
who shall Judge the quick and the dead"
who shall Judge the quick and the dead -
Salt Lake Deseret News