New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-07-07
7 ak Of
City Hall

Fusion has a problem IN us cnolce
of a Borough President of Manhattan
Navor Mitchell, on whose denomination
I ,bo life Of fusion is considered 10 de-
rond has an aversion for Marcus NJ
| MsrEs the present president, which ne
;s ~ M mains TO conceal. He has even
animated to friends that he might re
fuse to run again on the same TICKET
with Mr. Marks.
On the other hand. Commissioner
Kracke and Senator Calder, the NIT
chel champions among the Republicans
of BROOKLYN. are plainly anxious that
Mr Marks be renominated as the May
or's running mate. His rejection, they
fear would greatly strengthen the
Livingston forces in Brooklyn, WHO
bave threatened to name Marks for
Controller on a straight Republican
ticket. with Cropsey at its head. Sucn
combination might carry the Repuo-
( Iican Kimaries in Brooklyn, and. IN
any case, a bitter pre-primary hgn'
with such an end in view would serl-
ously weaken the front which fusion
must present TO the enemy when all
the nominations have been made and
the real campaign begins,
If Josephus Daniels had been elected
/ Borough President of Manhattan -FOUR
years ago he would probably have con-
/ Quoted himself in much the same way
as Borough President Marks. Botn are
able men. with an excess OF kindly teel-
| ING toward their fellow mortals, but
| both have a weakness for publicity ana
| a somewhat fatuous disregard Oh lts
nature.
nose the measures of his fusion col
! leagues on the Board of Estimate when
ever by doing so he thought he could
give himself popular prominence. As
an independently elected executive he
| has had this ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
which Mr.. Daniels, an appointive ON
! GER. might well envy. He has broken
| out Unexpectedly at odd times and
| strange places, and great many unre-
! lated crusades and movements nave
! found in him a champion.
/ All of which has earned for him the
enmity Of the Mayor and, to a some
what lesser degree, of Controller Prem
dergast and Borough President Pounds
of Brooklyn. These three men form
the fusion triumvirate in the Board OF
! Estimate. They are the sdministra-
ton, of which Mr.. Marks, elected on
the same ticket. might well have made
n part if he had been content with
team work. Instead, he has derived
more satisfaction from playing his own
game, and latterly he has come TO be
looked upon as a regular member OF
the opposition. A constant interchange
of asperities between him and the
members of the triumvirate is the order
] of the day at board meetings, and espe-
cially since the Borough President
switched to the opposition after sign
ing the report on the West Side i'm
provement programme. This was the
unforgivable sin, committed after the
clamor from Riverside Drive had CON
WINGED him Of the error of his former
judgment.
II Mr.. Marks is not renominated the
choice of Fusion for his Office is likely
TO fall on Leonard VI. Wallstein, Com
missioner of Accounts, with Treasurer
Lewisohp, of the Fusion Committee. as
alternate. 1t is tacitly agreed that
this honor must go TO Republican OF
the Jewish persuasion, as an antidote
to Sheriff al" Smith, who now seems
slated as the Tammany candidate for
the job.
But the Mayor left City Hall yester-
day for a months vacation. after
which he may appear in a more for
giving mood and consent to the prob
ability of four more years of associa-
ton with Mr.. Marks. Mr.. Prendergast
has already decided that such deci-
sion would be politically expedient.
After all, politicians. like ordinary
folk, are subject to NERVES" and many
a wrinkle of early summer politics has
yielded to we'll earned rest"