Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1917-11-07
THE DAILY CAPITAL JOURNAL 49,
in whose circulation guAou ~
Audit Bureau Of Circuations
THE NEW YORK ELECTION

The defeat of Mayor Mitchell for reelection in New
York CITY is case of history repeating ITSELF NO So
called reform mayor was ever reelected there
There are also good for the voters taxing Cs
course Reformers in New York are elsewhere very
freouenty impractical and theoretical In their conduct Oh
affairs The greatest city IN the world presents To
plicated and complex problem OF government anu an
manys business is solely the government OF New dor
where it has been dominant for most OF the Time Tor
hundred years. Fusion reform ADMINISTRATORS gener
av spend more money and get less acceptabe results e-
cause new and untried put at the head OF as
that should call for special training Four years OF I'M
practical experimenting satisfies the average New YORK
er that he was better off under the government OF
many and he votes the old party ticket again WIN Ie
usual result The reform victory has served us one
useful purpose of causing Tammany hall to be more care
full in handling public funds and warns them TO keep Will
in bounds in the matter of public morals Like any set OIL
officials kept long in power lammany nan peconeS ooI
1pt and arrogant and requires periodical cleaning OUT
With all it's faults New York is probably the best gov
erned large city the continent lts puDhc improve
ments marvel and It's ponce ana Ire uep0 ~; A.
effectively organized 1t is true that there graft IN Ue
polce department. but that is probably true OF every
police department There are fewer f1ots IN New foIh
than any city Of the first class in the world ana e anu
property is comparatively safe Its government IS cosby
hut there is much to show for the money spen anu lts
vast wealth assures low tax rate
Tamn1any is political machine but not as pad as
ictred bv its opponents: it gives New York as clean
itv government as New Workers DESIRE and is ethclen
MAYOR Mitchell is clean man no doubt but ne mas
human faults Possibly his election as young man 70
important p0Sltl0n nlgnC III ledoule no va
his head Anyway he gradually drifted away from V4e
plan people and became exclusive In his ASSOCIATIONS
IS likely that social aspirations blinded him to the 1acc
that his greatest should be for the welfare Oh
several millions Of voters who only ordinary people
in the social SCALE His popularity waned IN proportion
to his drawing aside from above the level OF the gea
majority of voters .. ,,;+1,
Furthermore, MitchePs campaign was stamped WIN
insncerty and savored of attempt to stampede tue
masses into supporting him as the only slmonpure patrot
in the great city This not wise move because tne
wel-read thinking American voter is not as hysterca
as some politicians to think No doubt Judge Hyan
the mayor-eect and Judge Bennett the republican can
ddae are Americans in the fullest sense OF the Wofa
There is nothing in their records to justify contrary
conclusion Hiqust, the socialist was an un-Amercan
candidate and took every possible to advertise tha
fact He attempted to create state of hystea among
the voters in another direction deliberately as Mltche
effort Among the great cosmopolitan population there
are thousands to whom Hqusts doctrines appealed ano
he received their votes which to be expected rev
real Americans however, attracted or mlsled by
his dsloyal harrangues. The New Workers seem SIMPLY
to have voted for the man who would in their opinion
make the most satisfactory mayor of the city, and theli
decision was not of impulse but of sober Judgment
The real lesson of this big city election lies In the TACT ina
it indicates that the voters think for themselves The city
press with the exception of the Hearst papesand thell
influence usually is not great-generally supported
Mitchell The press was defeated not because 1t is Wltn
ont influence but because its position was not sound II
the judgment of its readers Newspapers cannot contro