The sun., 1919-06-05
CROKER TALKSOF
OLD TIMES IN CITY
Nearly All His Old Friends
Dead and He Is Glad
to Sail.
APPROVES OF GAL" SMITH
Avoids Comment on Mayor
Hylan, Whom He Met at
Palm Beach.

Tamnnany Hall. and his wife who has
Indian blood of the Cherokee tribe In
her veins. will be passengers on the Cum
ard liner Carmanla, when she leaves for
Liverpool at noon to-day. They are on
their way to the Croker Irish estate,
Glencairn. four miles from Dublin.
After a stay here of forty-eisht hours
Mr.. Croker will be glad to get away.
This city. where once his will was law
in mualctpal affairs, has no attractions
for him. He finds II hotter than Palm
Beach. where he has his winter home.
Almost all his old friends are dead and
there Is nothing to do in the evening
but 60 to the theatre. he said last night.
This is the first time he has been here
| since tho United States entered tho
war.
Although in his seventy-eighth year.
Mr.. Croker looks more vigorous than he
did when here last. He has entirely
| recovered from his illness of last winter.
His eye is keen and his mind as clear
as In the old days. He does not seem
| to take much interest in politics of the
present day and could not be drawn
! into any expressions of opinion about
President Wilson or Mayor Hylan, but
he had good word for Gov. Smith.
Interested in Young "Al'' smith.
"M Smiths done pretty we'll. hasn't
he?" asked the former political power.
Il did not know him In my day. He
| was too young. He deserves a great
deal of credit. coming from where he
did"
"Yea" chuckied the old man when
some one suggested that the Governor
had always been pretty good organiza-
ton man. Hes regular. There was a
II 90 ha
long to the organization. We used to
have some great old fights but we used
| to win"
Speaking Of some of the men he had
put in ONCE. Mr.. Croker said Of one
man:
II was attracted to him because he
| had a mind Of his own. He used to give
me good argument about things. i
did not like men who used to say Yes
to everything 1 made up my mind that
1 would give him a good job as soon as
1 could. I did, but he never knew how
1t happened"
Did you meet Mayor Hylan at Palm
Beach?"
Yes" was the brief reply. as II ne
wished to dismiss the subject. There
was a pause and then he asked:
"How's he doing?"
| There was another pause Finally
his visitors said:
| We wers going to ask you your
opinion on that subject"
"Oh, he seems to be AN active, rather
democratic sort OF fellow"
Mr.. Croker said he would be glad to
see his racing stable again. His great
stallion Orby, with which he won the
Derby one year, died twelve months ago.
He was great horse" he remarked
refIectively. His get used to keep up
the whole place. My horses won some
| races last year. / expect to continue
| racing this summer"
Mr.. Croker declined to comment on
the Irish question. but the conversation
drifted to the high cost OF living.
Approves OF Profit Sharing.
| When I was fiat on my back last
| winter" he said. IT used TO try and
| figure out the reason for It. believe It
Is all due to the cost of labor. I do not
want to criticize the laboring man, for
1 am his friend But he does not get
much more out of It than he did years
ago. After he has visited his grocer and
butcher and tailor he has no more left
than he did then"
Mr.. Croker expressed the opinion that
profit sharing by employers would solve
| many or the economic problems.
II remember when you could get
| bricks for IS a thousand. Now they cost
S1+ to SIS. The man who builds a house
| to sell or hotel puts his additional cost
| on the consumer. But the man who
| wants to build house for himself has
| no consumer to take II out Of 1t is
| quite problem for some people"
Asked II any OF his old friends In
Tammany Hall had been to see him Mr..
| Croker replied: / haven't any friends.
| They're all gone"
When the names of a few still living
\ were mentioned he said
That's true. but most Of them are
gone. In my houso in Ireland 7 have
| the menu card OF dinner that gave
| to zoo friends when I was going away
eighteen years ago. The dinner was
| held In this very hotel-the Savoy. II
| contains the names of every man who
| was there. When ! go back to Ireland
| check OF the names OF those who have
gone. have seven or eight to check
on now. And how many names do YOU
suppose Will be left-only thirty? 1t
| Is terrible"
| In the old days Richard Croker was
always keen on prize fighting. He ex-
pressed the opinion that Dempsey would
defeat Willard on July and do II
| quickly. Hes wonderful fighter" he
said. and If you've got any money put
| II on him."
| IF were going TO be in this country
1 should certainly go to that fight" the
old man added.
Mr.. Croker will return to Palm Beach