Norwich bulletin., 1921-04-27
ODD INCIDENTS IN AMERICAN
 HISTORY
OUR GREATEST POLITICAL RING.

OUR GREATEST POLITICAL RING,
 When Gen. Grant was inaugurated president of the United States, in 1868, New York city was under as despotic a rule as Paris; one despot was the Elm peror Napoleon III, the other was Boss Tweed. The empire in France and the republic in America had led to similar results in the chief city of each country, but the advantage lay with the empire Paris looked like a well-governed city. Good order prevailed and its streets were clean, while in New York was to be seen an ill-regulated metropolis, dirty streets, slow and crowded cars, a large part of the money that was appropriated in New York going into tue hands of the Tweed ring of boodiers
 The head and front of this ring was William Macy Tweed wf3 had risen gradually in politics until he had be- come an invincible power, New York city was governor by four men-A. Oak ley Hall, the mayor; Peter E. sweeny, the treasurer; Richard B. Connolly, the | comptroller, and William. Marcy Tweed, | the president of the board of surervis- ors.
 1 In 1s69.the New York taxpayers knew that they were being plualsrel, but they were apparently helpless. With Tweed at the head of the TaHnany organization with wires out everywhere connecting him with many experienced workers, the operations of the gang were made easy of execution. They first bribed to their | side certain of the New York judges and
 gained control of several of the New York | editors.
 | The corruption of the gang was abso- 1! lute and extended to all Of the depart \ ments of the city government. FHe New 1 York city court house, which was lfJn- tied in cost in the original contract to l $25e,000, was expanded to an expense of
 more than s14,0Qo,0oo. Fully half of this amount found its way into the pockets
 of the Tweed ring.
 At the beginning of 1871 Tweed and his ring were at the height of their power. So strongly was the ring en- trenched and so carefully had they guarded all avenues to exposure, that it seemed a well-nigh impossible task
 to make the attempt The day of retri- 1 button, however, was at hand Watson
 the county auditor was injured in an ac-
 eident and shortly afterward died. Then
 the enemies of yhe ring got possession
 of the New York city accounts and large
 sums of money were offered to keef
 them from being published. This failed in it's result and on July s, 1871, ths New York Tribune began the publication
 of the accounts. The storm now begun | steadily gathering force, and on SePten Der 4, 1871, great mass meeting wa held in Cooper Institute and committe } of seventy was appointed. } The chief conspiratofs were rempxe, from office. Connolly. Sweeney and man,
 of their associates fled to Europe, whil
 Tweed remained, and was arrested ol October 27 and lodged in Ludlow stree
 jail. The election of the following No P vember completed the overthrow of tn I ring.
 Tweed was indicted on February 1t
 1872, for forgery and grand larceny, bu 7 the jury disagreed. On the second tria . November 5, 1878, he was found guilt : of all the f1fty-one counts of the indie'
 ment, and on November 22 he was ser
 fenced to twelve years in the peniteptiar c and to pay "a fine of s12,3e0 for each ( s twelve counts of the indictment and $25
 for each of the other thirty-nin count
 He remained on Blackwells Island whi q his case was under appeal until June 1 V 1875, when decision was made tn; ' the court erred in sentencing Tweed (
 so many accounts for the same efenc and ordering his releasa. He was take ? to court June g. 1875, and gave ba for s1S,000 on the remaining eFimin n indictments, but on his release und'