The New York herald., 1921-11-05
Why Hylan Is / to S.

The gamblers in Tammany Hall
and Wall Street are betting 5 to 1
that the majority Of the people Of
New York don't give hoot. for the
future or the fortunes Of New York.
That is, the gamblers are betting
5 to that there are enough thought
less, careless. uninformed or misled
voters in this town to reelect JOHN
r. HYLAN Mayor.
1t is almost unbelievable that this
could be true. Nor win the intelli-
gent people of New York, who have
watched four years Of Hylanism with
indignation and shame, believe that
it is true until the votes have been
counted.
New York has seen four years Of
a mixture of clownishness, demagog-
cry, extravaganza, corruption and ut
ter ineptitude such as no student Of
the city's politics can find in the
pages of the last generation.
We have had Mayors that were
stupid but whose instinct for hon.
esty led them through cleanly. We
have had Mayors who were slaves of
Tammany but whose inherent sense
Of civic responsibility kept them and
the city out of the slough. We have
had at least one Mayor lacking in
moral balance, but even he could save
his official face by the exercise of
his shrewdness.
But there was no prototype OF
HYLAN!
HYLAN was a nonentity when he
was nominated in 1917. He was
chosen when MURPHY lost his only
admirable quality, courage. But for
MURPHY's cowardice New York, If it
could not have mitchell for Mayor,
at least could have had AL SMITH,
and while there would have been
Tammany administration it would
have been an administration for
which New Workers need not have
spent four years blushing.
HYLAN was not even the choice of
majority of the citizens. The total
vote polled by his opponents was
$4,000 greater than the vote for HY-
Ian. The Bennett candidacy made
possible HYLAN's election.
The Hylan campaign of 1917 was
one of abuse. Misrepresentation and
promises. There undoubtedly are
thousands of voters who voted
against JOHN PURRoY mitchell and
for HYLAY because they believed the
lies that HYLAN told about MrTcHEL's
official extravaganza and his school
policy. To-day, with the official ca
reers OF the two men in retrospect,
what must be the thoughts of these
bamboozled citizens?
"My fight" said HYLAN smugly at
a meeting In Tammany Hall on Oc-
tober 26, 1917, "is to restore the gov
ernment Of the city to the people and
wipe out waste, extravaganza and
corruption"
IF MURPHY constitutes the peo-
pie. then HYLAN restored the govern
ment Of the city to them, reserving
to himself only such slight advan-
tages as jobs for brothers-in-law,
sons-in-law. fathers of sons-in-law,
brothers of sons-in-law, family doc
tors, family druggists and family
chauffeurs.
The way HYLAN wiped out waste
was by letting the court house site
be filled in and then dug out.
The way HYLAN wiped out corrup-
tion was by tolerating a Dock De-
partment administration under the
nose Of which mysterious strangers"
shook down steamship companies for
obtaining leases of piers; under the
nose Of which fortunate lessees OF
city piers sublet them at an esti-
mated profit OF $24,0O0,0O0; under
the nose of which private detective
companies extracted from the steam
ship companies each year more mill.
ions than 1t takes to run the Police
Department. He wiped out corrup-
tion by toleratipg Market Depart
ment where the slick poultryman
"got honey for money"
HYLAN wiped out corruption by
signing a letter, drafted for him by
HETTRIcK who went to prison for
his offences--in the interest OF a con-
tracing trust.
HYLAH In 1917 abused Mayor
mitchell for his conduct Of the pub
lie schools. In the last year OF
MrrcnEL's administration there were
only $4,000 part time pupils: In the
fourth-and, let's hope, the last
year of HYLAy's administration there
were 10000 part time pupils.
When JouS PURRoY mitchell went
out of Office he left the Police De-
partment In better condition than II
\ had o,or beap Tbe ro1ica under