Evening star., 1927-05-15
By G. GOULD LINCOLN.

try. is offering its own favorite son.
Gov. Alfred l.. Smith Of New York, as
the candidate of the Democratic party
for President But beyond this. Tam
many is placing itself on trial before
the Democratic masses. and indeed,
before the entire country. If Gov.
Smith is favored by the Democratic
party with the presidential nominu-
ton. Tammany viii have been Vindi-
Gated by the party. If Gov. Smith
should not only be nominated, but
elected Tammary may look upon it
self as vindicated by the people gen.
orally.
The support OF Tammany has been
an asset an New York. 1t has also
been a liability outside the city and
the State Tammany has produced its
spoilsmen. its crooks and its patriots
But the evil ii has done has been
spread about the country more ef-
fectively than the good. In conse-
ouence. his Tammany connection
seems more likely to hurt Gov. Smith
in the next Democratic national con-
cention than ii win help him. The
attack upon Tammany by William
Jennings Bryan, backed up by n large
majority of the delegates to the DEM
ocratic national convention in Balti-
more in 1912. literally made support
by the New York delegation in that
convention a liability. When the del
egation switched from Harmon of
Ohio to Champ Clark Of Missouri.
Bryan left Clark, although Nebra ska
had instructed for Clark and Clark
then had more than ma jority of the
delegates with him. Bryan switched
TO Wilson and many other delegates
followed his lead What might have
happened had the New York delega
ton gone from Harmon to Woodrow
Wilson instead of TO Clark presents
an interesting subject of speculation.
New Tammany Cited.
Today, it is said by Judge George
". Olvany. Tammany chieftain. that
there is a new Tammany," that the |
organization has proved to be the state
and to the country its benet1cence |
and efficieney. If Judge Olvany is to
be credited, ~ammany is no longer re-
garded as the bad boy of politics. |
However, around the country there is
still some skepticism that the organi- |
cation which produced its Tweed and |
its Croker is the lily white organi- |
xation which it is now painted.
The 13Sth anniversary of the found
ing of the Society of Tammany, or
Columbian Order, was celebrated
InurSQdN ilSHl III 1ieAA'f AAAS
Fourteenth street headquarters. Gov.
Smith was hailed at the celebration
as the champion of democracy and
liberty and was proclaimed the equal
of jefferson and Lincoln in his lnt1u-
ences The governor is sachem OF
the order.
Tammany has dual personality
If an organization may be said to have
a personality On the one hand 1t is
a. patriotic and charitable society. On
the other it is q political organization.
A polite fiction is maintained that
the two Tammanys are distinct. AS
a matter of fact, the leaders in both
are and always have been identical.
Society Launched i'm 1889.
The New York society was organ
lied by William Mooney. an uphol-
sterer, May l., 1889, two weeks after
the inauguration of George Washing
ton in New York as the first President
of the United States. Before the
War of the Revolution the Sons of
Liberty" and the Sons of st. Tam
many had been formed to aid the
cause of independence, and it was
from the remnants of these societies
that Tammany sprang. Its name is
derived from Tamanend-the affable-
a chief of the Delaware Tribe of In
dians. When the Tammany Society |
vas first organized, it practiced Indian
customs and was a violent antagonist
of the old foyalist societies of st. |
George, st. David and st. Andrew.
Originally the Tammany Society |
was divided into 13 tribes, one for
each original State Indeed, the So
ciety was organized in the cities of
other States, but gradually it died |
out, except in New York. and before
the close of the first quarter OF the /
eighteenth century the New York |
society was all that was left OF the |
national organization. Within the |
last few weeks, at Tammany meet |
ing in Tammany Hail. it was de- |
cided TO go ahead with plans for |
extension of the society into other |
States again. The report of the
movement to organize Tan1many out
side of New York caused a stir in
the political world Immediately. Sol
much Of a stir that Judge Olvany,
who was not at the meeting when
the plan was broached. sat down
hard on the idea, for it became clear
that the Democratic organizations in
other States would not tolerate the
tncursion of Tammany, and instead
of help to the candidacy OF GOV.
Smith, the movement to extend TAM
many beyond the confines of New
York promised to prove boomerag'
Became Partisan i'm 1897.
The 13 sachems of the society an
nuaNy elect grand sachem-Judge
OIvany holds the office now, and Gov.
smith is one of the governing
sroup. At one time "kitchie Okel-
nav" or great grand sachem, was
an honorary Office and was conferred
nv the society on a number OF Pres
4dents of the United States, lnclud-
ing George Washington. John Adams,
Thomas jefferson, Madison. Monroe
John Quincy Adams and Jackson.
When Tammany was first organized
~ was made I'D Of men of both po'
litical parties, the Federalists ana tne
Republican-Democrats, but by l'si II
had become an extremely partisan
body, and practically all or the req
eralist members had withdrawn. In
that year, Washington made MS Ia
NOUS attack upon secret political so
cieties. Members of Tammany for-
sook the society in large numbers, but
they were rallied by the Jeffersonians
and became bitter in their opposition
10 the Federalists and Alexander
Hamilton. II became politically a
power in New York very early in ITS
history and has maintained that posi-
tion ever since. Indeed, today Tam
many and the Democratic organization
in New York are practically synony-
NOUS. AS matter Of fact and strictly
speaking, the Tammany of today is
the Democratic orga nizati0n Of the bor-
ough of Manhattan and the Demo
Gratis have other organizations IN the
four boroughs of Brooklyn. Queens,
the Bronx and Richmond. In reality
however the Democratic leaders in
those boroughs have working agree
ments with Tammany, which remains
dominant and all-powerful.