The Waterbury Democrat., 1931-10-08
TAMMANY HALL HAS SURVIVED
 MANY PROBES
Famous Organization Old= CT Than Present POliti=
 cal Parties
By JOHN R. BEALE

United Press Staff COrreSpOndent)
 New York-Samuel Seabury, who has attracted nationwide attention by heading the New York "city- wide" investigation, is character ized by some as a Don Quixote tilting at a windmill.
 The "windmill' is Tammany Hall, a political organization whose power is felt throughout the "a ton, but which, strangely enough, has a distinctly parochial outlook; a society much older than either the republican or democratic par ties.
 Tammany is unique because unlike other municipal political machines it tr a nscends ersonalities. In Philadelphia there is Bill Wares organization" in Chicago candi- dates used to assail "the Thomp- son machine" Here Tammany leaders came and go, but Tammany remains.
 125 Years Old.
 For we'll over a century and a quarter Tammany has exercised a political power while dozens of or ganizations similar in purpose have grown and died.
 Exposures of its office holders have occupied newspaper head lines every decade or so and pre- dictions have been made the or ganization is waning. The first recorded prediction of this kind was made by a New York news paper in 1909. The newspaper has been out of existence long since. Newspape have set about to "get"
 To times they did. And some of those same newspaper are now extinct, while Tammany remains.
 The secret of this self-perpetuat- ing existence lies in an invention of Aaron Burr and the tendency of human beings to be garteful.
 Burr was the Halls first leader, taking charge when the organiza- tion Incorporated in 1897, a few yeas after 1t was founded by Will liam Mooney and named after an obscue chief of the Deleware h. dians.
 Burr's invention was the district leader.
 District Leader.
 The district leader. in these populous times. aided by innumer- able district captains, is a man who has made friends with every voter in his district climbed tene- ment stairs to take them groceries when they were i'll, and gone 10 court for them when they were in trouble.
 Because it was-and still Is human to be grateful, it is not surprising when the district lead- els frineds vote as he suggests.
 John F. Curry, present dictator of Tammany, was such a leader. He saw that poor families in his territory had enough coal in win ter and clothes when they needed them. On election day the only voters in his distict who didn't cast ballots were those too Ill to be carried to the polls.
 Governor Franklin D. Roose- velt's citations with Tammany may determine his chances of secuing the democratic nomination for president.
 Curry voiced the profound local interest of Tammy during the cur rent investigation when, as a wl.- ness in the case of Dr William F. Doyle, former veterinarian, he said:
 "I am interested in every demo- cat in the great city of New York"
 Tammany has numbered nation al leaders on it's roster. Foremost is a present sachem.Alfred E. Smith democratic nominee in 1928. Oth- CTS of note ae U. $. Senator Robert r. Wagner, Col. Jacob Ruppert, more interested in his New York Yankees than politics: James w. Gerard, former Ambassador 10 Germany. and Samuel Untermyer, lawyer.
 Tommany's first scandal occur red in 1887. Since then there has been many a Quixote to tilt at Tammany, some seriously and some merely hoping to attract pub lie interest. Seabury's attempt ap- peas to be a serious one.