Year: 1876

The Democratic candidate for President


bases his claims to the Office upon the ground


of reform. Said Mr.. TnDEN, on hearing Of


his nomination: "This nomination was not


made by the leaders of the party. It was


the people who made it. They want reform. y


We have already shown in these columns
how TmDEN acted as q reformer, when Chair


man Of the Democratic State Committee in


1868. We hare shown that at that time, act
ing as agent and adviser Of Boss TWEED, he
served as IN accomplice in stuffng ballot
boxes and helped to steal the electoral vote
Of the State, giving HorrMAN for Governor
10000 majority, when, as was afterwards
shown by the Congressional investigation,
the Republicans carried the State by 10000.
The chief reform, however, upon which I'll
DEN proposes to run his campaign in the
East and carry New York is the Canal re-
form, which he announced with such
flourish Of trumpets in his canal message
in March, 1875. We print elsewhere from
the New York Times an exhaustive article
showing the extent of this reform and ex-
actly what hes been accomplished. It is good
reading in this hot weather for those who
look upon TnDEN as the great canal reform
er. Figures don't lie, and these figures not
only don't lie, but they expose the. shallow
ness Of this reform trick in very eloquent
manner. From the publication of the canal
message in 1875 to the present time, three
suits have been brought, ono Of them an old
one commenced by Atty. Gen. BARLOW and
abandoned as hopeless. Two Of them we're
brought to trial, aud one conviction was OBJ
tanned One suit was dismissed by Court,
and one is now pending. Not one
cent of money has been recovered,
and it has cost the taxpayers of New York
500, 600 in expenses of Commission md
counsel, and not one existing fraudulent con
tract has been stopped This is the sum and
substance, therefore, Of TnDER's hullabaloo
about canal reform: that the people Of New
York have had to pay 100000 for the
dismissal of one suit and conviction in the
second the conviction being that of LORD,
after two trials, who was strenuous opposer
of TnDEN when he YVES seeking the nomina-
ton for Governor in 1874, and refused to





Was nominated After spending 800, 900 of
the peoples money, he has convicted one
man, who is not yet sentenced, and probably
never will be, and has not recovered one
cent. How much will it cost the people of
New York if TnDEN should carry out his ex-
pensive system Of reform and prosecute
the long array of canal contractors? The
summary of the Times shows the emptiness
of TnDEs's pretenses as a canal reformer.
The reform policy Of TnDEN is reform
policy to crush political rivals. Beyond this
he has no use for reform. His whole record
down to the present time has been that of
cunning, scheming, selfish partisan, bent
only upon advancing his own interests, at
one time acting as IN accomplice with TWEED
in stufing ba11ot-boxes to do it, at another
time throwing away thousands Of dollars of
the taxpayers money upon alleged reforms,
which in reality are vain endeavors to crush
out political rivals. TuDEN has host of
political enemies but can the people Of New
York afford to pay $1oo, 600 for each of their
scalps, in order to crafty this reform charla-