Year: 1871




and Disassrsss Overthrow sf Ta.naay.
The election ID over, and the citizens Of New
York. native and adopted, have achieved
substantial victory over the ruling dynasty Of
Tammany Hall. 1t is probably too much to
say that they have administered proper re-
buke to municipal fraud and corruption when
one Of the principal peculators has been
elected by tremendous majority to the State
Senate and another has been fighting on the
winning side and claims the highest honors of
the triumph. But they have at least brought to .
close the autocratic rule in the organization of
the majority party which made those frauds
and corruptions possible, and have paved the
way for = new departure In the promised
spring election. Sigel has been chosen
Registrar over Shandley, the Tammany
nominee, by splendid majority; Ledwith
has been badly defeated for the Supreme
Court O'Brien has been returned to the
Senate from the Seventh district, and q regu-
lar slaughter has been made among the Legis-
lative candidates Of Tammany generally. But,
unfortunately, Tweed has been successful by
vote so large as to amount almost to an ovation.
and this deplorable drawback casts shade
over what would have otherwise been most
glorious victory. The result in other districts
and on other candidates shows that but for the
blunders Of the managers Of the reform
movement the city might have been spared
this great disgrace. The tinkering in another
district has also secured the return of Tom
Fields to the Assembly; and it must be felt
that New York has yet much to accomplish in
the way of honest reformation when four such
men as Tweed, O'Brien, Fields and Aeck Frear
are returned as her representatives in the
Legislature Of the State.


All honor is due to the business men of
New York for the part they have taken in
securing this result, and they will learn from
the success Of their present efforts that they
have only their own apathy and neglect to
blame for the greater portion Of the mis-
government to which they have been SUBJ
jected. Hitherto the political managers
have been suffered to run the machine after
their own fashion, and the better classes Of
our people have abstained from taking
an active part in the elections.
Occasionally they have reused themselves
to the point Of protest and denunciation, when
the vile character Of party nominees has
forced itself upon their notice; but when the
day of e'ostion has arrived they have been
too much occupied with business or too
thoroughly disgusted with the whole ma
chinery Of politics to take the trouble to go to
the polls. This year it was different. The
knowledge that they had been most
shamefully robbed by some of the men they
had trusted and honored the indignation felt
| against the managers Of the Tammany Or
ganization who insisted upon Drawing public
sentiment by putting forth some Of the
worst of the curruptionists for Office; the
apprehension that frauds upon the ballot
were to be attempted, determined them to
make an earnest effort to destroy the combi-
nation by which the city had been so long
ruled, and they have been rewarded with
success. 1t is true that the quarrels Of the
politicians themselves-the falling out among
thieves-bas been great aid in securing the
victory; but 1t was mainly due to the
solid movement Of our business men
and responsible citizens, who have
heretofore taken but little interest
in the scramblings and chickering's Of profess
sional ofice-seekers. Despite the assertion Of
the chairman of Senator OBrien's Apollo
Hall meeting last night that all the honor Of
| IS, --.s4 s-Sa - =


the result was due to the Irishmen under
the leadership of Brien, and to the Germans
under the leadership Of Sigel, we claim
some credit for American citizens as
well who not only recorded their
votes against Tammany, but used their
influence to accomplish the overthrow Of the
'Ring," and worked all day long in the good
cause


The lesson Of our local fight is, on one side,
the necessity of thorough reorganization and
publication of the political parties in this city
dence and support of the people, and, on the
| other, the certainty that when the solid men