Life — June 21, 1894 — page 12: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

S*D LEASE tell Lire | would like to speak is LIFE, Bf Who is it?” “Iam Richard Croker.” “Indeed. We thought you had * escaped to Europe.” “ Not escaped—just gone. You see it was beginning to get sultry in New York.” actly, We have heard that prominent Tammany men were suffering from the rise in temperature caused by the investigations of the Lexow Committee.” Please don’t say that | escaped. The Committee hadn't summoned me, and I was at liberty to do as I’ pleased.” “Lire doesn’t blame you. We think it was rather clever for you to go just when you did, and in just the way you did. If you had made any parade of your departure instead of skipping off between two days there might have been subpoenas and indictments and things to hamper your en- joyment of European travel. You are certainly clever, and LiFe can’t help admiring cleverness even in a green-goods man or a bunco-steerer.” “Then I am to understand that LIFE is on my side?” “You go a little too fast. If we have our pocket picked we may admire the dexterity of the thief, but that doesn’t save him from our detestation as a thief or keep us from complaining to the police.” “ Do you mean to imply that I am a thief?” “Not exactly, We should say that you were an ab- stracter. A thief takes money or other valuables from his victim by dexterity or force. The abstracter accomplishes the same result in a gentler way. We are not prepared to maintain that you have accumulated your large fortune by direct stealing from the city treasury. If we could, we would not hesitate to call you a thi An abstracter would not be guilty of such a proceeding. He might, for instance, secure the leadership of an organization like Tammany Hall. Then with the power of that organization to elect, he might sell the nominations for large prices. The men who bought these positions and paid for them had to recoup themselves, and so they became the thieves. The abstracter might be the silent and invisible partner in fat city contracts, awarded by the men he had put in office. He might be the hidden purchaser of real estate in the line of city improvements to be ordered by the same minions,” “But the Lexow Committee is only investigating the police.” “We know. But they may find that some of the dirty money which has come into the hands of the police, as the practical proprietors of every resort of vice in New York, may have found its way up through the hands of Captains and Commissioners into the ‘hands of an abstracter. Yes, Mr. Croker, we think you were very clever to get away before any such information was brought to the surface. It reminds us somewhat of Mr. Tweed's journey to Spain.” “But I can come back without being locked up, and he couldn't.” “Tt looks that way just now, but things may be different in the autumn, Mr. Goff seems to be a good lawyer and very much in earnest.” “Do you think I have done anything that lots of other men wouldn’t do.” “Bless your innocent heart, no. That's the very THE GOING OUT OF THE TIED.