Life — September 23, 1897 — page 4: what you’re looking at

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

Published every Thursday. 5.00.8 year in advance, Postage to foreign couniries in the Postal Union, $1.04 ayear extra. Single copies, 10 cents, Rejected contributions will be destroved un- tess accompanied bya stamped and directed envelope. The illustrations in LAFE are copyrighted, and are not to be reproduced without special arrangement with the publishers. The Quest for a Mayor. HE business of choosing candi- dates for Mayor of New York goes busily on, though as yet Mr. Low is “the only one selected. About him some of the newspapers are saying dreadful things—that he is a fetich, that he voted for Cleveland, that his candidacy tends to weaken the Re- publican organization, both State and Federal, and also the State and Fed- eral Democratic organization, It is also asserted that he is not the only man in New York who is fit to be Mayor, and LirF trusts that that is true. Nevertheless he seems to bear up well, and there is no reason to be- lieve as yet that the Citizens’ Union could possibly have found a better candidate, or that its nomination was made too early. New York knows more about the advantages of good government than it did, and there is fair reason to hope that it will profit by its experience. Is General Collis Doing His Best? GP COLLIS, of the De- partment of Public Works, de- -LIFE- nies that he tore up Fifth Avenue expressly to inconvenience the people of New York, and is keeping parts of it still in disorder to spite them fur- ther. He declares that a huge and difficult job is being done in that street; more difficult than was antici- pated, because of the blind and in- adequate way the street had been dealt with heretofore. This time everything that ought to be under the pavement—sewers, water-mains, and every legitimate pipe—is being placed there, so that when the street is finally paved it may be expected to stay so for a long time. And he says it ought to be finished by the first of November. This seems al- most too good to be true, Gallinger’s Scathing Reply. GRAND example of a scathing letter is that lately addressed by Senator Gallinger of New Hamp- shire to Mr. Carl Schurz, Senator Gal- linger has views as to the inexpedi- ency of Civil Service Reform which he lately wrote out at some length and published, a month or two after the adjournment of Congress, in the Congressional Record. Mr. Schurz replied to Senator Gallinger's piece in an article in defense of Civil Ser- vice Reform, in which he controverted sundry of Senator Gallinger’s allega- tions. Senator Gallinger's reply is the scathing open letter aforesaid. He has a lotto say about Mr. Schurz. He speaks of his swagger and brav- ado, of his boundless egotism, of his ill- mannered and_ inconsequential letter, of his political obscurity, his yearning for notoriety, his flippancy, his coquettishness, and other blem- ishes. These allusions are admirably scathing, and yet a letter made up of them is not so illuminating as it should be. We all know a good deal about Mr. Schurz, but few of us know anything about Senator Gal- linger. Senator Gallinger must know all about him. If, instead of describing Mr, Schurz, he had told us the chief descriptive facts about Gallinger, how much more instruc- tive and satisfactory he would have been! Try again, Senator. We want to know! r=: ae Sheriff Martin’s Shooting Scrape. HERIFF MARTIN, of Luzerne “7 County, Pennsylvania, has re- ceived much unfavorable notice dur- ing the past fortnight because a body of deputies, whom he had assembled to restrain the turbulence of a roving band of striking Hungarian miners, came to blows with the strikers and fired upon a mob of them, killing a score and wounding many more. The precise circumstances of the case are obscure, Whether the firing was necessary may.be doubtful, but there does not seem to be any doubt that the Sheriff was doing his best to maintain order. Soldiers, and especially regulars, are far more efficient in dealing with mobs than sheriffs’ posses. Being disciplined men, under command of experienced officers, they can usually maintain order without shedding blood. It is a great pity that there were no avail- able troops at Lattimer, but since there were not, and the Sheriff did his best, there is nothing for it but to back him up, condone his indis- cretion if he was indiscreet, and ad- mit that he did his duty. Whoever stands honestly as an officer of the law for law and its enforcement, is entitled to have the support of the public; whoever opposes or defies the law does it at his own risk. Lire is. sorry for the striking miners and de- plores the killing of any of them, but the Sheriff must be sustained. A Sheriff inexperienced in warfare, with a lot of armed deputies under slight discipline, makes a very dan- gerous combination which all citizens, law-abiding and law-defying, are ear- nestly recommended to avoid.