Life — August 15, 1912 — page 8: what you’re looking at

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

T looks as though Mayor Gaynor, by the time his term ends, would know a lot about New York, and as though Com- missioner Waldo, if not removed, would presently get real insight into the Police Department. The Rosenthal murder stories, still running strong and various at this writing, have been very interesting. We haven't got to believe all we read, nor yet to disbelieve it. Of the two, the latter is just now more difficult. Twenty - four hundred thousand dollars a year to “the system” from imper- fectly protected gamblers! A million a.month from various forms of vice! There is nothing incredible about these figures. What an extremely bad busi- ness gambling and the other vices must be for* the unfortunate adventurers who practise them, What sort of a show can the come-ons have when protection costs so much! We have a wonderful Mayor. One's thoughts go back to Bingham and Jerome; to the bad Duffy boy whom Judge Gaynor used to drive Bingham out. Bingham was honest and not in- efficient. Why did the Judge want to get rid of him? What powers were strong enough to influence him? Who really governs New York anyway? Who is finally the Man Higher Up, the mysterious figure—Santa Claus, Colonel Bogey, or The Adversary, ac- cording to the point of view—of whom we always hear when people talk about our local government, and espe- cially the police? And this time, will the Man Higher Up really have to come down? No one has really reached him since Tilden’s time, but the trail our District Attorney is on is mighty promising. Since the Mc- Namaras were caught and confessed “While there is Life there's Hope” any feat of detection seems possible if the right man gets to work. Meanwhile it is our duty to be equal- ly solicitous that not too many guilty men shall escape, and that no inno- cent and honest man shall suffer from ill-founded rumors and false accusa- tion. There seem to be a number of bad people in New York, graft- ers, gamblers, gunmen and the li some of them men of great power to grow rich by law breaking, and pro- tect their tools from punishment. Out of the Rosenthal murder has come a sufficient illumination of dark places and dark deeds to give hope for a salutary cleaning up. Brier reports .of a sermon preached in Boston on July 28th by the Rev. Robert S. McArthur have been in the papers. To illustrate the un- wholesomeness of evil feelings he said: It was only a short while ago when a professor of the Smithsonian Institution at Washington saw two Italians exhibit- ing much anger toward each other. He got one of them to speak into a vessel from which he prepared a mixture and later gave it to a cat, and the cat died. Well, well! Can you beat that! Let us get the professor to prepare a mixture in a large vat, and then get Candidate Roosevelt to talk into it a little while about President Taft, and then not waste any of it on cats, but distribute it through the Southwest to kill the boll-weevil. It ought to beat the parasite for that. Meanwhile Candidate Roosevelt's words, without any intermediate mix- ture, are having considerable effect. Wallace Batchelder, of Vermont, re- ports himself cured by a single tele- VOL. LX. AUGUST 15, 1912_No, 1555 Published by LIFE PUBLISHING COMPANY. J. A. Mivowenn, Press, AL Mintan, Sec'y and 7 1 West Thiny-first Street, New Vork 1 Offices. Canaoa House, Bresnrs thes. Londen. ¢ gram of a case of Rooseveltitis of fourteen years standing. He lives in Bethel, Vt, and as a Vermont Pro- gressive and a fighter of bosses he had been advocating the endorse- ment by Progressives of the Demo- cratic candidate for Governor. When he got word from Oyster Bay that the Colonel wanted no candidate endorsed who would not support Roosevelt ¢ tors, he couldn't believe it, but a sec- ond message confirmed the first one, Then after due reflection, on July 26 he telegraphed Colonel Roosevelt as follows: Your telegram received. Iam shocked For more than four monshs I, who am a poor man with a wife and two little boys to support, have worked litera'ly night and day, ‘without fear, favor ot hope of reward, for the Progressive cause, and have believed that you were that cause personified. I have neglected my business, earned no money a many dollars poorer than I that evening last March when I dined wit’: you at Oyster Bay, after being sun.- moned there by you, I supposed that I was fighting for the real rule of the people and against bo: and bossism. Your telegram rece’ this morning stating that the tel of July 20, purporting to be signed by you, is substantially authentic, makes it plain that you direct’ me—and men in every State—that we must not vote for any candidate for any office, no matter how honest, able, efficient or progressive he may be, unless that candidate will agree to pay for our votes by supporting Theodore Roosevelt for President of the United States again—by supporting Roosevelt el I was_a member of your regiment in 1898. r fourteen years I have felt more affection for you than for any other person on carth except the members of my own immediate family. It is a terri- ble wrench, Colonel, but I cannot fool myself, and T must’ be straightforward and frank with you, as you know I al- ways have been. With grief, the depth of which you cannot know, I have decided, after one of the hardest fights I have ever been forced to put up, that I cannot longer support you for President of the United States. Wattace Batcietper. Our heart bleeds for you, Wallace. Your telegram is so significant that we have had to print it all. A great many comicbook