The History of Tammany Hall

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1901. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER XXIX. THE DICTATORSHIP OF RICHARD CROKER (Concluded). 1897-1901. Now that Tammany was reinstalled in almost absolute power, Mr. Croker set about choosing the important city officials to be appointed by the Mayor. He frankly admitted before the Mazet Committee, in 1899, that practically all of them were selected by him or his immediate associates. Requiring a routine assistant in the work of "bossing," Mr. Croker selected John F. Carroll, who thereupon resigned the office of Clerk of the Court of General Sessions, which yielded, it was estimated, about $12,000 a year, to take a post with no apparent salary. Mr. Croker then returned to horseracing in England. "Wise, Honest and Economical." The public pronouncements of the organization continued to voice the old-time characteristic pretensions of that body's frugality, honesty and submission to the popular will. In October, 1898, the county convention in the Wigwam passed resolutions commending "the wise, honest and economical" Tammany administration of Greater New York, and denouncing the "corruption, extravagance and waste of the infamous mismanagement" by the previous reform administration. Yet at this very moment the Bar Association was protesting against Mr. Croker's refusal to renominate Judge Joseph F. Daly,1 on the ground of his refusing to hand over the patronage of his court. The convention itself, despite its fine words, acted merely as the register of the will of one man, with scarcely the formality of a contest; and the public had again become agitated over the certainty of grave scandals in the public service. Tammany's election fund this year was generally reputed to be in the neighborhood of $100,000. As much as $500 was spent in each of several hotly contested election districts. Tammany wo...