Strong Vs. Platt

The powerful search light of public hope and anxiety has thus far 1 vealed no flaws in Reform Mayor Strong, of New York. It was confidently expected that he would succumb to the machinations of the crafty boss machinist, Platt, and it has been alleged that he had agreed to conform to Platt's wishes in his principal appointments. This he denies most emphatically and as time passes and his appointments are made, it becomes more and more apparent that the charge of Platt domination is unl'ounded. In fact, the mayor utterly refuses to submit to the dictation of the boss. Great pertubation exists, therefore, among the republican machinists. So strong headed has the mayor proved to be that threats are beginning to be made about calling the Platt machine at Albany into requisition for the purpose of taking out of the mayor's hands and vesting in the governor the appo'ntment of certain im ortant officials. Speaking of the efforts that have ! been made to bring him under the yoke, Mr. Strong says: "There were no pledges to individuals or organizations by me which could be broken. When William B. Hornblower and John Claflin came to me and asked me to sign the committee of seventy's pledges before my nomination I told them I'd see them in first." Again recurring to the efforts of the timeservers to bring about an interview between himself and Plati he says: "I can say concerning the several statements which have been made relative to Communications from me to Mr. Platt through Mr. Phillips (Platt's private secretary), that the only thing I ever told Mr. Phillips to teil Mr. Platt was that the mayor's office is open from 9:30 o'clock in the morning until 5 o'clock in the afternoon; that my residence is at 12 West Fifth-seventh street, and that no man in the world could makean appointment for me to meet Mr. Platt at any other than those two places. That's the only message I ever sent to Mr. Platt by Mr. Phillips." He seems to be anything but a compromisor. He believes in the Jacksonian idea of taking the forces of corruption by the throat and destroying them. And no doubt this method will accomplish more for reform than all the compromises that could be concocted. There are evidences on every hand that the real purpose of the free silver advocates in congress is beginning to dawn upon many who have hitherto given them loyal support. Their opposition to the Hill resolutions, declaring it to be the purpose of the government to pay its obligations when due in the "best" coin available, was strongly indicative ot their design. Senator Lodge, who had been coquetting with silver, announced himself an opponent of silver monometalism and other moderate silver men at once took on greater conservation. This and other recent events in the senate have furnished convincing proof that the radical silver men of the west especially are not bimetallists at all, but silver monometallists and that their purpose is to force the country to a silver basis with all its attendant disturbing and hazardous consequences. Even the St. Louis Republic a long time advocate of silver, has become alarmed and dehvers itself as follows: For twenty years the Repubüc lias been the earnest, unswerving advocate of the free coimige of silver. But the Republic has songht, and still seeks, free coinage in order that the country may enjoy the protection of the doublé, or rather the alternativo, standard, either the gold or tbe silver dollar being available tor the tneasure of value as the debtor may clect. In other words, the Republic has advocated bitnetallism. It can see no reason for flying to silver monometaHism because it has denounced and decried gold monoinetallism. Our Missouri senators are openly out for silver monometallism; that is, for the single silver standard. The have abandoned tbe doublé standard oí' gold and silver, goiner deliberately to silver monometallism to escape gold monometallism. Defejise of silver monometallism is conceivable; denial of the terrible consequences of a sudden leap from the gold to the silver standard impossible. If the Missouri senators mean they wonld willingly bring about a condition in which the jxircliasing I power of i dollar will be what 371 grains of silver bullion will buy today, they sbould say so in plain words. Frederick Douglas, the foremost man of his race and a prominent fig. ure in American public life for the the last half century, is deaü. His career has been a most remarkable one. Bom a slave he raised himself by the sheer force of his character and ability to the proud position of leader of bis race and a positive power in the history making of the most notable epoch of our nation's career. His powerful oratory aided materially in creating the sentiment which finally struck down American slavery. There was much in his personal history which appealed strongly to the minds of the people, wrought up by the great issue on which the lines were forming, and this supplemented by his deep earnestness and love of liberty made him a powerful champion of the cause of emancipation. The later years of his life were also devoted to the interests of the class from which he came. His living was an advantage to the cause of universal freedom. The legislature has knocked out Detroit's bree.y mayor by passing ' the health bill and giving it immediate effect. His honor, though considerably disfigured, claims to be still in the ring. It is unfortunate that circumstances should have been such as to have made 't necessary to take the step that has been taken The appointinent of the health board properly belongs to the mayor and to take it away and vest it in the governor does violence to the principie of home rule. But the power will no doubt be returned to the city when the officials who rendered its removal necessary have been dispensed with.