Show THINGS MR PLATT FORGOT being 0 an essay on pore ili politics by I 1 boivard Fiel fielding fieldin dim ca THAT distinguished STATESMAN the physical side of practical poll politics hasa hns a little light shed shea upon it in au an agreeable narrative porm form I 1 I 1 1800 by syndicate co I 1 havo read with mingled joy and despair tho the communication front from 11 mr r thomas platt which appeared in the ho paper a week ago I 1 rejoiced to see that justly celebrated reformer come right out boldly and reform things JIM looted over his own signature but as a young ri mani lanI despaired ot of attaining that high standard ot of usefulness to my country which lio ito exhorts us to keep heet forever in view mr fr platt is quite right in saying th that it the reformation of politics la Is ft a task for youth to undertake it Is little uso use for a man who is getting along lit in life and can call not reasonably expect to bo be able to hump himself moru more than forty or fifty years longer to tackle the purification of politics tor for lie ho will probably have to die and leave the job only about halt half done tb tho writer of that epistle has been tolling tor for many days right here in now new york state and yet there Ism is much to bo desired while not even tammany many isalt has I 1 been I 1 con able to purify the metropolis now as a young man I 1 tried to do a little purifying in a I 1 mild way 0 once nee and though I 1 make an entire success of it my experience and observation may bo be helpful to other young men who will bo be moved bavi by mr r platts appeal to embark in that line of business it if I 1 I 1 recall the facts of that inhere interesting sting period aright I 1 was wag then living in tile tho second ward ot of boston I 1 remember that a well lvell known citizen named gallagher whose moral character wasas was as beautiful as a fighting bull pup had been nominated tor for alderman by ono of tho the two parties I 1 really forgot forget which one it was but I 1 know that tho the other party seemed likely to put up one andorson anderson whose saloon had a record of six sit more lights in three months than Galla ghers had I 1 forget what his other qua qualifications lafica for office were but I 1 linow know that some or of tho the s silk ilk stocking element clement were kicking it was at this juncture that some rome of the oung men dien in the ward began to talk about reform I 1 cant remember just what their plans were but I 1 know that they proposed to nominate nomina teia a decent man and had been at work several days trying to find one when I 1 jo joined tried the t 11 OA I 1 1 r J f rl I 1 V r 0 V 1 I 1 YI 4 I 1 1 i 71 71 71 5 4 ty V 1 i abt I 1 1 li I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 V I 1 k Z tl 1 1 1 I 1 J A SCENE NE 1 IX N TUB THE CAUCUS movement I 1 remarked that they look any further but they did ThIs offended me file so 0 o much that I 1 split off from tycin temporal lly and hunted lip fill the second ward independent association with a view to offering my sen ice I 1 learned of the existence of this association so from a poster in a barbers shop which announced that the independents pen peri dents would give a grand select ball the following week I 1 it L struck mo inc as a good idea to make politics pleasant in this way I 1 found the headquarters of the association ono one floor below the g ground r aund at the rear of the saloon when I 1 entered president johnson sitt lugon on tho the end of a beer cask was ju just st dealing a jackpot jack jaick pot on tile the head of a bar barrel ali mr johnson was tile tho color of t abo h 0 ace of spades which lie he had lit in his sleeve I 1 learned that the object of tile the association was to lo obtain recognition at the tha polls but I 1 did not find out just ii what hat amount of recognition lot in dollars and cents would bo be satisfactory I 1 was invited to join the association and conio come into the jackpot jack pot but after discovering where mr john johnsoni Johns kept tho the aces I 1 did not caro care to do either however wever not to give off oi Tense ellse I 1 paid the assessment of one dollar dull ir whereupon tile ilic secretary and treasurer despite tile the presidents protest sent seat out tor for a 0 now new pack of cards and a quart of beer after this experience I 1 returned to the young mens reform club wo were told just as mr pratt says that the place to reform politics Is in the primary we decided to go to tile tho primary and run it right by ascertaining tile the number n of votes cast it at tile tho list last primary and dividing it by three wo we obtained a fairly accurate curato ac estimate of tile the attendance then wo we set about securing scouring tho the pledges of all the young fineu who had the interests ot of their country at heart and before tho the night flight of tho the caucus wo we got so many that wo we felt fell suro sure of having a majority on oil our side wo had determined to nominate a gentleman of distinguished lineage and high moral character who had hith hitherto arto kept aloof from politics ile he assured us its by letter of ili his acceptance but regretted that a social euga engagement prevented him front from attending the he caucus it was arranged that I 1 should take tile tho chair I 1 had sonic some experience in a debating so society cluty and nattered flattered my 11 that I 1 could preside with grace and dignity wo we marched to the tall hall in a body lutyj I 1 it was more nearly filled than wo we had anticipated in tact fact it was entirely filled with tobacco smoke the odor of which was perceptible at a distance of several blocks wo we marched arched in in but wore were somewhat disappointed at being obliged to take position at tile alio rear tor for the railing was already fortified with about ten roi rows a of very mofid toughs the meeting was opened by the chairman of tho the ward association who he congratulated do boys on oil tile the last glorious triumph find and casually mentioned theotime th the name entime of anderson whereat there were loud lend yells of approval then ho to called tor for nominations tor for permanent chairman and the gang with it one n 0 voice suggested a person named Y a tea who was president of tho the second IV ward ard crib club and several other originations of tile tho elite M my Y natlie iamo was also proposed propos rd by a young gentleman of tile tho debiting debating club who had prepared a neat I 1 which nobody heard somehow we did not appear to bo be getting on and I 1 suggested that we move nearer the railing wo attempted to do so BO and received our first lesson in practical polities politics I 1 am forced to confess that only one of our number developed any fitness for this duty of W we were almost all college brood bred innia well grounded in political economy and the of government but the young man whom I 1 I 1 have men mentioned leoned was one of nto 8 who appeared to have gained I 1 jig in college which was wait use fulin it tile the present emergency fic iio had played lour four years lit in alto football foot root ball and 11 this 1 11 kittier nit tier of moving up tip to fit lie railing w was aa right abt lathis line the way ho he stood second ward toughs on oil their heads was the most beautiful lesson lease iu in practical politics that chat I 1 ever saw it II was fail of 0 suggestions to those whose duty it is to prepare tho the youth of 0 tile the country tor for participation in popular government it if it II had ball not been for or iliin 3 oung soung mall nian whose namo name was brown we never A r K 1 I I 1 I 1 el 41 6 ie p I 1 IT e 1 1 I 1 I 1 r I 1 11 I 1 I 1 I 1 1 ral J ij I 1 N 1 1 I 1 1 I I 1 i t I 1 t k n I 1 P 11 I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 ra il 1 a 1 I 1 il ti 11 11 i 0 I 1 I 1 I 1 ft THE COUNT should have had any show at ill all lit in thai caucus but it was just like iilo sport to him ile he played that t ww was a football and lie secured a touch down with nio file on tho the railing lit hi just tor ton seconds after the game began by aly tills diio tile tho toughs realized what was going on and they crowded upon us fig brown put ills his loot foot against me inc as I 1 lung hung over tile the rail and received tile the consla onslaught u oil oh his amplo ample chest for anio a moment ment I 1 was in doubt whether the rail or my spino would break first then the rail gave way and wo went through when wo we got upon the p platform latiol in brown immediately descended into tile crowd to pay his respects to lo sonic some ol of the toughs who had boon been particularly of Clis lVe while lie ho was thus iltis engaged my slip supporters porters who alio had now gained same c courage yelled for TOO ino to take tile tho chair but yates had bad crawled under the rail and now held the chair by tho the back bach lie ile was a largo large man inan with a broken nose and lie ho did not no tilon loolu if pleasant whon my friends shouted yielding take tho the chair mr yates swung tile chair around hin lits headland head and I 1 took it in fact I 1 took where most people take a chair and it lifted mo me clear ot off the floor and nearly carried me out through a inflow on oil the right of tile the platform after this performance yaten rapped tor for order and called tor for nominations of gents bonts ter recci receive vot an all count do votes I 1 sir mr brown Otere thereupon upon approach approached lied tho the gand announced that iwas I 1 was lobe to bo ono of tho the tellers mr lr yates looked mr bron bro n all over and said lit he guessed that I 1 could bea be 1 teller without the formality Ini allty of a vote other names battles nere arid and tile the voting soon began I 1 dont mind saying if it been for brown wo have gota got a dozen doon votes in the box its as it was we polled a fair number then wo retired into an anteroom ante room to count them I 1 do not think I 1 was much use as a teller tile tho others put tile the ho box on oil LA a small table and gathered about it while they counted I 1 made in ade vain endeavors to look over their shoulders find and soo what they jhc thc were doing bull but I 1 get a glimpse of anything when I 1 ventured to prot protest ct thoy they told tok mo me to ru run if away and play mai blos bles this 11 s count had been going on oil for about ten minutes in lit inthis this way when brown got his head into the room and anted to I 1 was getting along ong I 1 told him thai they wore were not giving mo inc a chance whereupon lio lie showed symptoms of giving another lesson it in practical politics but the gang outside heard him aud and began to pour into I 1 1 1 I 1 1 r r 1 t 1 I 1 1 1 I 1 ai IA 1 I 1 01 brij r r 4 ai 41 1 I 1 I 1 4 1 4 0 10 1 4 I 1 1 lr l I r o C N q 1 i X 1 1 9 1 I 1 4 7 1 11 4 41 I 1 r 1 lt 11 t I 1 I 1 U irl 3 I 1 I 1 V bl I 1 1 1 bif I 1 lin 1 I 1 ft S F c OS 1 WAI wakil D PUBLICAN AS tile the loom 10 out it was a small place and ono one side was only long lily boarded up p the result was that yates slid and brown had a heated argument ar lt alongside fill this partition and finally brown ruth cd yates clear through it into a vacant lot bick back ot of tile tho building and then chased him nearly a milo mile over fj fences cL anti ami through area w ways itys tho the flight of yates lowed the astuteness ot of tile lie man mail as a politician with brown absent our party parly was not lot 11 in it tho the vote wa was wai i announced andersun 2110 2 and resolutions censuring tile the disorderly conduct of thollef tho reform orni club were passed it v ss thus that alio llio report was printed in ili tile tho pipers papers next morning and though blown flow finally caught yates and put him to bed for nearly early a week the action had little political value I 1 venture to add these few hints to tile tho admirable discourse of mr air platt which it if it had A a fault I 1 was faiq weak in ili its failure to tile the purely physical sido side of practical politics howait 1 FrELin xo |