Quotes from the Era
Using the quotes below and information from the clips we watched create a list of pros and cons of the ‘political machine’. Lastly, answer the final question.
Quote 1:“Gangs or bodies of men hired for the purpose, assembled at these headquarters where they were furnished with names and numbers, and under a leader or captain, they went out […] in nearly every part of the city, registering many times each, and when the day of election came these repeaters, supplied abundantly with intoxicating drinks, and change of coats, hats, or caps, as occasion required to avoid recognition or detection, commence the work of ‘voting early and often.”
- New York Resident Testifying before Congress regarding election fraud
Quote 2:
I know what Park’s is doing, but what do I care. He has raised my wages. Let him have his [illegal gains]!
– Anonymous city worker responding to charges brought against a New York Politician
Quote 3:
“To this one he lends a dollar; for another he obtains a railroad ticket without payment; he has coal distributed in the depth of winter; […] he sometimes sends poultry at Christmas time; he buys medicine for a sick person; he helps bury the dead.”
- A Kansas Immigrant describing the actions of James Pendergast, another Political Boss of the era
Quote 4:
“My party’s in power in the city, and it’s goin’ to undertake a lot of public improvements. Well, I’m tipped off, say, that they’re going to lay out a new park at a certain place […] I go to that place and I buy up all the land I can in the neighborhood. Then the board of this or that makes its plan public, and there is a rush to get my land […] Ain’t it perfectly honest to charge a good price and make a profit on my investment and foresight? […] Well, that’s honest graft.”
- George Washington Plunkitt of Tammany Hall defending his actions in office as “Honest Graft”
Final Question:
Do the benefits of the ‘Political Machine’ outweigh the costs? In other words should it be destroyed or left alone? Why destroy it or why leave it? Lastly, do you believe there is a ‘Political Machine’ today?
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