The New York Herald

A Disgusted Voter and Tax Payer.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE HERALD.

You seem to think that the forty thousand voters who neglected to cast their votes at the late election are to blame. I, as one of them, do not agree with you. I have no confidence in either party. There is not a pin to choose between them in my opinion, and it seems to me to be folly for a sensible man to waste his time in favoring either one or the other, except on occasions when some important principle of government is to be sustained. As for city politics I am a little interested there, for I pay some two thousand dollars a year taxes. But what can I do further than to vote for such candidates as I personally know to be good men? If I vote promiscuously the republican or the democratic ticket, I may vote for knaves. I therefore conclude that the safest way, as a general rule, is to wash my hands of both parties.

Let me say a word about reform movements. Supposing the forty thousand voters who now stay at home are like myself, and do not want office, or official position, or influence? Suppose these men were to meet and form committees, and get up a new party. How could we be assured that our nominees would be honest and work for the public good rather than for their own pockets? Some there might be, but I believe that a majority of them would go on the principle of making hay for themselves while the sun shines. The fact is, the system is wrong. No man ought to receive an office as a reward for political services, and all our minor officials should be appointed, not elected, and should hold office during good behavior. Unless some new plan is organized on this basis for our city government, we must expect to be robbed of more than half what we pay as taxes into the city treasury.

A NON-VOTING DEMOCRAT