"NEW YORK CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.
"At a meeting of the Chamber of Commerce, held Thursday, April 1st,
1875, Hon. William E. Dodge, president, in the chair, the following
resolutions offered by Hon. George Opdyke were unanimously adopted:
"Resolved, That Governor Tilden, true to his honorable record against
the fraudulent Ring officials of this city, has now placed the citizens
of our whole State under lasting obligations by his bold and masterly
exposure of the enormous frauds connected with the administration of
the New York canals.
"Resolved, That this Chamber, as the oldest commercial organization of
the State and the one expressly authorized by charter to speak in the
name of the entire commercial interests, feels specially called upon
to express its gratitude to the Governor for his fearless and vigorous
effort to arrest the frauds, so discreditable to the character of our
State and so injurious to its commercial interests.
"His effort deserves the commendation and hearty support of every
citizen of the State.
"Resolved, That this special message of the Governor on 'canal frauds'
is in perfect harmony with the views he expressed in his annual
message. In that document he manifested broad and accurate knowledge
in relation to the present condition of the canals, clearly pointed
out their defects, and suggested the remedies that he deemed essential
to their increased efficiency and productiveness; and also to the
integrity and economy of their administration. Among the remedies he
suggests are a proper disposition of the unproductive lateral canals,
the securing a uniform depth of seven feet in the waterway of the Erie
Canal, and modifications in the present plan of administering them.
"Resolved, That, in the judgment of the Chamber, it is absolutely
essential to the efficient management of these canals that this
department of the State government should be under the control of a
single executive head, appointed by the Governor and Senate, and
removable at the pleasure of the Governor, with power to appoint and
remove his subordinates, and who alone should be held responsible for
the proper management of the canals. All experience goes to prove that
this is the only safe method of securing efficiency, fidelity, and
economy in the administration of public affairs.
"Resolved, That this Chamber will watch with deep interest the progress
of this praiseworthy effort of the Governor to secure perfect integrity
in the Canal Department, and will aid that effort by all proper means
within its power.
"Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions, duly authenticated by
the officers of the Chamber, be forwarded to his Excellency, Governor
Tilden."