New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1858-05-03

Mr. Charles Devn, after being kicked out
of the Office of Street Commissioner, now has
the effrontery to tender to the Mayor formal
resignation, and magnanimously wlthdraws all legal
proceedings, undertaken or threatened, to sustain
his claim to the place from which he was regularly
expelled two weeks ago. In this post-mortem
letter which be insolenty dates from the Street
Commissioners Office" Mr.. Deylin processes TO
have at heart the interests of the poor aborers and
bis fellow contractors, whom he does not wish
to keep longer cut of work, though he unwittingiy
gives reason more consistent with his character,
in the addition that litigation to test the
regularity of his expulsion might use up
all the term for which Wood appointed
him, so that even if he should win he would
be officially dead before the verdict could be
rendered, and so gain but barren victory at last.
And with one more long lingering look at-the
sour grapes swinging just out bis reach, be further
,sys, that the office and its patronage are not OF
"sufficieht Importance to me to induce me to re-
"open a litigation which, in deprivins so many
" of my friends of employment, would take away
h" from some of them at least the only means of
supporting their families. Influenced BY these
considerations and others nN necessary to be al
q" iuded to, I bave concluded to tender to you my
/" resignation of the office in question
This letter. which was carefully prepared for the
public eye does not give the real reasons which have
induced Mr. Devlin to abandon his struggle for the
flee. The considerations mot necessary to be
" alluded to" explain the true motive. These con-
sderatiops, if rumOr may be relied upoD are, firstly
the payment by the city of all Mr.. Deylins
expenses in fghtiBg Conover, which are
rated at about $2O,0OO and secondly,
the suspension of all proceedings at law
which might result in criminal prosecution or a
civil suit to recover damages for the city against the
great contractor. This supposition is rendered the
more probable from the fact that Mayor Tiemann
has withdrawn from the Grand Jury the papers
containing tie foundation fer the charges made
sgoinst Deylin by the Mayor himself, and on which
he based his removal.
Scarcely three weeks ago the Mayor found it
the frauds charged upon the Street Department
was susceptible of explanation, adding that
his (Devlin's) attention had been called to them,
but he bad failed to say anything, and refused
to answer before Court and in view of all this
Mr.. Tiemann asked his diimissal because it was
80 impossible with any selfrespect, or IN view Of
"our responsibility to the people," to retain
him in Office. He was dismissed not q
single vote appearing in his favor. The papers
were then sent to the Grand jury with view Of
recovering from Devln and other parties interested
(if case could be made) some Of the money wrong
fully or fraudulently paid for alleged street work.
As specimen of the presumptive evidence Of Dew
Inns completely IN such matters, We may mention
that he was the irdorser Of eleven notes drawn by
J. b. Smith, the clerk lately in the Controllers
flee now under examination on charge of for
gerry. These notes amount to 1923, 000 all Of
which were discounted to DeyLn. Up to the time
Of his appointment they amounted to only $1,000;
on the 10th of June last, the day Deylin got pos
session Of the Street Commissioners office, ne in
dorsed Smiths note for s4,25S; aweek afserward,
another for 81, 3O7 three weeks later, $4,000; in
four weeks another for 5000 and on the lst Of
September $1,000 more. The operation seems
to have been suspended only BY the failure Of the
Bowery Bank. Now, Mr.. Deylin, who has pro-
fessed 30 much anxiety TO meet aud confound his
accusers may be perfectly innocent in the matter;
but if so, why did he not show the fact on the ex
animate in the case of Smith, where he had the
best possible opportunity Why did he not then
show that the $4,000 forgery charged upon Smith
bad nothing to do with Charles Devlin's ndOrse-
mehts for Smith and Fernando Wood, then falling
due and going to protest in the bank above men,
tiored Further Investigations into the accounts
of the Street Department have shown that for
years past regular system Of false accounts has
been carried on with the know ledge aud by the
conpivaLee of the contractors; that they have had
their bfibed accomplces in places Of trust so
trained as to deceive the financial officers of the
city and swindle the treasury at pleasure; that
when they had made q miserable sot Of one
young man, they fastened upo0 another, and BY
constant vigilance managed TO keep the way to the
money bags open to those in the secret There 10
Dot shadow of doubt that these fellows for ten
years or more Lave kept up regularly organized
conspiracy to plumber the property owners and the
city st large; that men high in social and financial
standing have been hand and glove with them, aud